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Rating:
Everything and its opposite. Day and night. Saying what the eclectic Steven Wilson is has become a futile exercise. His artistic career is a continuous shuffling of cards, and the only common thread is the exploration or challenging of himself as an author in various musical genres. This tendency is confirmed in his sixth album, in which the former Porcupine Tree leader ventures into electronics, effectively scrapping the guitar (of which, in my opinion, he is a skilled interpreter). Electronic drums abound, synthesizers rain down, falsettos, and sexy, catchy female vocals at inflationary levels, with forcibly short songs. In short, everything I don't like. But tastes are tastes, and some (perhaps many) might appreciate it a lot.
And the "problem" is precisely this. It is not the songwriting, which remains at a high level; it is not the mixing, equalization, or recording quality, which remain excellent. The problem is the style of the tracks, which seem to be prisoners of the style Steven has forcibly chosen to frame them within. A style that, in my opinion, clips its wings, kills the typical dynamics one expects from his album. It always seems like the track is about to take a turn, which it never does.
The better episodes are "King Ghost," "Man Of The People" (beautiful), and "Count of Unease." "Personal Shopper," the first track to be released from the album, aside from being a bit boring, I find it yet another and unnecessary lecture against consumerism. At the end of the 45 minutes of the album, there remains a sense of incompleteness. Like when you eat a dish without salt.
Alright, Mr. Wilson, you've done this too. Shall we move on, please? In the meantime, I won't buy the album, but I'll listen to it on Spotify.
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Other reviews
By splinter
Steven Wilson is pop but remains always and anyway Steven Wilson.
"The Future Bites" is classic to make purists grimace, those for whom their mighty artists should never get flustered, never try to do anything more easy.
By Omega Kid
The Future Bites is not a completely successful record, it flows well to the end, but it also lasts terribly little and many episodes are not memorable.
It is all very well represented by the distressing video, which serves as an effective complement for a work that looks at the social phenomenon, multimedia, the transfiguration of the individual through technology.
