Future Utopia
 |
Future Utopia | |
|---|---|
| Origin | England |
| Years active | 2020-present |
| Labels | 70Hz Recordings |
| Members | Fraser T Smith * Anthony 'Sweetstix' Lewis * Molly J * |
| Website | https://futureutopia.os.fan/ |
Future Utopia is a British, genre-spanning musical project founded by Fraser T. Smith and now consisting of Anthony 'Sweetstix' Lewis (drummer) and Molly J (singer), alongside Fraser (lead singer and guitarist).
Having spent most of his career producing and songwriting for other artists, Fraser released his own debut album, 12 Questions, in October 2020, under the name ‘Future Utopia’. 12 Questions features artists including Stormzy, Dave, Kano, Ghetts, Bastille, designer Es Devlin, poet Simon Armitage and actor Idris Elba. The album discusses issues including faith, freedom, race, gender, wealth, equality and ecology. In 2021, Fraser won the Ivor Novello Award for ‘Best Contemporary Song’ for Children Of The Internet, a collaboration with Dave taken from 12 Questions . In 2023, Fraser returned as Future Utopia with his We Were We Still Are EP, which featured Kae Tempest, the voice of Biig Piig and LA based artist TOMI. This Time featured, for the first time, Fraser’s lead vocals and paved the way for Future Utopia's 2024 album Django’s High.
Django’s High sees Fraser singing on a Future Utopia album and is co-produced by Kasabian songwriter and frontman Sergio Pizzorno. The record is a globe-trotting, stargazing, soul-stirring second album from Future Utopia. A punchy, focused, imagistic 10 tracks clocking in at less than 34 minutes, it’s a spaghetti western-style soundtrack for a movie of the mind. Django’s High is influenced both by cinema and an isolation-forged desire of Fraser’s to push the limits of himself and his songwriting.
“The process was really interesting,” Fraser continues. “It was almost like an experiment where I would get up really early in the morning, let the dogs out, have a quick cup of coffee, and then give myself a very short amount of time to sing loads of melodies. I basically set myself a target – this sounds crazy – of 15 minutes to record some chords, a beat, a quick bassline, and a vocal melody. I did that over and over again, every day for about 30-40 days. Then I went back through and picked out the things I like. [1]
- ^ "'It's terrifying, but you have to go to those depths': Fraser T Smith talks Django's High". headlinermagazine.net. Retrieved 2024-10-01.