Orbital - Wonky

I wasn't aware it was something that gets thrown at you that often, but I'm not on here all that much so may have missed that. It's not about legal terminology, though, not at all, it's about a certain approach to argument and logic that feels, when you're on the end of it, as if it's about finding loopholes and faultlines and proping them to the point where they collapse an argument (or someone's engagement with an argument). It's about a way of thinking, and turning that thought into discourse.

Well it gets thrown at me because I'm a lawyer.

I have no issue with the basic distinction you're drawing, I just think that talking in terms of the transcendent is an unhelpful way to make that point. I really don't think it's possible to use the term in a way that helps rather than hinders understanding. The nature of the word, and its baggage, means that it implies a lot more than the speaker really means.

When we say that an artist "transcends" a genre, typically what we really mean is that they're taking aspects of that genre and then reframing them within articulations that cannot be reduced to that genre.

But that is like saying mixing blue with yellow to make green results in a transcending of blue. This seems like an odd way to express the relationships of colours because we don't think of colours as existing in hierarchical relationships with one another.

And I think once we recognise that hierarchies aren't the best way to think about music, then we begin to feel that the language of transcendence is no longer appropriate.

'Wonky' is an attempt at the kind of dance album you used to get a lot of in the nineties - that "throw everything in, let's make a bangin' dance-pop album like 'Music For A Jilted Generation'" kind of thing, which is fine in my book. But what seemed to make 'In Sides' so good at the time was that it was a nineties crossover dance album that felt like a complete "piece" in six movements.

It was maybe one of the first times for a lot of rock-orientated fans looking to get into electronic music that they could access it in a way that didn't follow the typical 12-song rock album format - to be immersed in a complete, neatly-bound aural experience without having to have the "oh here's the hit", "oh here's the collab with popular singer of the moment", "oh, here's the ambient fillery bit" etc... 'Insides' just feels so satisfying, so concise, no wasted moments - a slick, well oiled engine with all the components in place. I get that this is the antithesis of 'Wonky''s sparkling maximalist all-star comeback record, but it's not what I personally was hoping for.

'In Sides' largely precedes that sort of dance album though, Jilted Generation aside (and even that is way more cohesive than, say, a mid-career Chemical Brothers album).

'Wonky' is actually considerably more concise and tight than 'In Sides' - not really a judgement, 'In Sides' is a much better record, but the tracks have so much time to build. It's not a case of "wasted moments", more "we have loads of time so let's be patient" and it works in its favour.

In the contex of metaphysics, I believe the transcendent can only be conceived of negatively.

board description

They're both different records entirely though. Obviously In Sides wouldn't work as a bunch of single edits, and Wonky probably was good to cut these tracks off when they did.

I don't mind the "composed" element of it at all. I love how it feels like an electrified orchestra in places. Outside of "Straight Sun" (which is too straightforward and sounds like something from The Altogether) all the hooks work for me. I never really bought into the idea that an album couldn't be truly great if it didn't think outside the box or "transcend" its genre.

Orbital is performing with Stephen Hawking at the London Paralympics! Like, right now!

"content rather than music"

vs

In the contex of metaphysics, I believe the transcendent can only be conceived of negatively.

battle of the sentences whose meaning i cannot fathom even a tiny bit

if you've not studied western philosophy then I wouldn't worry re the latter.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transcendence_(philosophy)

Orbital is performing with Stephen Hawking at the London Paralympics! Like, right now!
― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, August 29, 2012 10:55 PM (Yesterday)

Orbital at the Paralympics was brilliant. Being a bit of an Orbital know-nothing, it made me want to investigate further, and I know there's a box set of five of their albums just waiting for me next time I go record shopping.

Wish I'd seen them at the Paralympics ceremony.

iplayer

(iView for Tim FYI)

Wasn't it C4 rather than BBC? I'll investigate though, perhaps watch it at the weekend.

ah sorry

http://paralympics.channel4.com/video/index.html

They did Where's It Going with Stephen Hawking in front of them wearing Orbital glasses and speaking over the top of it, then manipulated his voice so it sounded like he was singing. Except the whole thing had a disabled band playing Spasticus Autisticus by Ian Dury sandwiched in the middle. The whole segment was insanely great.

Would love to know who suggested putting the glasses on Professor Hawking and how that actually happened.

Wow.

OK, calling one of your songs "Stringy Acid" is something that was too obvious even for Analords.

That might be one of my biggest bugbears in music, and something a lot of my favourite acts are guilty of (I'm looking at you, Blur). VCMG did this: 'Bendy Bass', 'Single Blip'. It's like a track spoiler and very annoying.

lol @ the idea of a track spoiler

I don't mind if it's a track spoiler, it's just lazy. And Orbital are one of those artists who are often quite clever with their titles. They could have done better.

