Customer Reviews

Much Better Tomorrow

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This album was originally recorded as an EP and released about seven years ago, right around the time that Dr. Octagon came out, and though it may distress some fans of Dan or Keith, it is superior to that release in most ways. That's saying quite a bit, because the worst you could say about Octagonycologist is that it's pretty good, and this release (expanded to an LP through the addition of a couple of new tracks) should live up to the billing for just about any fan.
There's no doubt that a collaboration between Kool Keith and Dan the Automator sounds like a good idea, but there were several points on the Dr. Octagon recording where Keith just didn't sound comfortable with what he was doing. Fortunately, that problem was remedied in the Sinister 6000 sessions (done at the same time) which generated all of his tracks on this disc. Instead of short, choppy lyrics which, in many cases, don't even express a whole idea, you've got a flowing synthesis between lyrics and beats. Even Keith's usually insufferable penchant for throwing short, annoying hooks in his songs has been somewhat reigned in--while the hooks are still there, they're much less obtrusive and better incorporated into each track.
On the whole, A Much Better Tomorrow turns out to prove itself much better than a lot of what has been produced then AND now. The beats are creative, the arrangements are well executed, and the whole album is an experience even more satisfactory than classics in the genre like Octagon. Any fan will be more than satisfied with this purchase, and even those who are new to the scene should find something to enjoy.

years ago, "a better tomorrow" EP was released by the automator. it kinda sucked, so years later, he released "a MUCH better tomorrow" with more tracks, and making itself into a full LP. tony hawk underground players would be familiar with the first track, "a better tomorrow part 1". although it's the automator's solo project, his good friend kool keith is a frequent guest on the mic, as well as a few others including poet and neph. the instrumentals are good, but sometimes get old, but once you hear some of the kool keith tracks, and neph's track "wiling" you really discover that this album is a great underground classic. automator once again mixes at his best, being experimental and still including great beats, and kool keith still comes up with weird unique lyrics that make him addictive. it looks like a much better future for the automator and company.

I first heard Handsome boy modeling school back in 2000, and being a singer/songwriter fan I wan't much akeen to hip-hop. When I heard that record I was thrown for a loop, the matter of what The Automator creates(no offence to Prince Paul, love him too), the artisty behind every move astonished me. He took hip-hop and created his own surreal sub genre. (trip-hop...blah, blah, blah) After that I searched down every project that I could find that The Automator was a part of. Dr. Octagon, Deltron 3030, loved them, discovered Kool Keith, and Del the funky Homosapian, in return. Then came a Much Better Tomorrow, having been to late for the origianl EP, I was thrilled. The perfect sullen and sultry sampeling on Wiling, the meloncoly of The Truth. Mr. Kool Keith carries his weight as the narator of this journey especial on King of NY, and the fun Cartoon Capers.
The Automator is a brillant, original, and talented producer with an ear to die for.
If you love his production check out the above mentioned albums +

Wanna buy a Monkey = a mix tape session that gives you an idea on what kind of music our man enjoys

Lovage: music to make love to your old lady by = One of my favorite albums ever. An entire consept album that almost takes the definiton of "trip hop" and bathes in it.

Gorillaz = I'm sure you heard Clint Eastwood on the radio a couple of years ago. This was a genius collaberation in my opinion. I had been a fan of Blur since 98 + Damion is cute, Cibo Matto since 97, Del of course and throw in the style and vision of Dan... you get the most inovative pop group ever!!

Ben Lee= A singer song writer who became famouse around 15. He's like 24 now and his last album Running with sizzors, was produced by The Automator.

This guy is the luckest guy in the world. I sing, and songwrite, amaturishly, and I always said that if I could have anyone to produce my album that it would be Dan the Automator.

Cause...he rules!

I have to give my respect to my Japanese DJ friend. If were not for Dan The Automator's amazing production skills and combos with some of todays greatest MCs, I would probably still associate rap with what's played on MTV. Thanks to Nakamura, I can look past that cookie cutter crap and hear acutally inventive stuff like Lovage,Dr. Octagon, Deltron 3030, and even his comercial breakthrough record, Gorillaz. With all that in mind, I dove head first into Automator's first and only solo effort. The results stammer a few times(the two guest rappers are okay but pale to the compareson of vocal skills of Kool Keith....er.... Sinister 6000), but otherwise, this is a great record.

First thing that struck me on this record is the beats. They aren't your normal simple, come-up-with-one-bar beats. They actually contain hooks and have some interesting sounds to them. This is helped along by Dan's DJ/Production skills. A cool clean intergration of laidback melodies and cool basslines are there complement Sinister 6000's bizarre ryhme patterns. The two work together here as well as they did on Kool Keith's breakthrough sucess on Dr. Octagon. Weaving between Dan's samples, Keith adds to the album with his trademark wackiness and off-kilter rhyme style. The three instrumentals on here are nothing special but do nothng to dampen the quality of the record.

