Future – ‘Honest’

Steve Shaw: Welcome to the future. (8)

John Twells: Future’s debut album Pluto was my favourite of last year, so he’s hardly a tough sell, especially when he’s crooning over rugged kicks and Hornsby-esque soft-rock piano. It’s not the big departure sound-wise we might have been promised, but ‘Honest’ is Future doing what he does best, and to be frank hearing him freewheeling is better than most rappers pedaling for dear life. (7)

Lauren Martin: I’m glad he changed the album title from Future Hendrix to Honest. It pulls back from that insistent Drake “I’m a descendent of either Marley or Hendrix/I haven’t figured it out ’cause my story is far from finished” vibe, and sits him in a comfortable spot between the breakthrough momentum of Pluto and the ascent to stardom and near total endearment I have figured for him in my head. The lyrics are dull, granted, but the fragility of his voice on the hook rubs up nicely against the more straightforward delivery on the verses, and keeping it a weird piano ballad at heart is a nice nod to tracks like ‘Neva End’, one of his best. If I’m being honest though, I’m a bit gutted that this high life confessional has no mention of his high life boo Ciara. If I was Future I’d want to brag about her all day. (7)

Brad Rose: Considering how much I love Pluto, Future’s newest is high on my ‘most anticipated’ list for the rest of the year.  This first single keeps my excitement up as it’s got Future’s typical rap-sing-song-biz in spades, but production wise it goes to places Pluto did not.  Glitched-up piano and synth loop through minor chords with a ramshackle, bass-heavy beat blasting away at the foundations underneath.  It’s a killer dichotomy and excellent platform form for Future to get the wheels greased.  Usually, I’d find the earnestness that Future espouses to be hacky and silly, but somehow he keeps pulling it off.  (7)

Chris Kelly: Our favorite ATLien applies his struggle falsetto to the repetition of ‘U.O.E.N.O’ — albeit with a beat more intergalactic. And is there a better title for this wave of heart-on-sleeve rappers than ‘Honest’? (6)

7

Haleek Maul – ‘Lobo’ 

Lauren Martin: In all its miserable glory, this Forest Swords production just about mirrors the mind of the 16 year old who made the hairs on the back of my neck spike up the first time I hear him say “No girl I am not okay, just settle down and give me head / Fuck this world why was I born? Wanna kill myself girl give me head”. Immaculately executed with unnerving, underhand cruelty. (9)

John Twells: I can’t say I’ve heard much of Haleek Maul before, but the young’un turns in some good work over Forest Swords’ dusty beat. It’s the beat that I suppose is the main draw, and Matthew Barnes does plenty to distance himself from a litany of other Tri-Angle associated producers dipping their toes into rap production. He sticks to his guns for one, and ‘Lobo’ is at least as weird as anything on his upcoming full-length – Maul’s sneers are just the icing on the cake. (7)

Brad Rose: Good to hear some new rhymes from Maul, but really the story of this tune is the Forest Swords production that absolutely fucking kills. ‘Lobo’ is heavy but not in that overloaded, Sunn0))) sort of way. Matthew Barnes’ palette is fairly skeletal, but everything is rusted shut and cracking like brittle bones. Languid synth swells become black waves washing everything out to sea, drenching the whole track in so much despair it’s almost too much, but really just fucking great. What this means for Maul, I dunno, but it certainly promises good things for the new Forest Swords record. (8)

Steve Shaw: I admire the pairing of this, and it starts great. But then the vocals drop, the double-time harmony stabs come in, and it all quickly sounds like the soundtrack to a big budget action film. Not for me. (6)

Chris Kelly: A real meeting of the downcast minds here. Maul is like a lucid SpaceGhostPurrp, and the drum rolls in Forest Swords’ beat make this one ready for war. (7)

7.4

Murlo & Famous Eno – ‘Ariel’

Chris Kelly: In the year since the release of his bashy Quartz EP, Murlo has focused his soca skills in service of instrumental grime. It’s a perfect fit and this tune could be major. (9)

