Future has been a force to be reckoned with in the music industry as of late. After reviving his career with a newfound focus by breaking up with R&B singer Ciara and releasing three mixtapes and an album in 2014 and 2015, Future has been on top of the rap game. For the past calendar year, however, he seemingly vanished from the scene. Now, he’s back with his latest release, “FUTURE.” The production is 17 tracks long with no features whatsoever, a never-before-seen trait on a Future album.

When it comes to his self-titled album, I knew exactly what to expect going into my first listen. As per usual, there were industrial beats that make you tap your foot or nod your head (or, if you’re not a fan, furrow your brow) and Future’s auto-tuned voice spewing line after line without a pause in between. On the positive side, there were a few memorable lines here and there. Nothing new. Nothing creative. That’s because nothing new or creative needs to be done.

With Future, you know what you’re going to get. He’s been doing the same thing since he made it big with “Honest” in 2014, and I don’t blame him—his music has sold consistently over the past few years. He’s managed to form a loyal fan base that gobbles this style of rap up and defends his unoriginality to the very end.

Out of the 17 tracks on the album, only two impressed me: the title track, “Rent Money,” and one of the more popular songs on the album, “Mask Off.” I was taken aback after listening to “Rent Money” as it set quite the precedent for the rest of the album with Future’s powerful delivery and the song’s heavy beat, complete with all of the signature Future sounds: a trill, a snare drum, a bell of some variety. There were even a few good lines, such as a reference to fur-loving kingpin Frank Lucas (“Red bottoms with the fur like Frank Luc”) and a shot taken at legendary basketball player Scottie Pippen and Future’s affair with Pippen’s wife (“I just slam dunked ya b—- hall of fame”). But nothing on the album compared to how I felt about “Mask Off.”

“Mask Off” was a change of pace for Future; a much deeper cut, produced by the one and only Metro Boomin, who has been credited with production on chart-toppers such as Migos’ “Bad and Boujee,” Big Sean’s “Bounce Back,” and Drake/Future’s “Jumpman.” To start, a heavy, looming beat begins as Future intros the verses. Immediately, I perked up. I had just listened to five mediocre songs in a row, and thought that this could be the track to turn the album around. My heart skipped a beat when a sample from “Prison Song,” a song from the civil rights musical and film Selma, came on. The flute sample’s soulfulness and eloquence had me encaptured as the chorus began. The beat is top-notch, as it must be, and always is in Future’s work, but this time, the lyrics and flow were a bit different. Future rapped slower, and in rhythm with the flute. The lyrics, when analyzed, are much more meaningful than 99% of Future’s other lines; the song details his rise to fame, his rags-to-riches story, and provides a metaphor to help him reveal his inner insecurities with drugs. This might be my favorite song ever from Future, even topping hits like “March Madness” and “Commas.”

From there, unfortunately, it was all downhill. The 10 tracks afterwards seemed to blend together into one another as each followed the patented Future formula. This was extremely disappointing, especially because I had just listened to such an incredible track that gave me a glimpse of Future’s versatility and potential.

There’s simply not much to write home about with this album if you’re looking for impactful, long-lasting music. The vast majority of songs on this production were painfully mediocre, and while the beats were fun to jam to, there’s only so much mumble rap you can listen to before you begin to get a headache. However, if you take this release for what it is, a bunch of club bangers that you won’t be able to remember the next day, then it’s a great album. That type of music just doesn’t fit my taste.

OVERALL: 4/10