Future 2 Future

by

Herbie Hancock

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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.

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.