To say that Future is having a good run would be an understatement. Following his highly publicized split with Ciara, he has released a slew of material that not only has regained him the allegiance of his day one fans, but also advanced and improved his sound. This was a difficult feat to accomplish after his mediocre second album “Honest” and some highly questionable guest spots (the one with Miley Cyrus automatically comes to mind). The run continues with Evol, his third album after last year’s highly successful DS2 album. The petty, the decadence, the honesty, and drug-induced euphoria of his past efforts combine on this album and further sustain’s Future as the King of lean rap and drug rap.  

The album’s production matches its name–evil (or Evol, if you will). The usual production suspects are here–Southside, TM88, and Metro Boomin handling the lion’s share of the landscape. It’s maximal, lush, multilayered, and just as complex as the rapper himself.

“I gotta live with this crown on my head”~ Future on Lie To Me

This line, which comes eight tracks into Evol, sums up the rollercoaster year that the rapper has had since his highly publicized breakup. Everything seems to be happening so fast for Future, who actually released his no. 1 album DS2 in the second half of last year. Whereas DS2 had Future happy to be back in old form and on top of the rap game, he seems disillusioned as if he’s here just doing what he has to do. After dropping DS2, he followed up with a mixtape called Purple Reign.

That too had some typical Future tracks but with the release of another studio album, one can’t help but wonder if Future is over saturating the market with music. Perhaps he sees it as keeping his foot on the gas but critics are beginning to claim that all of his music is starting to become quite repetitive as it is becoming difficult to decipher between his albums and mixtapes anymore.

The disillusionment on Evol is crystal clear on songs like “Lil Haiti Baby.” He raps “You want a R&B chick, it ain’t nothing to get her” on the chorus, and raps about throwing away the money he didn’t always have by verse two. It seems as though the happy, yet stressed tone of DS2 has morped into a cynical disillusionment on Evol, with an almost “been here, done that, but definitely need it” feel to it. The hookups with foreign women don’t keep him out of strip clubs (“Fly Shit Only”), the celebrity lifestyle doesn’t do enough to keep him away from his old haunts (“Seven Rings”), and his old haunts don’t seem to satisfy either. He seems to be in a state of limbo–buying, f******, and drugging to make things tolerable. Almost as a self-medication to some sort of mental depression if you will.

The album’s standout is “Lie To Me,” which has DJ Spinz production that borders an R&B feel. Unlike last year’s “Rich $ex” or Pluto’s “Turn On The Lights,” this isn’t a love song per se. He raps “I gotta live with this crown on my head” one moment, then says “I got some people who know I love them, but ain’t got time to see” in another. The isolation is palpable. Plus, the only feature is The Weeknd, who adds his trademark style of brooding to “Low Life.” Evol (‘love’ spelled backward) is a world of loneliness, pain, discomfort, and displacement.

But therein lies what makes this album a welcome addition to the catalog; it plays out as a continuation of DS2 while being its antithesis. He’s not proclaiming to “feel way better” like he was on “Slave Master;” this go around he’s “taking his drugs in doses.” Evol sounds like the comedown of his year-plus run of exceptional music. Hopefully, it only sounds that way, as he seems to have the Midas touch.

~DeMario Rayvon