I was promised the future. By that I mean, yes, it went almost without question (statistically) that I would still be alive in 2009. The future was something more; something with a recognizable taste. As a child I knew without question that as I grew up, even more so could the world I may inherit. I mean something more than just years when I say the future.

Superman, The Jetsons, James Kirk and a black and white TV told me things, beautiful things. Adventure and possibility beyond imagination. Perfect worldwide peace without disease or poverty. Ubiquitous, effortless flight. Probably, a black president with a stage presence like Morgan Freeman. Above all, I expected to see the limitless reach of human exploration and expression. I want to talk about that last point for a second.

Imogen Heap confirms for me that the future has not only already arrived, but has delivered fully on one promise. Here we see a young woman controlling a fantastic array of electronic equipment. Any single component, if presented to NASA's best engineers in 1969, would have seemed impossibly sophisticated. She, alone on stage, uses this future artifact not to explore space or design pharmaceuticals, but to project without restraint her imagination onto our consciousness.

That's the highest quality recording I can find on YouTube. I strongly suggest you go support this artist in any way you can, and with that being said, here's my favorite rendition of Hide and Seek.