John Twells: This is the one – rubbery synthesizers, a beat that doesn’t know whether it’s dancehall or grime and the sort of snare that would more usually be found at the front of a marching band. It’s not pretty, it’s not subtle but fuck… sometimes we all need a bit of grit. (8)

Steve Shaw: Overall, I found this all a little too clean and spacious for me; but then, hopefully someone will fill that out over the top with an MC. You can’t argue with that beat, and the flutes are a great touch, but really everything comes down to that DJ Pantha kind of bassline, which immediately gets avid attention from me. (7)

Lauren Martin: The more I listen to this the less I like it. The kick of the bass starts it off a semblance of direction quite nicely, but then the keys come in and it kind of just limply rattles about – unsure of itself and where best to go with what little it has. A tinny and irritating throwaway for me. (4)

7

Future Brown (feat. Tink) – ‘Wanna Party’

Steve Shaw: This whole production scene is just bewilderingly on point. Add Tink and you’re only going to get something even better. (8)

Lauren Martin: Fade To Mind deserve to be superstars and this sounds like such a dream team effort. I really mean team too, because each individual tone is conveyed with deft balance. Fatima Al-Qadiri’s grime-leaning phantasmagoria, Nguzunguzu’s cool sultriness, Mike Q’s dance floor sensibility, J-Cush’s mordant Chi-town attitude that Tink turns into something between a smile and a sneer –  they’re all here, and all complimenting each other too. It’s proof of how strong the Fade To Mind aesthetic is because I’m at a loss as to what to call it. Tag as it “future/forward/killer” on Soundcloud and be done with it. (9)

John Twells: There’s no denying that the talent involved with Future Brown is pretty jaw dropping, and thankfully the list of heavy-hitters deliver the goods with ease. The chiming, icy production is admirable, but it’s Tink who carries ‘Wanna Party’, proving she’s one of the most exciting rappers to emerge from the Chicago proving ground recently. Proper good. (8)

Chris Kelly: This project is the culmination of where the underground has been headed for some time, and its entrée is made even more impressive by featuring one of Chicago’s most compelling new voices. (10)

8.8

Omar Souleyman – ‘Wenu Wenu’ 

Brad Rose: When I heard that Four Tet was producing Souleyman’s new album, I was conflicted.  Sure, there was potential for some serious magic, but it also could go real schlocky pretty quick. Thankfully, ‘Wenu Wenu’ seems to hint at the former with Kieran Hebden pulling all the right punches to give Souleyman a shiny new playground in familiar territory. Sonically it reminds me of a more futurist, club-influenced version of Ten Ragas to a Disco Beat and that’s no bad thing. If you’re a fan of Souleyman, you’ll love this.  If you weren’t a fan before, I could see this swaying some. Hebden is just so on fucking fire throughout the last half of the track that it’ll make anyone want to get the fuck down. Goddamn, bring on the rest of the album already.  (9)

Lauren Martin: From the Omar Souleyman side of things it’s pretty much as expected, but from Four Tet I am really pleasantly surprised. The saying goes “You’re only as good as your last piece of work”, but for Hebden it feels as if he’s potentially gone beyond an awareness of that with this album. Now it’s more a case of: “How can I surprise my own audience, reach out to others and maintain a stylistic sense of self, all whilst suiting and driving forward the subject of the material?” A careful balancing act, sure, and this could have been a complete car crash of ideas, but it’s turned out to be seven minutes of relentless, joyous mania instead. (8)

John Twells: The problem with giving Omar Souleyman a production makeover is that part of the initial draw was the sound of endearingly cheap synthesizers and barely functional drum machines. Thankfully Four Tet doesn’t stray too far from the template, and polishes the edges of Souleyman’s unimpeachable sound without damaging the final product. ‘Wenu Wenu’ is a huge party tune, and who can argue with that? (7)

Steve Shaw: Basically, if you’re worried about hearing Four Tet in this, don’t be. (9)

8.3

Jeremih – ‘Love Hangover’

Chris Kelly: The guys behind ‘Marvin & Chardonnay’ outdid themselves with this beat (and Big Sean is nowhere in sight!) — between this and ‘Ex To See’, Thumpy Johnson should be a treat. (8)

