Orbital C/D

So much of their music is majestic and ethereal (my fav being the live version of Out There Somewhere - Irvine Plaza live mix), but it's that same tone that's increasingly made them feel a little too fuzzy to maintain their pull/relevance.

I've since developed more of an appetite for tension in sound and themes, to excite a sense of the present moment, rather than the remember-a-time-when-chillouts-were-so-psychedelic-man type nostalgia that pines for great present moment's of years passed.

But that's just one song -- I'd say that "The Box" and "PETROL" (also from In Sides, of course) provide plenty of tension and immediacy.

(I may have completely misunderstood your argument, though)

Let's face it -- "OTS" is as proggy as techno gets. Not everyone wants to sit through a 26 minute techno opus about alien abduction as an allegory for the crucifixion. Sometimes you just want to play the last four minutes of "Impact USA" over and over.

OTS might be a bit of an electro-cinematic extreme, but I'm also thinking of The Tranquilizer and Sad But New.

The most recent piece from them that I heard was "Ska'd For Life" on their Back to Mine mix. They were still all about exploring that gluey membrane between pop/electronica genres - which I've loved for many years - but while I agree a lot of their gear has a strong sense of immediacy, it just seems to suffer a lack of critical intensity that other producers seem to understand better.

I think I've said this before though.

The Altogether was far too quirky/playful for my liking. They were trying to recapture the spirit of 1990. Too much "hands in the air" stuff.

I love Orbital, but I love them like a precious beautiful piece of porcelain on the mantelpiece which will essentially always stay the same. They're just not one of those artists/acts/bands that are capable - at least with each other - of really moving beyond their own admittedly wonderful formula.

Incase anyone is offended by what I've said I will freely admit I haven't heard The Altogether or the soundtrack they did "Octane". But if The Altogether was their step forward, clearly to many it was little more than a step in the wrong direction.

But then I don't like to treat any music like "a precious beautiful piece of porcelain on the mantelpiece"; I want a certain amount of robustness alongside my beauty, a certain pragmatism with my idealism.

Well, I'm not sure it's fair to say they didn't *progress* along a certain path, and that's not what I meant. But let me use an example. (and you're free to say it's a bad one) I don't recall any of Orbital's albums hitting me in the gobsmackingly surprised way Radiohead's Kid A did. I do think The Box EP was the closest thing to what I might have called a real surprise from them, a broadening of the horizons. It takes a special kind of band/artist to grow to that extent, it might even take a certain brilliance they simply don't posess, and how could we fault them for that? Surely none of us are even a smidgen as brilliant as they are.

But imagine what they might do free of each other's tether? For this I am hopeful, as I'm sure they are themselves. If I felt like weeping, I don't anymore. Good for them, you know?

However I don't think Radiohead are a good comparison for a few reasons.

a; The 'group dynamic' is totally different to the 'fraternal duo dynamic', and almost necessitates a greater level of diverse creative input and intra-group friction leading to creative change.

b; The 'experimental rock band dynamic' is totally different to the 'techno duo' dynamic (related but different to above).

c; R'head consciously set out to change (with every record but especially) with Kid A for a myriad of reasons that would and could never influence Orbital's work.

d; Shocking and dramatic change is not necessarily more radical or worthy or 'changing' than slowly evolved, subtle change.

No two Orbital albums, to me, sound 'of a kind' in the way that Kid A and Amnesiac do.

But since we're talking about Orbital, they may indeed be the kings of live performance, so...

Sick, before I peter out on this board, what's your opinion of Octane? Or is there a review I missed somewhere?

tune in via the web

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/rpms/peel_wed.rpm

the news over-ran, so seek forward. orbital start at about 31 mins in

I am currently trying to figure out how I can turn "Acid Pants" into a hat.

-- VengaDan Perry (djperr...) (webmail), May 1st, 2004. (link)

Roffle.

I could have sworn I heard that Peel show Martian was on about upthread. Maybe it was being talked about on another Orbital thread.

1 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
Orbital, as in round and round on the same old trak, September 7, 2005
Reviewer: DRYWASHER-BILL (LAS VEGAS, NEVADA) - See all my reviews
The DJ must've been lacking filler on the CD to include the rather monotonous first 3 traks. Sure you get into the vibe as you clik through the traks, but musically, it takes Orbital a long time to morph into progressive takes in the songs. It's like a pounding headache- you can hear the thumps, but can't figure out if it's your head or the track.

Take an aspirin and get some other CD, maybe even a compilation which seems the best route for the genre. At least there are more hits and good traks in a comp and if you find you like certain people, then go after them specifically.

Orbital 2 is one of those disks you should play while in the car with the windows rolled up. People think you are listening to something def from the beat, but you'll know different

Well, I couldn't give a flying crap about whether something works on the dancefloor or not. But I still love Orbital. For other reasons.