The Weeknd - Starboy

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The new king of sensual pop is back. The Weeknd's new album Starboy shows a growth of his character and sound.

Starboy is an album about fame and its intricacies. The album begins with the eponymous single 'Starboy,' which admittedly sounds a lot better on the album that it does as a standalone single. Perhaps its a new mix or just the context, but 'Starboy' sounds great, exceeding our original thoughts. The Weeknd and Daft Punk put together a very solid song. 'Starboy' is a good representation of the album to come, sensual and somewhat threatening at its core. The song itself is a realization of fame, but negatively and positively. It's about grandiose but also about an internal anger, the chorus lines "Look what you've done / I'm a motherfuckin' starboy" ringing both proudly and with contempt.

'Party Monster' follows through with a darker composition, sweet melodies ringing above dark synths. The song follows up with the story of 'Starboy,' The Weeknd singing about his need for a girl who already has another man. The song reaches an epic climax in its bridge, great melodies resonating hauntingly above The Weeknd's singing. The bridges on the album really take many songs to another level - later on the record comes the punchy 'A Lonely Night.' This one has a lot more of a poppy flair, sweet melodies keeping the upfront synths bouncing until the bridge, where synths explode with huge amounts of bass for a huge experience.

There are plenty of moments on the record where a poppier atmosphere takes over. Songs like 'Secrets' and 'True Colors' rings slowly and sweetly, while others like 'Love To Lay' go into fully infectious tones. 'Lay' is a fun song, upbeat percussion driving the song powerfully throughout its length. The album ends on a sweet note, as well: 'Die For You' returning the dreamy vibes and combining it with the infectious flairs of previous tracks before Daft Punk returns for the finale 'I Feel It Coming,' bursting with funk.

Starboy has a statement to deliver, however. It becomes most apparent firstly in 'Reminder,' which is really a big "fuck you" to those labelling him as a sell-out for abandoning his darker influences. Its chill composition allows for The Weeknd to gracefully diss his haters. Similarly, 'Sidewalks' is the story of The Weeknd's and Kendrick Lamar's upbringings, Lamar absolutely smashing his verse in the track, as he does. Anything he touches turns to gold. The album treads away from the negatives of fame, too, taking in the extravagance of it all, another "fuck you" to the haters: 'Rockin'' has a lot of groove and sweet melodies that make the message about a fun relationship sound great, and Lana del Ray helps 'Stargirl Interlude' sound weird and oddly sensual as the lyrics call for the starboy's lover.

Starboy isn't a perfect album, however. In trying to become something different, there's always moments of awkward transition. Such is the case of 'False Alarm,' a song we didn't originally enjoy. It's gotten a bit better since, but the great verses can't save the off putting choruses. The screaming really doesn't suit him. Most of the collaborations are good, but, as always, Future is hit or miss. He provides backup on 'Six Feet Under,' where he's tolerable, though his instrumental influence can be heart in the beat, and there's 'All I Know,' where he absolutely trashes the flow and great melodies. Other songs like 'Attention' and 'Nothing Without You' just don't have any memorable merit to them.

The Weeknd is the newest threat in the pop world, and he's here to stay for quite some time. Starboy is in a eclectic record, bringing his past sound to something new while still maintaining the dark sensuality that made him famous. It's not perfect, but it's a solid transition. What's great about The Weeknd is that he isn't afraid to take risks, and that's what Starboy is all about. There's no moving forward if you can't be ready to take a step back.

Favorite Tracks: Rockin', Starboy, Sidewalks, Love To Lay

Least Favorite Tracks: Stargirl Interlude, Attention

Rating: 79 / 100

Future - Used To This (ft. Drake)

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I've had a decent break from Future lately, which I really needed. I was getting really sick of him - he was on everything. You listen to any hip-hop record, Future's there. You go for a trip to mall, Future's playing. You look right - you guessed it. Future's probably standing right there.