The album's alright. It is an Orbital album, no more, no less. Beezledub is a bit embarrassing, like a dad rifling through their kids' record collection but apart from that it's solid.

Lazy, yes. Like they had a working title and never changed it. It winds me up and actually affects my enjoyment of the music because it makes me think they just thought "well this track's good enough, let's call it "Good Song".

(opening ceremony repeated on freeview channel "4seven" this afternoon, 4pm i think. might need to rescan your freeview channels though as 4seven is relatively new)

Didn't see the ceremony last nught. Happily an HD quality rip is available on youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Kd4FgGSY5BY#t=12282s

Orbital comes in around 3hr 25. Now excuse me for a minute, I've got some dust in my eye. Again.

Just the Orbital: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfmpxaLl6c4

thanks!

I'm actually really digging Beezledub, in general I dislike that style but they really did it right, in my eyes

Yeah, it's actually one of my favourites. Helps if you think of it as a mutant version of Satan.

well... it IS a mutant version of "Satan", so

Exactement.

btw "Where Is It Going?" pwns

Wish they'd used the 'Live style' mix on the album.

should i go see orbital or go to a national convention re: my chosen profession

see orbital, c'mon son

otm

ok, i will

The end:

"After 25 years, we are hanging up our torch-glasses. Please see http://orbitalofficial.com/ for more info."

After 25 years at the forefront of electronic music — from house to rave to festival mega-techno, to international dance stardom to the 2012 London Paralympics Opening Ceremony — Orbital brothers Paul and Phil Hartnoll announce that they’re hanging up their iconic torch-glasses and parting ways for the final time.

“We’ve had our ups and downs, and it’s not always been easy, but I’ve loved my time with Orbital,” says Paul Hartnoll. “It’s been brilliant that we’ve been able to take our music to so many places, from local clubs to headlining Glastonbury to playing massive events across America, Australia, Japan… It’s been fantastic.

“It was particularly nice to get such a lovely reception when we got back together a few years ago. We made the Wonky album specifically to play live and these shows over the past few years have been a real high point in many ways. The shows and the audiences have been amazing.

“But nothing lasts forever and it's time to stop. Since finishing the soundtrack with Flood & PJ Harvey for the BBC One television show Peaky Blinders, I’ve now got my own new project, ‘8:58’ which I'm really excited about. It's a continuation of my work from the past 25 years but with a new vitality taking me on to something fresh, mixed with the best of what I've put into Orbital. Expect some live shows soon where I will be playing a mixture of my new music alongside my Orbital favorites.”

Phil Hartnoll is focusing on his DJing career, which has seen him traveling around the world. Most recently he’s played for fans in Thailand, Japan, Korea, Dublin and private parties in New York, France and London. "I am really enjoying playing a mixture of my own exclusive Orbital remixes mixed with some great new dancefloor tracks. I have also been discovering so much talent along the way and look forward to potential collaborations. Orbital has been fantastic, but like the Bond movie - "Never Say Never Again".

Having broken up in 2004, the Hartnolls reunited to play the Big Chill to celebrate 20 years of their DIY techno classic ‘Chime’ in 2009. Massive demand from fans who’d grown up with Orbital’s groundbreaking live shows led to a triumphant, ever-extending tour, culminating in an appearance before millions at the opening of the Paralympics with Professor Stephen Hawking on vocals.

Ok. See you in 2019.

Not quite 2019:

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/feb/02/orbital-return-split-british-dance-duo-tour-dates-new-material-kinetic

a bit of a cheap shot to call this "new material" but whatever, I'll take it. always felt this tune was underrated anyway.

hope they stick around a while and zip on over to the States while they're at it. I missed an opportunity to see them in 2001 cuz I was too young, not gonna happen again

Stringy Acid off this album is really good.

yeah that one got me a bit choked up the first time I heard it

btw the last two tracks on the 8:58 album are really good. no doubt would've appeared on a 2015 Orbital album had they not split.

well this is great news (although yeah, an actual new song would be nice)

I don't know if it's fair to call this track "overrated" since it was on practically every dance comp I looked at in 1994

https://www.discogs.com/artist/5388-Golden-Girls?filter_anv=0&subtype=Compilations&type=Appearances

66!

https://www.discogs.com/artist/5388-Golden-Girls?filter_anv=0&subtype=Compilations&type=Appearances

Aw man.

Snap!

From memory think I own at least 5 of those compilations

oh wow, I had no idea it had been around for so long

all I knew was "Frenetic" which was on a Orbital comp I bought, it basically said something like "it's a remix of an old tune", which I still haven't heard

either way here's a really underrated Orbital tune - "Illuminate"

*ducks*