If anything is at fault here, are the two guest rapper tracks> Wilin' is pretty substandard, with Buck Buck being just above average in my book. With those two tracks, Automator comes up just short of creating another underground classic. This doesn't mean you shouldn't buy this. At around 10 bucks, it'll be one of the cheapest CDs you buy. With Dan the Automator at the helm, it's sure to be a pleasing moment. Anyone who likes Automator should own a copy of this(and the classics listed above). Anyone who derives rap music should also check this out. Who knows? It might even have the power to turn some heads.

The Automator released "A Better Tomorrow[ep]" in 1996. "A much Better Tomorrow" is the LP. Featured on it are tracks from the original release plus newly added tracks. Kool Keith appears on three tracks as Sinister 6000, one of his many personas. Most people remember the pairing of Kool keith and the Automator on the classic Dr. Octagon album, which was also released in 1996 and gained both Keith and the Automator fame in the world of often experimental underground hip-hop. A much Better Tomorrow is experimental hip-hop, but anyone who has heard of the Automator already knows that. The key is the has been achieved with this release is the balance of experimentality and listenability.

The production here is nothing less than amazing, but the way the album is put together is not what makes this album great.

Of course Kool Keith and Automator is just pure genius, but this album was not put together as well as this could have been constructed.

Of course there are more artist than just Keith, but maybe this should have just been another Keith project and not a compilation of work from the Automator and a few artist plus some instrumentals.

A Better Tomorrow: ++++ (raw beat, fresh lyrics)
King of NY: +++++ (Kool Keith/Automator classic)
I Want da Mic: ++++ (beat gets wicked, lyrics stay raw)
Sleep: ++++ (smooth instrumental)
Wiling: +++ (guest is ok but nothing great)
Cartoon Capers: ++++ (original and creative)
4:17: ++ (weak)
Buck Buck -Poet: ++ (weak)
The Truth: ++ (weak)
Its Over Now: ++++ (different and catchy hook)
A Better Tomorrow pt 2: ++++ (just as great as part 2)

Minus the 3 weak instrumentals near the end of this album, the addition of more Kool Keith, and a better construction of track order would have make this album close to perfect. I would give this an overall rating of 3.75. If you are a die hard fan of Automator and Kool Keith then you may like this. I expected better.

Truly nice beats with beautiful vocals filling the gaps. When they invent the chip to constantly play music inside my head, this is going to be one of the discs that gets repeated often. Worth ever nickel, save the dimes for when you are listening to it to roll to.

When I first listened to "Three Chord Opera," I felt that it was okay but that none of the songs seemed to be earmarked for "standard" status. The more I listened to it, though, the more different songs began to appeal to me in different ways. First of all the arrangements: I usually prefer the ballads and I immediately found "You Are the Best Part of Me" memorable and gradually warmed to "Midnight Dream" (it has that "epic" feel to it), "Elijah's Song" (a beautiful lullabye) and "My Special Someone" (after "Canta Libre" and "Carmelita's Eyes," the third in his Spanish trilogy). However, "At the Movies" was clearly a fun song from the word go and it didn't take long for me to appreciate what the Tower of Power horns add to "Baby Let's Drive," "Mission of Love" and "Don't Look Down." Perhaps influenced by this, I felt that the album slowed down a bit too much at the end. Then the lyrics: "I Haven't Played This Song in Years" harkens back to the devastatingly personal tone of "If You Know What I Mean." It took me a few listenings to figure out how the gospel song ("Leave a Little Room for God") and the singalong ("Turn Down the Lights") fit into the mix. An eclectic set, but one that makes no concessions to "the times." As a friend of mine said, "He wrote what he wanted to write." And, yes, he did write a couple of new standards!

Dan the automator has been credited as one of the most influencial and inventive producers across various genres. Not only has he worked with incredible emcees such as Kool Keith, Del the Funky Homosapien (Deltron3030), EL-P, and several others, but his music style extends beyond hip hop. The Gorillaz, which was produced by Automator showed that he was able to incorporate hip hop influences, yet produce a fairly rock-oriented masterpiece. In any case, a much better tommorow encompases the fundamental of hip-hop production plus more. Kool Keith rapidly spits interesting and mind-boggling lyrics over diced up flowy tracks. As automator's early work, this album encompases the brilliant hip-hop ability of automator, while retaining inventive focus and ingenuity. I highly suggest picking this album up if you're a new listener to both automator and hip hop.

yeah! Automator comes sick again with Keith.....again. If you feel like you need some more stuff after listening to DR. Octo get this. It also has a track with Dj Q bert and we all know what that means. soooo if you want some good music get this