Album Review: Future- Honest

Upon starting my initial listen of auto-tuned singer/rapper Future’s new album, Honest, I said on Twitter that I thought it was good, and I joked that it was possibly “too future.”

And after subsequent listens in the car, where I can actually turn it up without the fear of my bosses hearing the very long utterances of “the N word,” I would say that it is still good (for what it is) and that there is a little too (much) Future throughout the rather lengthy running time.

Future seemingly came out of nowhere. Not that I have my finger on the pulse of every mainstream rapper that comes up, but I first heard about him from a tweet that Tom Krell (How to Dress Well) wrote some time ago. Then Future turned up on one of the finer moments on Miley Cyrus’s Bangerz, the slow jam “My Darling.” And now, here we are, with Future’s very long delayed and gestating second LP.

The roll out leading up to Honest or (“Hunnest” as Future pronounces it) began with the release of the title track as a single, followed by the infectious yet a little irritating “Move That Dope,” followed by the heartfelt “I Won” featuring a somewhat endearing verse by Kanye West, followed most recently by “Benz Frenz” with an impressive guest verse by Andre 3000.

When Honest works, it really works—specifically on all the aforementioned singles. I hesitate to say that the rest of the album is filler, but on the 18 tracks that take up the “Deluxe” edition of the album, there are quite a few songs that fall a little short, with a bulk of the best material coming within the first half.

With executive production handled by “it” man of the moment, Mike Will Made It, Honest starts to sound a little samey at times. There’s little variation between the musical composition of the songs, and it’s all made to come off as huge and expensive sounding. But with Mike Will at the wheel, it is interesting to hear Pharrell Williams step up for a guest verse on “Move That Dope.” Given his late-career renaissance right now thanks to “Happy” and thanks to wearing gigantic hats, it may be easy for some to forget that he has produced countless classic 2000-era hip hop songs, and that at times, he fancies himself a rapper. He even gives his signature hats a shout out.

There are times where Honest comes off as a little disorganized—take for example the awkward fade out on the Drake feature “Never Satisfied.” Clocking in at less than two-minutes, it ends as Drizzy is still rapping the refrain. It’s a track that actually showed some promise, but it practically suffers a crib death.

Despite all of its drug talk, including the song “Covered ‘n Money,” and Pusha T’s full on D-Boy mode with his verse on “Move That Dope,” Honest makes numerous consolations to be accessible to a pop audience—Mike Will’s production values certainly assist in that department, but also in how catchy many of the hooks are in these songs—specifically the breakneck speed at which “Benz Friendz” operates, and as insipid as “Young ni**a move that dope,” repeated over and over again is, “Move That Dope” certain is difficult to get out of your head.

Obviously Future is going to get a big boost from the marquee names he has called in for guest appearances—most notably in the somewhat reclusive Andre 3000, and the ever-present Kanye West. West’s verse on “I Won” is dedicated right to his shawty, Kim Kardashian. He take a shot at her famous exes, as well as to the haters that didn’t really get the “Bound 2,” video. I suppose it’s really as heartfelt as West is going to get—“I wanna dip that ass in gold,” he says, but the entire song sends seems to send a slightly mixed message due to the idea of women being viewed as a “trophies.”

Or maybe that’s meant in the nicest, least misogynistic way possible.

At times, incredibly raunchy (just check the opening track), and at times difficult to understand due his cadence, as well as the added layer of auto-tune, the overall feeling of Honest is triumph over adversity. Future’s breathless delivery at times gives off a feeling of desperation; or possibly relief that he has “made it,” because there is also a slight sense of hope.

Honest isn’t a bad record—the singles are certainly worth listening to, but as a whole, it’s weighed down by a lot of excess—too many songs, “big” production—so it can be a bit of a patience tester. It’s one of many rap records that straddles the line between maintaining a sense of humor, and also taking itself too seriously.

Honest arrives tomorrow via Epic/Free Bandz.