Desiigner has been building off the sound and he's someone I can finally get behind since he's added some melody to his music. Taking a break from Future has allowed me to take a refreshing new look into his new single, 'Used To This.'

Too my surprise, it's actually a good song. There's a sort of love-or-hate relationship I have with his music, but this track was a clear winner. The song's instrumental isn't empty and solely consisting of the same spidery and bass synths, but instead features a pretty catchy and pretty piano line that isn't too simple such that it keeps your attention. The beat is standard and the bass accompaniment is still there, but it's behind the piano and it's a really refreshing palette to come into. Perhaps producer Zaytoven is to thank, but regardless, it's a new sound.

The verses themselves are expected, but they're not annoyingly spit and have flow. The song's about Future and Drake being at the top of their genre, the hook of the track revolving around partying and the products of their successes: "Get the llama, I party with the real Madonna (yeah)... Drop-top Porsches, I'm so used to this... Mansion in the hills, I got used to this." Future's verses are expected of him, all about the party life and riches. Drake's verse is also expected, but that means it's pretty humbling. Putting aside the Drake has a lot more variation in his flow (and a lot less noticeable, presumably "aesthetic" autotune), he also covers his family and friends and how he keeps them in his mind and will always be able to thank them for where he is.

'Used To This' tackles two sides to fame: what's on the surface and what one should keep in mind. Future and Drake both take their respective sides, which isn't something special, but the song itself is a nice mix. It's a step in the right direction for Future - interesting and edging away from the sound he's had for his last three releases. EVOL didn't hit hard, but maybe this next record will. Future's been taking his time with this one, so that means something's coming. Beast Mode 16 is coming soon, and this track can only mean good things are to come.

Rating: 81 / 100

Usher - Hard II Love

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Usher is a household name all around the world. He's earned it - his brand of R&B blended with pop has made him a sensation. You know you've made it in pop when you're a coach on The Voice. His eighth album Hard II Love is here, and you'd expect it to show a masterful show of his skills. Sadly, that's not the case.

Hard II Love is far from his magnum opus. If anything, it might be one of the weakest records in his discography. This sprouts from nothing more than the fact that the album is just plain underwhelming. Bollywood star Priyanka Chopra says on an interlude following the abrupt ending to opening track 'Need U', "Everybody wants somebody that's got confidence. He should make me feel safe, make me laugh. Everything about him should feel sexy. His walk, his talk. He's gotta be effortless, you know? Not trying too hard." Unfortunately for Usher, he is literally the opposite of that.

It doesn't help that he puts on a bad-boy attitude immediately after that little conversation piece. You'd think something a little more sincere than "Everybody wants somebody that's got confidence. It's in her attitude, the way she walks, nice legs. She's gotta be beautiful. Nice thin waist, fat ass. Oh, and those soft little lips." That's exactly how the following track 'Missin U' begins, and the writing isn't any better than the start. The instrumental has some edge to it, which is good, but the writing is so blatantly uncreative and overly self-confident that it's just annoying to listen to.

These bad-boy attempts don't stop there. He's trying so desperately hard to be Drake on a lot of tracks. He even got Future on this album (on 'Rivals', which really isn't too bad). 'No Limit' sounds like a satire, though it's regrettably a very serious track. Instead of Future he has Young Thug on this song, and he's okay. It's encouraging to see Usher's hip-hop roots come back, but this isn't exactly the way for that to happen. He channels the most annoying sides of himself in the thick of the album; 'FWM' is just plain obnoxious (we've heard this song in about 300 different ways in the past). Just when you think his attitude could get worse, he drops the line "All I think about is bitches" in the most hilariously retrospective way he could've possibly delivered that line. Instead of saying something meaningful, he just revealed his own dickishness in one line.

There really isn't much to praise on this album. There are some sweet moments, some okay moments, but everything's swallowed in a storm of bad moments. 'Downtime' is the one song that's wholly enjoyable, its sweet vibes and ending harmonies making something beautiful that gives the song a surreal feeling. The background vocals of the chorus are lo-fi add a lot of dimension to the atmospheric piano, the great chorus leading into a brilliant set of vocal harmonies that make way for a hip-hop influenced second verse. The song ends with that beautiful array of harmonies and the pulsing bass synth, ending the song on a blissful note.

