It Is The Business Of The Future To Be Dangerous - Tracks & References

The view according to Richard Chadwick: 

(On suggestions that It is the Business of the Future to be Dangerous is best interpreted as a Richard Chadwick solo album) “That’s bizarre! It’s not the case at all!”

What they said then:

“The new, mostly instrumental It Is the Business of the Future to Be Dangerous finds the group's current incarnation - a trio led by charter mastermind Dave Brock - too often coasting on those big swooping space-grooves, but even marginal, water-treading Hawkwind is pretty darn great. (Pulse magazine).” 

What they say now: 

Writing on his ‘Starfarer’ Internet site, Steve Youles reflected that “Many Hawkwind fans hate this album – Very techno sounding and not my cup of tea at all.” [Can I interject here? I love it!]

Tracks and references:

It is the Business of the Future to be Dangerous

“It is the business of the future to be dangerous, and it is among the merits of science that it equips the future for its duties,” wrote mathematician Alfred North Whitehead (1861 – 1947) in Science and the Modern World (1925).

Space is their (Palestine)

The title is a pun on the final line of ‘The Black Corridor’ – ‘Space Is There’ – which used to be read by Calvert. ‘Space is their (Palestine)’ has a sample of Calvert saying this line. Also a play on Sun Ra's film and album Space is the Place. 

Tibet is not China (part 1)

“Part one, was written and structured, but Part two is a first-time jam, I really like that.” (Alan Davey) 

Tibet is not China (part 2)

When Hawkwind appeared on the VH-1 satellite channel, Brock was asked by the show’s presenter about the “Free Tibet” emblem on the CD’s cover. This led to Brock inciting the audience to “throw red paint over the Chinese Embassy.” The unexpected off-shoot was that “they were really taken with Dave as a character and did tentatively approach him with the idea of being one of their presenters because of his demeanour; he was really good on TV.” (RC) 

Let Barking Dogs Lie

“That’s about Dave’s guard-dogs, protectors of the inner-sanctum.” (AD)

Wave upon Wave

“It was something Steve Bemand said to me, when we were tripping together. We had some good Acid and it was coming on in waves, ‘wave upon wave’, instead of just peaking.” (AD) 

Letting in the Past

Does indeed let in the past... being a reworking of Church of Hawkwind's 'Living in the Future', which itself borrows from 'Assault & Battery'.

The Camera that could Lie

A play on the expression ‘the camera never lies’. More letting in the past as well, this time from Sonic Attack's 'Living on a Knife-edge'. 

3 or 4 Erections In the Course of a Night

References the Denis Quaid film Dreamscape (1984), concerning somebody who has the ability to enter and manipulate people’s dreams. “We sampled the film, and included a horse whinnying… just a bit of studio madness.” (AD) 

Techno Tropic Zone Exists

The title is virtually the only line from the Agents of Chaos track ‘A Day’ which wasn’t recycled into ‘Treadmill’.

Gimme Shelter

Interviewed on a promotional film for the Gimme Shelter charity EP, Richard Chadwick noted “The reason we’re involved in this, is because it’s vitally important that something is done… there shouldn’t be people homeless in this country, there’s no reason for it.”

Avante

“‘Avante’ – that’s the other end of ‘Letting in the Past’, fourteen minutes later and I’m still jamming around.” (RC)