Customer Reviews

Future to Future

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Future 2 Future reunites Herbie Hancock with producer Bill Laswell. You may recall that Hancock and Laswell teamed up together to produce their Grammy winning "Rockit" almost twenty years ago. Future 2 Future avoids the electronica from the Rockit days and relies on Rock, Jazz, Hip Hop and World Music influences. More than half the tracks on this CD include vocals or the spoken word. Most notable of these is "The Essence" which features Chaka Khan's vocals and fine piano work from Hancock. Another standout is Hancock's tribute to Tony Williams. This track includes sampled drum tracks from Williams and some of the finest tenor sax playing from Wayne Shorter since his Weather Report days. The core band includes Charnett Moffett on acoustic bass, Bill Laswell on electric bass, Jack DeJohnette on drums and Wayne Shorter on sax. Herbie Hancock keyboard playing icludes some of his best Fender Rhodes output in years. Pick up this CD if your interested in hearing someone who is trying to take jazz into new and differant directions.

When deciding whether or not one should purchase a newly released Herbie Hancock CD one has to be very clear about which Herbie fan they are: a) the traditional jazz Hancock fan (best exemplified by a more than passing appreciation of albums like "Maiden Voyage" or "Speak Like A Child"), b) contemporary jazz Hancock fan (exemplified by more than a passing appreciation of albums like "Headhunters" and "Future Shock"), or c) a mixture of both. Hancock is a chameleon of styles, forms and histories, and if you're not careful you could pick up the Miles Davis-ian "Inventions and Dimensions" instead of the Kraftwerk-like "Perfect Machine". All that said, this is a record for the b-style fan, and is probably his best offering in this regard since the very good "Future Shock" in 1983.

We've been subjected to some questionable records in this field in the last 15 years from Hancock, most notably "Dis is da drum", but this record seeks less to re-establish Hancock as a fixture on MTV as it does to show new audiences that he's able to do anything, and do it with class and history ever-present. In his corner he has teamed up with the ever-playful-yet-intense Bill Laswell on production and has gone beyond the "Hey! I know some hot undergound acts!" meanderings of other (and sometimes his own) records and found his voice in the styles presented. Hancock plays around grooves, not just bashed out drum machine riffs, and uses artists not as salad dressing (as on "Drum"), but as fitting compliments to the songs offered. I have to admit I was scared when I saw DJ Rob Swift and dance producers Carl Craig and A Guy Called Gerald in the credits, but they work (when the songs are actually good - track 5, "Black Gravity" springs to mind - and when Hancock isn't buried too deep in his own tracks) and the record carried throughout it a sense of daring (with dashes of drum-n-bass, downtempo and hip-hop but all smoothly done and with nice, Marc Carey-like flourishes throughout...which were originally mastered by Hancock back in the 70s in the first place) while giving us some Hancock chops and riffs reminiscent of his Mwandishi period. Good stuff here, folks. Every track doesn't sing, but it's the best "ulterior" Herbie you've heard in a long time. Fusion resurfaces in fine form here enough to justify the purchase IF YOU'RE INTO THE FORM ALREADY. If you're not sure, try some per-1980 Lonnie Liston Smith or Marc Carey ("Rhodes Ahead" preferably) then come back for this.

I'm not sure. I think this is a great work of art. To hear such a great musican working with some very contemporary arrangements....this thing really turns me on. I was driving with that drum and bass with Herbie playing on it...man. This is bad. I mean. Plus with this strange "wisdom of the future" concept going on. Guy Called Gerald? Listen to that 24 Hour Party People thing..."Voodoo Ray" sounds like a reexamination of indigineous perpective in a post-modern frame-work...and that was in 1987..(after that we got FSOL ..but I suppose Peter Gabriel's Security and My Life in the Bush of ghosts does some of that too..)..but with that "house"thing..you get Coil's "solar lodge"...I don't know man....In a way..THIS piece seems like a group of musicians that have been decades beyond of their contemporaries joining to together to check out "today" ..which just happens to be hot as hell and cool. but...I would like to see another project like this where pure feeling and having confidence in contempoary styles like drum and bass,etc...they can even feel free to even move past that. I think that is something Miles Davis would do. i also think this record is something that Miles davis would have liked very much actually. But...it is pretty intellectual...I don't think it is mainstream. Interesting that Drum and Bass is "mainstream" for these guys. I think this could be a required disc for musicains working with electronics these days. I did enjoy burning my tongue on this.

WARNING: IF YOU WANT TO HEAR THE OLD HERBIE, GO AND BUY THE OLD HERBIE. THE FUTURE IS HERE!!!!

The Future is here in music production and Herbie has taken it upon himself to jump on the light of electronic beats and rhythms. For me in my continued search of SOMETHING DIFFERENT, this one blows me out the water. Herbie Hancock, to me, was the kat who always brought that edge to jazz and didn't mind stretching out to new genres for more creativity. 'Future 2 Future' covers hip-hop cuts & scratching (he was the 1st to give that to the public on wax with Rock-it) on the track 'This Is Rob Swift' featuring the man himself Rob Swift. It covers drum & bass on one track I can't get enough of 'Black gravity' featuring one of my favorite D&B DJ's 'A Guy Called Gerald' (go get his CD). Herbie's venerable mind and musical talent has won me over with this one. Chaka Khan who is known for crossing musical genres, lays the sweetest vocals over the drum & bass track 'The Essence' which had me bouncing around the room when I first heard it. Herbie hooked up with a gang of producers and artist to give you the elite in acid jazz, Down Tempo, drum & bass, and hip-hop over jazz tunes. Honestly, this is one of the best pick-ups all year for me. I can't see myself putting this one down. My favorite tracks are all of them, but the stand out tracks are: 'The Essence', 'Black Gravity', 'Be Still', and Ionosphere. To all electronic lovers reading this, GET THIS!

oNe

Herbie Hancock and Bill Laswell (whose work with Public Image Limited and Jah Wobble are in and of themselves worthy of recognition) team up once again to produce yet another groundbreaking work twenty years after "Future Shock," the recording whose "Rockit" single thrust HH into the mainstream eye once again. This time, however, insted of pandering so much to percieved public tastes, Herbie Hancock allows his own vision to reign, resulting in a rather cohesive work that is inspiring, groovy, thought-provoking, and pleasent to listen to.