That song is the only one that's strong from start to finish. Maybe "strong" isn't the right word... "evocative" is more correct. Lots of the tracks have their good moments, but they all fall short in some way or another. It's hard to find these moments between standard and forgettable tracks like 'Crash'. 'Tell Me' towards the end of the record has a great build up... but that build up happens over the course of eight minutes. It's way too slow of a build up to justify it being eight minutes; its like he didn't understand how to make the song progress in a fashion that he wanted it, so he spread it out for a long time so he could get what he wanted. There's some nice guitar in the title track 'Hard II Love', but again it doesn't amount to anything. The album's ending is perhaps the most anti-climactic song of all; 'Champions', the album's lead up single, closes it out, and the potentially great and chilled experiment becomes the worst possible ending this already boring album could have.

Usher is the R&B king. That begs the question: what happened here? Why is Hard II Love so... hard to love? Usher got too cocky. It's not right to assume his personality, or anyone's, for that matter, but he builds his own image of himself on this record, and it's not kind. It's trite and downright boring. Usher may be losing his crown soon.

Favorite Track: Downtime

Least Favorite Tracks: Mind Of A Man, FWM, Champions, Need U

Rating: 42 / 100 

Young Thug - JEFFERY

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In hip-hop, your influences are almost like your gods. They are the foundations of what came before you, and the reason that you can flourish in the industry today. Young Thug pays homage to his idols in his new mixtape, JEFFERY. Most tracks are named after someone he has idolized, making the album feel like a dedication record.

JEFFERY sees Young Thug tackling some of his most diverse work. All tracks (barring the conclusion track) is named after someone he has idolized or worked with: the album begins on 'Wyclef Jean', dedicated to the Haitian rapper (who actually has a feature later on the record), and channels Wyclef's reggae roots. The track is fun and features a lot of Caribbean elements. Wyclef Jean features later on the record on the album in 'Kanye West' (previously titled 'Elton John', 'Wet Wet', and 'Pop Man'), which feels like more of a glorified Kanye track than anything else. 'Guwop' praises the roots of trap music - another track shouting out the originator of a genre - being a praise of fellow rapper Gucci Mane. The track is a pretty chill one, if not a bit silly.

Young Thug sends some love to some of his peers, too. Despite his past beef with him, 'Future Swag' is dedicated to the man himself, Future. Despite how sick I am of Future being literally everywhere this year, this does sound like one of his better tracks. 'RiRi' is a nod to Rihanna, and is just about as annoying as 'Work' is - Thugga literally sounds like a seal throughout this track. A nod to producer Swizz Beats is found in the track named after him, but the track sees Young Thug singing and it just doesn't fit too well.

How could this album be complete without memes? There are a couple of songs dedicated to pop culture references, the first of which is 'Floyd Mayweather', the boxer who rose to fame in a major match earlier this year. It's hard to tell if this track is a slam at him or a celebration of him - the boxer is known to have been in cohorts with Young Thug in the past, almost signing to his record label. He didn't in the end, and the song is all about the living a life in luxury. Of course, the album has a shoutout to the current meme phenomenon 'Harambe', and while the title is relevant, the song doesn't really say much about the controversy of him in any form (gun control, animal rights, etc.) and is nearly downright annoying with all of the ad libs and raspy, yelled vocals. The instrumental is phenomenal, though.

There are some great instrumental moments on the record. 'Webbie' has a very dramatic and almost pretty soundscape, taking turns between pulsating synths and a ringing beat and a refined beat behind sweet piano. The final track 'Pick Up The Phone' with Quavo has the best relationship of instrumental and vocals on the record. The song is credited as being a collaboration between both Thugga and Travi$ Scott (he basically just does the ad libs - he has a verse on 'Floyd Mayweather' that will satisfy his fans more). The vocals and instrumental flow as a pair; the track has a punchy and almost aqueous synth that compliments the vocals almost perfectly. It becomes a grander, richer synth that follows a dark progression to end out the album on, almost abruptly. The ending could've been more fulfilling, but it's definitely suitable.

