Future2Future
Encyclopedia
Future2Future is the forty-third album
by Herbie Hancock
. Hancock reunited with bass player Bill Laswell
(who worked on Future Shock, Sound-System
and Perfect Machine
) and the two of them tried to recapture the success of the three previous albums.
This group of artists (minus Tony Williams, due to his death four years prior) would go on tour, and produce a live concert that would eventually go on DVD
(which features live versions of his songs "Rockit" and "Chameleon
").
, who Hancock had worked with many times before, including the incredibly successful Future Shock (most known for the club hit "Rockit
"). Future2Future is very different from previous efforts due to its attempt to delve further into electronica
. Hancock keeps most of his playing relatively conservative, holding to chords and sweeps while Laswell has short grooves on the bass guitar
. The more intricate sounds on each track are in the drum beats (whether played on a kit or electronically generated) and the use of turntables.
Tony Williams, a drummer Hancock had worked with multiple times throughout his career, is sampled on track 6 under softly spoken poetry by Dana Bryant.
An album of remixes was released to make some of the songs more pop accessible. After releasing the album the band took the tracks on tour, and a film of the tour's stop at the Knitting Factory
in Hollywood was made.
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by Herbie Hancock
Herbie Hancock
Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock is an American pianist, bandleader and composer. As part of Miles Davis's "second great quintet," Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the "post-bop" sound...
. Hancock reunited with bass player Bill Laswell
Bill Laswell
Bill Laswell is an American bassist, producer and record label owner....
(who worked on Future Shock, Sound-System
Sound-System (album)
Sound-System is the thirty-sixth album by jazz pianist Herbie Hancock and the second of three albums with the Rockit Band.-About the Album:The second of the three Rockit band albums, Sound-System was another smash for Herbie Hancock....
and Perfect Machine
Perfect Machine (album)
Perfect Machine is the thirty-seventh album by jazz pianist Herbie Hancock, and the last with the Rockit Band.-About the Album:The last of the three Rockit band albums, Perfect Machine was also Hancock's final album for Columbia Records and is considered the least popular of the three Rockit band...
) and the two of them tried to recapture the success of the three previous albums.
In yet another innovative stylistic move, Herbie reunited with Bill Laswell in the creation of a 21st Century collaboration with some of the young hip-hop and techno artists who have drawn on his massive influence to create their own music of the future. The album was released in spring, 2001, and is entitled FUTURE2FUTURE.
This group of artists (minus Tony Williams, due to his death four years prior) would go on tour, and produce a live concert that would eventually go on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
(which features live versions of his songs "Rockit" and "Chameleon
Chameleon (composition)
"Chameleon" is a jazz standard composed by Herbie Hancock in collaboration with Bennie Maupin, Paul Jackson and Harvey Mason, all of whom also performed the original 15'44" version on the 1973 landmark album Head Hunters featuring solos by Hancock and Maupin....
").
Personnel
- Herbie HancockHerbie HancockHerbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock is an American pianist, bandleader and composer. As part of Miles Davis's "second great quintet," Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the "post-bop" sound...
- Keyboard InstrumentKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments... - Wayne ShorterWayne ShorterWayne Shorter is an American jazz saxophonist and composer.He is generally acknowledged to be jazz's greatest living composer, and many of his compositions have become standards...
- Tenor saxophoneTenor saxophoneThe tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor, with the alto, are the two most common types of saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B, and written as a transposing instrument in the treble...
and Soprano saxophoneSoprano saxophoneThe soprano saxophone is a variety of the saxophone, a woodwind instrument, invented in 1840. The soprano is the third smallest member of the saxophone family, which consists of the soprillo, sopranino, soprano, alto, tenor, baritone, bass, contrabass and tubax.A transposing instrument pitched in... - Bill LaswellBill LaswellBill Laswell is an American bassist, producer and record label owner....
- Bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Charnett MoffettCharnett MoffettCharnett Moffett is an American jazz musician who plays piccolo bass, double bass and bass guitar.Moffett's given name was created as a combination of that of his father and that of Ornette Coleman...
