Tedeschi Trucks Band: Future Soul Review

Does your future have soul in it? The Tedeschi Trucks Band sure hopes so.

Four years after I Am the Moon—the ambitious conceptual project that involved the release of four linked albums—the Tedeschi Trucks Band returns with Future Soul, an 11-track album due out March 20 via Fantasy Records. It’s the sixth studio album from the blues rock group led by husband-and-wife power duo Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks.

Future Soul, which was produced by Mike Elizondo (collaborator of Dr. Dre, Eminem, Carrie Underwood and more) and co-produced by Trucks, kicks off with “Crazy Cryin.” With its funky flavor and ensemble energy, the track serves as a nice complement to the wider Tedeschi Trucks Band cannon.

From there, the album launches into its two pre-release singles. “I Got You” is first, a high-energy song that speeds through its four-plus minutes in length as Tedeschi’s vocals take center stage. “Who Am I,” the album’s second single released in February, is softer but stickier. The nearly five-minute-long song features a melody that easily imprints on the mind and is a bit reminiscent of “Midnight in Harlem,” a track from 2011’s Grammy Award-winning Revelator that landed on Blues Rock Review’s Top 10 Tedeschi Trucks Band Songs list.

Fourth track “Hero” brings another earworm into the mix. “Hero” starts with Tedeschi humming over a quiet guitar intro and builds steadily around a minor chord that seems to echo long after the song ends, delivering one of Future Soul’s most memorable offerings. The album then takes its foot off the gas for a moment with “What in the World,” a twangy track that contends with loss and the impossible question—“What in the world am I to do?”—that follows.

Future Soul reaches its midpoint with its thrumming title track, a song that embraces a live performance feel with buzzy guitar and a slight vocal echo. That echo disappears on “Under the Knife,” a soulful track with brass accents that serves as the only song on which guitarist Mike Mattison takes on the lead vocalist role. But the horns stick around for “Be Kind,” a somewhat reprimanding song that warns against leaning on “your old tricks” and issues the reminder that “it’s not too late” to “just be kind.”

The final trio of songs features an over minute-long guitar solo on “Devil Be Gone,” a master class in vocal prowess from Tedeschi on “Shout Out” and beautifully reflective lyrics on “Ride On.” Future Soul is an album that feels like it’s over in the blink of an eye and rewards repeat listens, with a couple of songs—namely “Who Am I” and “Hero”—sticking easily in the mind after just one listen while others—“What in the World” and “Ride On”—may become surprise favorites later.

So back to the original question: Does the future have soul in it? As long as the Tedeschi Trucks Band continues making music, there’s a fair chance.

The Review: 9/10

Can’t Miss Tracks

– Who Am I
– Hero
– Future Soul
– Devil Be Gone

The Big Hit

– Future Soul