Young Thug may have his reputation in hip-hop, but he's well aware of what, and, more importantly, who brought him there. JEFFERY is a dedication album, a mixtape consisting of tracks named after his idols and peers. It also feels like it's his own personal statement, a mark that puts his name down in history. The mixtape's title was originally No, My Name Is Jeffery, as if to say that we should be looking at who he is, rather than his name. It's a humble album, perhaps not his best work, but certainly some of his most important.

Favorite Tracks: Pick Up The Phone, Wyclef Jean, Webbie

Least Favorite Track: RiRi

Rating: 72

DJ Khaled - Major Key

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Have you ever wanted to listen to a meme? DJ Khaled has you covered. His new album, coincidentally titled Major Key is exactly that: one giant meme. So unless you're going into this album wanting that, you won't be happy.

You can tell an album is destined for failure when Future is featured on three tracks. That's three tracks too many. Opinions aside, Future isn't the worst part about this record. He's pretty good on it, honestly - he's finally improving. His bars actually have some emotion in them. The intro is a banger - 'I Got The Keys' features him, and while his chorus is nothing more than saying the title of the song over and over again, his voice sounds more (unnecessarily?) urgent than usual, which is nice and refreshing. Jay-Z features on the track as well - as the instrumental suggests - and brings the song a step further.

Other features are hit or miss. Drake doesn't shine here; his usual subtlety is gone and instead, he delivers a very, very blatant verse about sex in 'For Free' that kills the entire track (though all of the Khaled interjections of "ANOTHER ONE" didn't leave for much to be appreciated). Nicki Minaj is as annoying as typical, but when she come in on 'Do You Mind', it gives the album a fresh voice. The song itself, however, outstays its welcome by being far too long than it needs to be. Meghan Trainor is the other prominent female voice on the album in 'Forgive Me Father', though this doesn't mean much since you can barely understand what she is saying half of the time as she slurs her way through the verse. This song ends DJ Khaled's portion of his own album (you read that right), since a track by Mavado (which is in Spanish?) concludes it. 'Nas Album Done' featuring - you guessed it - Nas continues a repetitive album with another repetitive instrumental (while the verses themselves aren't as dull).

While a lot of the features aren't top notch, there are some good ones. The aforementioned features on the first track with Jay-Z and Future are pretty good. Future shows up on two other tracks - 'Fuck Up The Club', where he's just plain annoying, and 'Ima Be Alright', which is sweet and melodic. 'Holy Key' is a big track, Big Sean going big on his verse, and Kendrick Lamar of course being nothing short of legendary. J. Cole also has a good verse on 'Jermaine's Interlude', but the song itself is fairly boring.

Instrumentally, there's nothing special to find either in many tracks. Some standouts include 'I Got The Keys', 'Holy Key', and 'Don't Ever Play Yourself' - the latter of which isn't as meme-worthy as you'd expect. It can't be praised lyrically (then again, neither can a lot of this record; "She so weird I made her pussy fart" in 'Pick These Hoes Apart' is by far the worst thing I've heard this entire year), but it has some good sounds in it, including the piano.

The self-proclaimed Snapchat king has taken his memes and put it to music. Major Key isn't much to tackle. It almost feels like one big joke. There's little interesting development within in and too few great moments for its execution. Perhaps DJ Khaled needs to have a reality check before his next release.