Steve Shaw: Finally, returning to some of the form of Late Nights. Plik-plok beats, soft guitar, sliding keys, clever, sweet lyrics and solid arrangement of the vocals too. Shouldn’t have taken a year to get something like this out of him again though. (8)

Lauren Martin: I hope that this is something of a ‘Body Party’ moment for the kid because Lord knows he needs a solid sound to keep things moving. Late Nights with Jeremih was on heavy rotation for me when it dropped but I feel he’s been searching for a fuller sound for some time now; soaring on some beats and struggled on others. This seems a fair route for him to go down. It’s a stylistic step up from the stripped back elements of Late Nights – and avoids any future parallels with the amped up faux-pathos and serious beta male complex of The Weeknd’s recent misogyny-dirge-disguised-as-R&B in the process – but it doesn’t try and outrun the competition and lose its breath in the process either. Solid effort. (6)

Brad Rose: Late Nights With Jeremih was my favorite mixtape last year and finally helped distinguish Jeremih from the recent crap of new r&b crooners. That mixtape was so good, though, that it was going to make his next moves difficult. His other recent track, ‘Ex To See’ (which was doubly disappointing since the KB produced ‘Outta Control’ on Late Nights was one of of my favorite tunes from 2012) was alright, but didn’t click. ‘Love Hangover’ definitely gets closer to the heights of Late Nights (need more Jeremih/Mike Will Made It collaborations please), but still doesn’t get there. The hook is really good and  Jeremih’s vocals are on form, but most of the rest is just alright. He’s still heading the right direction, though, and Thumpy Johnson has the potential to be great, but there’s still a lot of kinks to work out – ahem. (6)

John Twells: Jeremih’s recent run has been hit-and-miss for me, but ‘Love Hangover’ is an easy win. Following the blueprint established on the Late Nights tape, he lays his silky vocals over a delightfully hazy set of production, and that’s pretty much all I need. Maybe there’s hope for Thumpy Johnson (and Diddy) yet. (7)

7

King Louie – ‘Jeep Music’ 

Chris Kelly: It was only a matter of time before King Louie tried AutoTune on for size. This works surprising well, thanks to a lyrical nod to R. Kelly and an assist by Kelly-devotee Leek. (6)

Steve Shaw: It’s a fucking mess and hands down the most ridiculous song I’ve heard all year, so obviously I absolutely love it. God help you if you see me at a house party near YouTube any time soon. It only gets better if you imagine King Louie off his face, languidly thrusting into the exhaust of his Jeep, while his crew looking on in abject horror and the singer anxiously ad libs to play the whole ordeal down. (8)

John Twells: Louie’s Jeep Music tape has been a massive hit at FACT HQ, and the title track is probably the best example of the Chicago rapper’s clunky robotic R&B. Louie’s is the opposite of Jeremih or Drake’s smooth sad boy crooning, instead taking cues from the R.Kelly-patented sex jams of the 90s, and it’s hard to complain. Against all odds he makes it work, and for that Louie deserves all the praise he gets. (8)

Lauren Martin: I’ve come to see that King Louie has a really endearing way about him. He’s embedded within and driving the drill rap sound in all its muddled and menacing screw-face glory, but he’s also got a tangible sense of witty wordplay that allows him to flit fairly easily from hook-centric party bangers to more allusive, not-quite-love jams like this. His mixtape of the same name has as many moments of brilliance as it does banality, but I think he’s showing real growth and scope as an artist and I’m curious as to whether or not he can push this more R&B-centric sound into label mate Future’s territory. Maybe even cause some friendly stylistic friction between them. Who knows, but it’s sounds pretty good for now. (7)

7.3

Final Scores:

Future Brown (feat. Tink) – ‘Wanna Party’  (8.8)
Omar Souleyman – ‘Wenu Wenu’  (8.3)
Haleek Maul – ‘Lobo’  (7.4)
King Louie – ‘Jeep Music’  (7.3)
Murlo & Famous Eno – ‘Ariel’ (7)
Jeremih – ‘Love Hangover’ (7)
Future – ‘Honest’ (7)