Mr Kinski's Music Shack

Future Hopes is the follow up to the mighty Terminal Twilight from 2011 (one of this blogs earliest reviews)- so its been a long wait for new music from White Willow, the Norwegian progressive and (increasingly) electronic band.

Album number seven revolves around core members Jacob Holm-Lupo and Mattias Olsson and features for the first time vocalist Venke Knutson, who has had several pop hits in her native Norway.

Deep bass synth lines usher in album opener Future Hopes. It’s clear early on that the metal leanings of earlier White Willow albums have largely given way to a more progressive palette, topped off with layer upon layer of synths. Don’t worry, this is not a guitar free zone by any stretch of the imagination. The title track Future Hopes has some moving guitar solos towards the end of the track.

Silver And Gold is the most stripped back arrangement on the album – with just Venke, Jacob and Ketil Vestrum Einarsen performing on this track. The 80s music loving fan in me welcomes the Fairlight drums on this song. Silver And Gold is a beautiful piece of music, and Venke’s breathy vocals are perfectly suited to this track.

The prog is dialled back in on In Dim Days, a classic White Willow piece. There is plenty of space for exploration and lengthy instrumental passages on In Dim Days. The bass and drums work really well on the album’s heaviest track, and there is some nice hammond work from Lars Fredrik Frøislie (who has a huge part to play on the CD album’s closing track).

Recent White Willow music (I’m talking to you Floor 57 from Terminal Twlight) has often had me thinking “That would sound great in a J. G. Ballard film adaptation” and Where There Was Sea There Is Abyss is one of those moments on Future Hopes. One of two instrumentals on the album, this short atmospheric piece presses all the right buttons, reminding me a little of the textures and mood of side two of Bowie’s Low. It really sets your imagination flowing, which is always a good sign of potential longevity in a piece of music.

A Scarred View is the album’s masterpiece. Clocking in at a vinyl side filling 18 minutes and 16 seconds, it has all the time and space it needs to develop from its Vangelis Blade Runner like opening. A tale of arid desolation and drought damaged landscapes, the song contains some of the album’s best vocal and guitar performances. A Scarred View is one of those tracks with so much going on, and so many layers revealing new musical delights on each listen, that you never tire of hearing the song. It really does not feel like an 18 minutes long track.

Old school prog and 70s electronica fans will love the middle section of the song, with its heady mix of hammond organ topped with layers of moog, prophet 5 and especially arp solina (a mid to late 70s Bowie synth staple).  It takes me back to my youth, attending the laser shows at the London Planetarium, to a soundtrack of progressive and classic rock by the likes of Alan Parsons and Yes.

The whole album sounds rich and warm, especially A Scarred View. It is recorded so well, with plenty of space in the mix for the peaks and troughs, and sounds wonderful cranked up loud through a good amp and speakers. Buy Future Hopes on CD and vinyl if you can – not MP3 (I opted for CD but kind of regret not going for vinyl now, as I would imagine the album is made for that format).

Animal Magnetism is a CD bonus track, that was released nearly two years ago – you can read my review of the standalone release of the song, a cover of The Scorpions track. I loved it then and I still love it now!

Damnation Valley is the second instrumental, and another CD bonus track. Possibly a homage to Damnation Alley, the 1977 post-apocalyptic film? A bar-room piano and mellotron soaked piece, its a soothing end to this version of the album.

The album artwork from the legendary Roger Dean, and the quality album mastering by Bob Katz add to the whole album experience, and that’s what I believe albums should be – experiences. If you love the music of Genesis, Alan Parsons, Jean-Michel Jarre, Vangelis and all those progressive and classic rock artists from the golden era of the mid to late 70s, then this is an album you are likely to fall in love with.

And if you are already a fan of previous White Willow (and The Opium Cartel) releases – you don’t need me to tell you this is a must have album for your collection. Future Hopes is likely to be considered by many as a career high for the band.

Buy Future Hopes by White Willow on CD from Amazon

Buy Future Hopes by White Willow on vinyl from Amazon