Favorite Tracks: Holy Key, I Got The Keys, Ima Be Alright

Least Favorite Tracks: Pick These Hoes Apart, Tourist, Fuck Up The Club

Rating: 58 / 100

Desiigner - 'Tiimmy Turner'

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Desiigner didn't exactly come in guns blazing with his debut project New English, released late last month. There was lots of criticism for it - and apparently he didn't want anything less than perfect remarks on it (sorry, man). He's back with his response to the haters, though. 'Tiimmy Turner' is his first new track since the mixtape's release, and it's his best song yet.

My major gripe with New English was that it sounded exactly like Future, an artist who, at this point, I am just completely sick of. His unchanging, monotonous flow and his tendency to rip himself off with every song is getting old. 'Tiimmy' feels different than that. Desiigner finally has an original sound he's starting to wrap himself around with now.

Now, I can't pass it up without saying; yes, the Future sound isn't completely gone. The intro and the second verse especially have Future written all over it. But this track has something that makes it bearable - replayable, even - that Future lacks. This song has a mood. Desiigner sings on this track and the melody is just fantastic. It has the progression of a spiritual chant, and really sets a creepy and brooding mood for the song. The way the bass synth imitates that line is also fantastic. The chorus also has a sense of melody to it that Desiigner didn't explore much with in New English, and it really does work for him. It sounds great - the Future rap style is passable with this because the entire song isn't the same exact sound and flow. There are clear differences and it really gives the track some integrity.

Another part of the track I love is the instrumental. The entire song has a progressive instrumental, beginning dark and plays to the mood of the vocal melody he sets up. The entire intro section is a cappella and sounds you could make with the human body - a bare bones approach to a track that grows over time. Snaps make way to a ghastly choir, backed by synths and a piano. Synths build up over time, punching in and out, making way for different elements. The best part of the instrumental, however, is the ending. Halfway through the final chorus, the instrumental changes completely. It develops a more positive resolution, as if its brining Desiigner into a new light. The song feels like an awakening, the instrumental being the revelation. The synth solo at the end is also a brilliant touch.

'Tiimmy Turner' is without a doubt Desiigner's best song. It isn't obnoxious like 'Panda', it doesn't rip off Future, and it feels original. It sounds fresh and new, something hip-hop hasn't heard in a long time. The way he plays with melody really accentuates the choruses and allows for the classic Future style of the verses to exist as independent flows. If Desiigner follows this direction, he's bound for success. This is his niche. Let's hope he doesn't miss that.

Rating: 87 / 100 

Desiigner - New English

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The new kid on the block Desiigner has slowly been making a name for himself, his hit 'Panda' giving him some success as well as featuring on Kanye's latest album. His latest contribution was on the 'Champions' single from G.O.O.D. Music. Now, he's finally offered up his first collection of material with his debut mixtape, New English. Listening to it will have you wishing we were back in the time where he was just a random feature.

2016 hasn't seen such a blatant ripoff yet. New English sounds exactly like content from Future, who I've come to be sick of lately with his monotonous flow, which Desiigner copies to a science. It goes as far as the beats and production style of the track, everything sounds like Future. Right after the Disney scene sounding 'Intro' comes 'Caliber', which honestly had me check if there was a Future feature on it. But no, it's just Desiigner copying flow and style. Even the atmospheric beat and sharp hi hats come straight from him. The track ends abruptly too, oddly going from the rolling verse into the piano intro of the next track. The ad libs found throughout this track, as well as 'Panda' which closes the tape ruin both tracks too. When listening through the first time, I didn't even register the run from 'Shooters' to 'interlude 1', and when I tuned back in on 'Talk Regardless', it sounded exactly the same as the rest of the album has. Funny enough, that's what happens when I listen to Future, too.

There are few moments where Desiigner steps out of the Future flow. 'Make It Out' has a different style of rap, but while it doesn't take from Future, it steals from Tyler, The Creator instead. The only interesting track on the entire record is 'Da Days', a surprisingly complex song with different sections and an appropriate instrumental. Milly.CTD starts the track off sounding dejected, with a spidery piano sounding behind his verse. The song builds up until about half way through, where a new beat and synth kick in. The Future flow returns but it seems to fit with this track, the urgency and haunting nature of the beat making it work.