"Keboro (Part I)" is an inspiring choral introduction, while "Wisdom" is a provocative spoken-word peice. Both of these songs lead into the groovy "The Essence," a song that features some excellent vocals. "This is Rob Swift" would be a fine song were it not for the annoyingly overproduced (and overused) scratching. "Black Gravity" is another low point, a rather forgettable peice. Herbie Hancock quickly redeems himself with the free-flowing "Tony Williams," a song that features both more excellent vocalisations and extremely impressive saxaphone work. "Be Still" is an okay enough peice, but sounds a bit too much like a retread of "Tony Williams." "Ionosphere" is a smooth, ambient song, one that is extremelly relaxing. "Kebero (Part II) builds impressivelly upon "Kebero (Part I), allowing the concepts that were introduced in the first song to build upon themselves, develop and mature. This blends smoothly into "Alphabeta," a cool, danceable track that is both sparse and intricate. "Virtual Hornets" closes out the disc, a very clean jazz/hip-hop/rock fusion track.

As a long time jazz lover, I was thrilled to see something new from Mr. Hancock. The recording is amazing! Kebero makes the walls feel like their tumbling in... Tony Williams, in my opinion, is the best song on the CD. I really like The Essence and Virtual Hornets, as well. As for the rest of it, I find it hard to "feel". I can appreciate electronica and many artists pull it off with enormous feeling (although somewhat different, MMW is a great example). I think I was looking for less sound and more substance. I think some of Mr. Hancock's magic got lost in the experimentation.

Something old, something new, something borrowed....oh never mind! Look this CD is better than most of your reviewers give it cedit for. It's wonderfully recorded, funky as hell and yes it really does sound NEW. Herbie has done this before (hence the name of this review) with Future Shock and other efforts but this one is very good indeed. The stand out track has to be "Tony Williams" with a sampled drum track from the master himself-wow! The vocals on the CD are ordinary with Chaka Khan sounding like she sent in her performance by email but really the sheer funkiness of it all carries you along. Want your body moved as well as your brain? Buy this CD because it has vastly more musical integrity and invention than 90% of what passes for funk/hip-hop/soul etc these days.

HH has long been a great musician and has always moved forward, like the always-changing Miles he spent a lot of time playing with. here, herbie has both embraced many elements of todays music, and possible that of the future (hence the title), and has provided great music w/ wonderful grooves. My personal favorite is the track "tony williams", a tribute to his drummer. when tony and bill (laswell) come in on drums and bass, the funky groove provided is absolutely spine-tingling. While, due to personal tastes, i dont love ever track on the cd, i still find it great to see herbie moving forward like he has always done, and not falling into the trap that others w/ potential (like wynton marsalis, for example (and i now open myself to much criticism)) have done, in only playing music of the past. great music, sure, but herbie is willing to take music beyond music and into the artform, where he can really say something, and its very refreshing to see him do this, and to find something new worth listening to, w/out the excess of cliches. when i first bought the cd, i had my doubts, as im sure many HH fans do, but i am definitely glad that i have bought it.

This album is not as fresh as some of Herbie's best stuff, but it is from a man who is rapidly exhausting the supply of new fields to work in. "Tony Williams" is an outstanding example of classic Hancock but other tracks explore new ground. Herbie has always liked a groove, and with "This is Rob Swift" he doesn't disappoint! - turn the bass up and hope your speakers aren't "peak-i-peak-i-peaky"! The accompanying style he uses to wrap a layer of jazz around all tracks is as fluid as ever - never too demanding. There's no point in recommending another record above this one as it different from all previous work, but the essence of the recording releases itself in live concert, where Hancock shows all of the funky soul that made him the legend he is. Other work? If you are a classical jazz fan, you won't find much better than "Maiden Voyage" although "Gershwin's World" is also worth a look. Funk? "Headhunters" is my all-time favourite album, but "Future 2 Future" is fresh and as good as any of his releases in the last 20 years. Buy it, he is a legend.

...at least, to whatever extent five years is "the test of time."

I got this CD quite by accident sometime around 2004, and at first, it took me a while to get into it. My initial reaction was much like some of the naysayers here: too cheesy, too much spoken word/DJ/electronica, etc. It's the only CD I own that sounds anything like this; I'm really not an electronica or even jazz fusion fan. And I don't care about the 'future' concept.

However, that was then, now is now. Today, I listen to Future 2 Future all the time. It hasn't gotten old. So what happened?

First, the grooves simply reeled me in. The rhythm section is straight-up funky, especially the laid-back drums and keys. Second, the tracks are original. Each is clearly unique in sound, feel and textures, yet fits nicely with the whole. Third, on a related note, the tracks are well-arranged: they always keep shifting, subtly, until they say enough, then they're over. Good crafting is no small feat. From track to track and within each track, there's always something fresh around the corner. No getting stuck in looped nonsense as is so often the case with electronic music

Highly recommended. Great music to relax to.