ROBERT DOWNEY JR.
The Futurist (Sony)
Reviewed by John Sekerka

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Oscar nominated actor, TV drama regular, SNL member, jailbird, and now, a musician - what mask has Robert Downey Jr. not worn? As the Futurist, Downey sits down at the piano and croons like Sting in jazz mode, except with some range. This shouldn't come as a total front lobe slap; Downey showed off his considerable ivory tinkling and lung abilities in Two Girls and a Guy. That was good. Here we get the dreaded studio embellishments that suffocate most lounge ventures. Charlie Haden's tasteful bass lines aside, there's too much flighty instrumentation swirling about, culminating in a dead on replicate of Jon Anderson's quavering "I've Seen All Good People." Granted there is a Yes revival going on, but does Downey have to waste his obvious talents jumping on that wretched bandwagon?

© 2005 - John Sekerka