Desiigner hasn't found his own style he's comfortable with yet. Perhaps he was worried his flow wouldn't work well on his first release, and tried to emulate someone else's style to justify his lack of confidence. Whatever the case, New English can't be chocked up to anything more than a ripoff. Will he find his own space before his next release? We can only hope.

Favorite Track: Da Day

Least Favorite Tracks: pretty much everything else (Jet, Shooters, Monstas & Villains)

Rating: 52 / 100

Ariana Grande - Dangerous Woman

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“Badass” is probably not the first word that comes to your mind when discussing Ariana Grande, but her new album may change that. Dangerous Woman is a confident, huge pop record that brings good-girl Ariana Grande to a whole new level.

The album begins almost deceptively. ‘Moonlight’ opens the record on a sweet key introduction followed by gooey vocals and light orchestration. This song is almost lullaby-esque, a quiet and sweet introduction to the album. ‘Moonlight’ doesn’t exactly embody the whole “danger” factor of the album’s title. It has some great vocal work and is by no means a bad song, but it doesn’t go with the record. After ending on a plethora of harmonies, the badass kicks in with ‘Dangerous Woman’. It starts similar quiet as the song preceding it, but explodes into a confident and threatening track. Ariana has some amazing belts throughout the track, especially at the end of the track, which is just fantastically huge. Ariana has lots of amazing vocal moments on the record: ‘Leave Me Lonely’ in particular, as a whole, is a stellar vocal performance. ‘Greedy’ is another stellar song on the record, which is driven by huge amounts of groove and soul (complimented by the giant harmonies on the track). Not to mention, the song is pretty much how my girlfriend and I act about our time together (I love you, Halli!). Ariana isn’t afraid to get a bit dirty on this record, either; ‘Touch It’ brings a personal and sensual touch to the end of the record, while ‘Everyday’ explores love as a drug (or just drugs in general, it’s pretty hard to tell with this one). The guest spots - which, honestly, I expected to be awful - weren't half bad, either. Nikki Minaj and Future both held their weight on their tracks, and in style. Future was actually interesting, for once! It's a miracle!

The downfall of this record is that amidst all of the great moments on it, more than half the tracks just have nothing going for them. Every track is different and infectious in their own right, but there’s just no big punch to them that, as a record that is to exude confidence and strength, just don’t help the album progress. The latter half of the album has a bunch of bland songs, including the closing ‘Knew Better / Forever Boy’ and ‘Thinking Bout You’, which was perhaps the worst decision for the album. Those songs are just so bland and average, it ends an album that started so strong on a disappointing note.

Dangerous Woman is definitely a big jam of a record, despite its shortcomings. There are lots of huge pop bangers on it that will dominate the airwaves soon enough. If only the album was more cohesive in its theming, could it be a real statement. Every track has it’s own charm (whether it be the cheesy guitar licks in ‘I Don’t Care’ or punchy chords of ‘Bad Decisions’) that gives this album personality, though. It can’t be faulted. It’s a good record, but no masterpiece.

Favorite Tracks: Dangerous Woman, Greedy, Touch It, Into You

Least Favorite Tracks: Knew Better / Forever Boy, Thinking Bout You

Rating: 7/10

1st Quarter Of 2016 in Music - Wrap Up

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2016 is off to an extremely strong start. Here’s just a list of all of the new albums I’ve listened to from January to March and links to reviews, if applicable.

Doing it a bit different this time, doing it by rating, from greatest to worst. Alphabetical just seemed trivial.

