''These Hopeful Machines'' is the sixth studio album by American

electronic musician ''Electronic Musician'' is a monthly magazine published by Future US featuring articles on synthesizers, music production and electronic musicians. History and profile ''Electronic Musician'' began as ''Polyphony'' magazine in 1975, published ...

BT. Released on February 1, 2010, the album sees collaborations with the likes of JES,

Rob Dickinson Robert Dickinson (born 23 July 1965) is a British musician, multi-instrumentalist, and singer-songwriter previously of the band Catherine Wheel.Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, , p. 664-5 Dickinson was raised ...

, Christian Burns and

Kirsty Hawkshaw Kirsty Hawkshaw (born 26 October 1969) is an English electronic music vocalist and songwriter. In addition to her work as a solo artist, she is known as the lead vocalist of early 1990s dance group Opus III, and her collaborative work with oth ...

, also featuring a cover of " The Ghost in You" by

The Psychedelic Furs The Psychedelic Furs are a post-punk band founded in London in February 1977. Led by lead vocalist Richard Butler and his brother Tim Butler on bass guitar, the Psychedelic Furs are one of the many acts spawned from the British post-punk sc ...

. Because some tracks exceed 10 minutes in length, the album spans two discs with six tracks on each. In an effort to make the album more accessible to casual listeners, the record was eventually re-issued as a single-disc version with shorter tracks, titled '' These Humble Machines''. In addition, the album would later spawn a double disc remix edition titled ''These Re-Imagined Machines'', also featured as a "Limited Collector's Edition Box Set".BT - These Re-Imagined Machines at Discogs
With great reception from critics, the album was nominated for the 2011 Grammy Awards under Best Electronic/Dance Album.

Background

On June 9, 2009, the first part of the single " The Rose of Jericho" was released on Beatport, and the second (and last) part was released on June 23, 2009. Five remixes were released in all in these two parts along with BT's 'Deus Ex Machina Album Mix'. The next single, " Every Other Way" was released on December 22, 2009. The third single of the album, " Suddenly", was the last to be released, on January 12, 2010 for digital-download only. Since the album release, the fourth and fifth singles, "Forget Me" and "The Emergency", were released on June 14, 2010 and September 28, 2010, respectively. The album was mastered by

Joe LaPorta Joseph J. LaPorta (born ) is an American mastering engineer at Sterling Sound in New Jersey.http://www.allmusic.com/artist/joe-laporta-mn000199340/credits/date-asc/ Career Born and raised in New York, LaPorta graduated from New York Unive ...

. BT chose to release the album online to digital retailers as two large tracks to preserve the feel of an album. On release day, an MP3 exclusive version of ''These Hopeful Machines'' was offered by Amazon which included a bonus remix of "Always", by

Chicane A chicane () is a serpentine curve in a road, added by design rather than dictated by geography. Chicanes add extra turns and are used both in motor racing and on roads and streets to slow traffic for safety. For example, one form of chicane is ...

. This download was available as 2 full A/B side tracks instead of the 12 individual album tracks.Amazon.com: These Hopeful Machines (Amazon MP3 Exclusive Version): Bt: MP3 Downloads
/ref> The album was nominated for the 2011 Grammy Awards under "Best Electronic/Dance Album".

Reception

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...

'': "...even techno-phobes will be seduced by (BT's) forward-thinking musicality."

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

: "''These Hopeful Machines'' doesn't try to convince, it's meant to reward the already converted with a vast wonderland of melodic glitch and prolonged bliss." ''

Wired ''Wired'' (stylized as ''WIRED'') is a monthly American magazine, published in print and online editions, that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered in San ...

'': "If you've never liked electronica before, this is the release that could change your mind." Sinning in LA: "Both discs offer compelling rides from start to finish."

Track listing

Personnel

;Disc one * Track 1: Vocals by BT and Christian Burns. * Track 2: Vocals by BT. Background vocals by Christian Burns. Additional production by Andrew Bayer. * Track 3: Vocals by JES. Background vocals by BT and Christian Burns. * Track 4: Vocals by JES. * Track 6: Vocals by BT and Christian Burns. End chorus sung by Kaia Transeau. ;Disc two * Track 1: Vocals by

. Background vocals by BT. Additional production by Ulrich Schnauss. * Track 2: Vocals by BT. Background vocals by Christian Burns. * Track 3, 5: Vocals by

. * Track 6: Vocals by BT. Background vocals by Amelia June.

Release history

References

External links

* {{Authority control 2010 albums BT (musician) albums Black Hole Recordings albums