Future - High Off Life ALBUM REVIEW
Future has been one of the most influential and recognizable voices in music of the past decade, and he knows it. Since 2012, he’s been putting out a constant stream of albums, collaboration projects, and EPs to the delight of his fans. During this pandemic, he’s put out High Off Life, his first (and maybe not his last) project of 2020. He’s made waves with his songs with Drake and Lil Uzi Vert throughout the end of last year and this year, and many have been waiting for his triumphant return to album form. Many of his fans have been wanting a project on the level of DS2, his 2015 album that some consider being the height of the trap/mumble rap scene in album form. He’s been in a bit of a slump since then, and many are hoping that High Off Life is a triumphant return to form for Future. And I’m happy to report that it is exactly that.
Like all of Future’s projects, High Off Life is a trap album. Compared to Future’s other albums, this really isn’t that different from his past projects. What he speaks about, the beats, and even some of the features aren’t exactly out of his comfort zone, but there’s absolutely nothing wrong with it. The production has a very sinister and occasionally cinematic feel, but it’s never overshadowed by Future’s always-changing vocals. That’s another part on what makes High Off Life so exciting to listen to. Like Young Thug to an extent, Future has these different vocal inflections every now and then that he applies to a line or a chunk of a verse. This has been put on display the most on his verse for “King’s Dead,” which was on Jay Rock’s last album Redemption and also appeared on Kendrick Lamar’s Black Panther soundtrack. You never know what he’s gonna do next, and High Off Life is one of those projects that, as a whole, is pretty unpredictable.
I guess some of the flaws I have about this record is just not being a total fan of the song. “All Bad” with Lil Uzi Vert feels like an Eternal Atake throwaway, and it shows. I might be in the unpopular group on this take, but “Solitaires” with Travis Scott just doesn’t do anything for me at all. It’s the same thing with “Up The River” too, some of the tracks just aren’t leaving any impressions on me. A pro and a con for me is keeping all of the singles like “Life is Good” with Drake (and its remix) and “100 Shooters” with Meek Mill and Doe Boy for the end. It feels like a victory lap to me, and that’s a perfect summary of High Off Life to me.
High Off Life is the return of a king. His 2017 duology, FUTURE and HNDRXX, boasted some hits but weren’t amazing, and The WIZRD felt like the closing of a chapter that he started with his debut album Pluto. Using the same analogy, High Off Life is a new book for Future. He knows what he’s doing, and now, he’s just slowly fine-tuning his sound to perfection. With the brilliant surprise that is High Off Life, Future inches slowly to it.
Like all of Future’s projects, High Off Life is a trap album. Compared to Future’s other albums, this really isn’t that different from his past projects. What he speaks about, the beats, and even some of the features aren’t exactly out of his comfort zone, but there’s absolutely nothing wrong with it. The production has a very sinister and occasionally cinematic feel, but it’s never overshadowed by Future’s always-changing vocals. That’s another part on what makes High Off Life so exciting to listen to. Like Young Thug to an extent, Future has these different vocal inflections every now and then that he applies to a line or a chunk of a verse. This has been put on display the most on his verse for “King’s Dead,” which was on Jay Rock’s last album Redemption and also appeared on Kendrick Lamar’s Black Panther soundtrack. You never know what he’s gonna do next, and High Off Life is one of those projects that, as a whole, is pretty unpredictable.
I guess some of the flaws I have about this record is just not being a total fan of the song. “All Bad” with Lil Uzi Vert feels like an Eternal Atake throwaway, and it shows. I might be in the unpopular group on this take, but “Solitaires” with Travis Scott just doesn’t do anything for me at all. It’s the same thing with “Up The River” too, some of the tracks just aren’t leaving any impressions on me. A pro and a con for me is keeping all of the singles like “Life is Good” with Drake (and its remix) and “100 Shooters” with Meek Mill and Doe Boy for the end. It feels like a victory lap to me, and that’s a perfect summary of High Off Life to me.
High Off Life is the return of a king. His 2017 duology, FUTURE and HNDRXX, boasted some hits but weren’t amazing, and The WIZRD felt like the closing of a chapter that he started with his debut album Pluto. Using the same analogy, High Off Life is a new book for Future. He knows what he’s doing, and now, he’s just slowly fine-tuning his sound to perfection. With the brilliant surprise that is High Off Life, Future inches slowly to it.
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