While the fleeting glare of the media is temporarily fixed on the electronica ghetto, the style boundaries are sure to be somewhat smeared. The true hairsplitters and genre geeks would probably never lump the Orb in with the Prodigy troll, but with the Chemical Brothers' miraculous appearance in the Billboard stratosphere and Bowie and Bono honing in on the game, things are bound to get muddled. Besides, it's far easier to hand the interns at Rolling Stone one label to slap on this clutch of artists, than to have them sacrificing quality time at the complimentary deli trays by having to futz around with the distinctions.
And while much of the synth axis currently swings jungle-ways, Orblivion sees longstanding Orb Captain Alex Paterson has keeping the vibe remains unmistakably Orb-like (Orb-ish?), while quite possibly rethinking the sweeping tack that 95's Orbvs Terrarvm took. At the time of that release there was probably good cause for worry amongst the clearly devoted. Succeeding the quirky but interesting mini-LP Pomme Fritz, Orbvs was a expansive treatise whose focus was dilated almost beyond proportion. The hacks hailed it as brilliant (not to say that it was free of merit), but only because they probably know the techno-sphere as well as they know the Congressional roll.
Having disposed of longtime cohort Kris "Thrash" Weston, Alex has fashioned a platter that weaves some cohesiveness back into the brilliance of his ambient ramblings. The canvas is still sprawling, it's just not multi-dimensional. The material is still bathed in enough echo and reverb to tickle all the appropriate receptors, but the beats lost in the Orbvs sea have resurfaced steadfast and righteous. It would seem that whatever he may spin on his own time for the hordes of the dancefloor, Alex has kept his BPMs well within the posted limits for the bong and weed set like jungle never happened. The tracks are also compressed a touch (the longest clocking in at just under 12 minutes) as if to make things a bit more digestible.
From the kickoff, Alex presents the Orb's universe as that shimmeringly funky place, chock full of fractured symbolism and cosmic unease and trepidation. Orblivion can play both blissful and beatific and eerily troublesome. There's the angelic exotica of the vocal sample 1:19 into "Bedouin", pitted against the apocalyptic rant of a Scottish fundamentalist upheld throughout "S.A.L.T." And just to air out the deed of electronic supremacy issued to him upon the success of the landmark "Little Fluffy Clouds" single, Alex reworks French pioneer's Jean-Michel Jarre's Oxygene 8 into the album's stunning centerpiece "Toxygene."
But most commendable about all of this is that without appearing the least bit hackneyed, the Orb can regurgitate sonic flavourings unique unto themselves that signal a true depth of style. The bleeping undertow of "Asylum" shows their keen ability to make a deft nod at their own at their own palette while not sacrificing anything that is fresh and engaging throughout the rest of the track.
Having taken all this in live a few weeks back, the visuals Alex is toting around with him only add slightly to those of us who had the misfortune or sense to remain chemi-free in their presence. The groovers in the UK probably know how to make the most of moments like this (most of the Atlantans in attendance didn't seem to be properly genetically configured for a gig like this), but depending on the capacity of your stereo system, you can probably work up to the event, before it lands in you area. Be sure to catch it while the groove remains accessible and delicious.
