Our story begins in 2006. Well, it actually begins quite some years prior to that... In the wake of the UK's wavering affections for trip-hop and the 90s broken beat scene, Simon Skolfield regarded London's soul music landscape as it eagerly eyed new direction.
By way of the Break Reform trio, Simon was coming off his own successes for a project that garnered three full-length albums and that had taken him across the world. Following Break Reform's dissolution shortly after 'Reformation' in 2005, Skolfield still found himself primed to contribute to a scene that was now influenced by hip-hop, neo-soul and soulful house.
So with a litany of close friends, music-makers and collaborators all keen to make their own contributions and to share their own voices, Futuristica Music was born.
In its inaugural year, the label was able to boast new singles and 12" releases from artists including Kamara, Stark and Electric Conversation and also helm the release of the label's first full-length in Low Budget Soul's 'Strangers to the Ordinary'. Comprised of Randolph Matthews, Marcia Escoffery, Nanar with production from Tris Browne, the album would officially kick-start the next twenty years for the Futuristica family.
With releases that have heralded soul music's shifting dynamic over the last twenty years, Futuristica has been bolstered not only by its indelible ability to discover incomparable new talent but by the bonds and connections they have forged as a soul music community.
Twenty years is an incredibly long time particularly in regards to shifting, emerging and evolving trends amidst - not just a UK landscape but a global one. While hip-hop, jazz and R&B have each had their respective ascents and shining moments in the last twenty years, Futuristica have been there ushering in new names and talents that have gone on to achieve phenomenal successes in the years since...
We'll forever tout the brilliance of the Parisian four-piece, Electric Conversation. Through their two album releases with Futuristica ('Communication' and 'Electric Conversation'), their sensational music has ensured that their legacy has continued to flourish through the vast range of projects that As Valet, LaNote and Gus La Tempete have gone on to deliver since the untimely passing of their bandmate Oz.
Now a revered name in contemporary jazz, Nick "Emanative" Woodmansey's first two full-lengths came to listeners through the hallowed Futuristica halls. 'Space' and 'Time' delivered in progressive and electronica-tinged spiritual jazz that stands as definitive masterpieces to this day.
Georgie Sweet - currently enjoying the success of recent album 'I Swear to You' through First Word Records - made her formal introductions to the music biz with her Futuristica-hosted 'Misunderstood' debut. Now one of the country's leading names for neo-soul and R&B, Sweet hasn't even begun to realise her potential.
And then there's Deborah Jordan.
As a sincere and compassionate songwriter, Jordan has always managed to convey so much through her music making her one of the most profound and earnest voices of our time. Through her solo releases as well as key contributions to as part of Silhouette Brown with Kaidi Tatham & Dego and Robert Mitchell's Panacea, Jordan finds a way to inject her charm and personality into each venture despite the varied styles of each.
Futuristica Music has always strived to convey distinct and unique talent and perspectives and the above only offers a glimpse of a twenty-year legacy that further includes esteemed contributions from Rise/Mecca:83, Jazz Chronicles, Kira Neris, Marc Rapson, Peter Franks Group, Replife and Stark.
'Futuristica 20' delves into a 20-track selection that typifies the label's vast-ranging musical scope - from the jazz-inspired boom-bap of Jazz Chronicles' 'All We Know' or Kira Neris' 'Sweet Twilight', the more electronic and dance-oriented sounds of As Valet's 'Condescendant', the sublime neo-soul of LaNote's 'When A Woman' or Low Budget Soul's 'I Warned You', or the more acoustic soul treats of Georgie Sweet's 'Sorry' and Deborah Jordan's 'Want it Back'.
Ultimately, 'Futuristica 20' is less a greatest hits package than it is a celebration of community. Across two decades, Simon Skolfield and the Futuristica family have cultivated a catalogue defined not by fleeting trends but by trust, artistry and a genuine belief in giving singular voices the space to flourish. This compilation serves as both a fitting reflection on an extraordinary legacy and an exciting reminder that the label's story is still being written.