- Double bassDouble bassThe double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2... - Jack DeJohnetteJack DeJohnetteJack DeJohnette is an American jazz drummer, pianist, and composer. He is one of the most influential jazz drummers of the 20th century, due to extensive work as leader and sideman for musicians like Miles Davis, Joe Henderson, Freddie Hubbard, Keith Jarrett and Sonny...
- Drum KitDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
(4, 8, 9, 10) - Tony Williams - Drum KitDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
(6) - Karsh KaleKarsh KaleKarsh Kale is an Indian American musician, producer and composer, and is considered one of the pioneering figures in defining the Asian Underground genre by mixing disparate genres of music such as Indian classical and folk with electronica, rock, pop and ambient music...
- Drum KitDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
(3, 7)
Guest artists
- Elenni Davis-Knight
- Carl CraigCarl CraigCarl Craig is a Detroit-based producer of techno music, and is considered to be one of the most important names in the Detroit second generation of techno producers and DJs...
(9) - GiGiGigi (singer)Ejigayehu Shibabaw, or Gigi as she is popularly known, is one of the most successful contemporary Ethiopian singers worldwide. Coming from an ancient tradition of song originating in the Ethiopian Church, she has brought the music of Ethiopia to wider appreciation and developed it in combination...
(9) - Chaka KhanChaka KhanChaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...
(3) - Rob SwiftRob SwiftRob Swift is an American hip hop DJ and turntablist. Swift is a former member of the turntablist group The X-Ecutioners as of late 2005 and as of 2006; with Mike Patton’s project Peeping Tom.-Early life:...
- A Guy Called GeraldA Guy Called GeraldA Guy Called Gerald is the stage name for the musician, record producer and DJ Gerald Simpson ....
(5) - Dana Bryant (6)
- Imani Uzuri
Track listing
- Kebero Part I - 3:10
- Wisdom - 0:33
- The Essence (featuring Chaka KhanChaka KhanChaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...
) - 4:54 - This Is Rob Swift - 6:55
- Black Gravity - 5:29
- Tony Williams - 6:09
- Be Still - 5:12
- Ionosphere - 3:59
- Kebero Part II - 4:47
- Alphabeta - 5:29
- Virtual Hornets - 8:51
Album Notes
Future2Future is the only album Hancock released on Transparent Music, a label he created in the late 90's with Chuck Mitchell (one time president of Verve Records) and David Passick (Hancock's manager). The main collaborative source is in Bill LaswellBill Laswell
Bill Laswell is an American bassist, producer and record label owner....
, who Hancock had worked with many times before, including the incredibly successful Future Shock (most known for the club hit "Rockit
Rockit
"Rockit" is a song recorded by Herbie Hancock. It was released as a single from his 1983 album Future Shock. The song was written by Hancock, bass guitarist Bill Laswell, and synthesizer/drum machine programmer Michael Beinhorn.-History:...
"). Future2Future is very different from previous efforts due to its attempt to delve further into electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
. Hancock keeps most of his playing relatively conservative, holding to chords and sweeps while Laswell has short grooves on the bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
. The more intricate sounds on each track are in the drum beats (whether played on a kit or electronically generated) and the use of turntables.
Tony Williams, a drummer Hancock had worked with multiple times throughout his career, is sampled on track 6 under softly spoken poetry by Dana Bryant.
An album of remixes was released to make some of the songs more pop accessible. After releasing the album the band took the tracks on tour, and a film of the tour's stop at the Knitting Factory
Knitting Factory
The Knitting Factory is a music venue and concert house with locations in Brooklyn, Boise, Reno, and Spokane. The club originally specialized in jazz and experimental music and has expanded to showcasing all genres of music, performing arts and comedy....
in Hollywood was made.
Critical Reviews
- Grove Dictionary of Music - 3/5
- Wilson & Alroy's Record Reviews - 2/5 The indie review site says the album is more passive or reminiscent of New Age musicNew Age musicNew Age music is music of various styles intended to create artistic inspiration, relaxation, and optimism. It is used by listeners for yoga, massage, meditation, and reading as a method of stress management or to create a peaceful atmosphere in their home or other environments, and is often...
- JazzTimes.com - no numeric rating States the album is unfocused on the whole, with uninspired performances by performers and guests. The best tracks are the last four instrumentals (Ionosphere, Kebero Part II, Alphabeta, Virtual Hornets).