5-Star Albums (8.5 - 10)

4-Star Albums (6.5 - 8)

3-Star Albums (4.5 - 6)

2-Star Albums (2.5 - 4)

  • Killswitch Engage - Incarnate: 4
  • Cozz - Nothin Personal: 3.5

1-Star Albums (0 - 2)

  • None! :D

 

Top Albums Of 2016 (so far)

  1. AURORA - All My Demons Greeting Me As A Friend
  2. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor
  3. Deftones - Gore
  4. Dream Theater - The Astonishing
  5. Foxes - All I Need
  6. Daughter - Not To Disappear
  7. Lacey Sturm - Life Screams
  8. HÆLOS - Full Circle
  9. Weezer - Weezer (White Album)
  10. LIGHTS - Midnight Machines

Top Songs Of 2016 (so far)

  1. AURORA - 'Murder Song (5, 4, 3, 2, 1) (Acoustic)'
  2. Panic! At The Disco - 'Emperor's New Clothes'
  3. Deftones - 'Hearts/Wires'
  4. Foxes - 'Better Love'
  5. Lacey Sturm - 'Rot'
  6. AURORA - 'Through The Eyes Of A Child'
  7. Deftones - 'Phantom Bride'
  8. Dream Theater - 'Moment Of Betrayal'
  9. Daughter - 'New Ways'
  10. Jack Garratt - 'My House Is Your Home'

Thanks for reading my reviews and following! :) A lot more to come, I’m nowhere near stopping. Follow me on Twitter or add me on Facebook too, while you’re at it.

Future - EVOL

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Atlanta-native hip hop artist Future just released his third major album in under a year, other releases including 2015′s DS2 and his collaboration with Drake, What A Time To Be Alive. He also released a mixtape in January, entitled Purple Reign. With major releases one after another after the success of DS2, Future became the fastest hip hop artist to get three consecutive number one albums on the Billboard 100. Sadly, throughout all the hype, Future still can’t deliver much substance. EVOL continues his journey through success but also continues to saturate his sound.

Future’s music is catchy and good to vibe out too, that goes without saying. The problem with this album is that every beat sounds the same. It’s the same programmed 16th note hi-hat and snare hit in each song, with the deep underground beats doing essentially the same thing. Every song does have a different synth line on top of it that proves to be interesting at times. ‘Maybach’ has a particularly interesting synth line that sounds like they programmed an acoustic guitar progression over the synth. There are some big moments in the instrumentals, but that’s basically all of the good moments of the album. ‘Lil Haiti Baby’, the album’s success story, is pretty big with a big band section in the background blaring horns like it’s the theme song of “Rocky”. ‘Fly Shit Only’ has an interesting instrumental too it, as well, the only thing stopping the acoustic guitar backing from being great is the excessive clipping in it. ‘Seven Rings’ has a pretty thick beat and a great, atmospheric middle eastern bell vibe going on.

Another problem in much of Future’s music is that most of his raps lack any conviction. In songs like ‘Seven Rings’, he goes hard, rapping as if he believes in his message. Other songs such as ‘In Her Mouth’ just sound like he’s reading off a paper, without any message in his voice, as if he’s doing it just to get the payments in. He has an acceptable flow throughout his music that has come to characterize him, as well as his taking to minimalistic and distant instrumentals. He doesn’t like to edge away from his trademark flow and experiment, sadly. The album doesn’t contain much singing, except for in ‘Low Life’, where The Weeknd is featured. That would usually mean something huge, with one of 2015′s biggest artists guesting on your track. However, the lyrics don’t fit it at all. His singing is too sensual for the track and the words he’s getting across. Sampling wise there isn’t too much going on, besides the miserable use of the overused sample in ‘Lie To Me’ that automatically makes the song a failure.

Future’s new album EVOL is a blessing to Future fans, as they’re getting more new material than they can handle within the last year. Unfortunately, with this influx of music and a lack of experimentation, Future brings little to offer. There are some big tracks on the album and from a listener’s standpoint, it’s quite enjoyable is you take any track separately. Altogether, it just becomes boring and hard to get through. Hopefully Future takes some time to work on his next effort, in order to make his material more diverse.

Favorite Tracks: Fly Shit Only, Seven Rings, Lil Haiti Baby

Least Favorite Tracks: Lie To Me, Program, Xanny Family, Low Life

Rating: 4.5/10