The Orb's 2005 classic on the Kompakt label -- aptly titled Okie Dokie It's the Orb on Kompakt -- easily proved that Dr. Alex Paterson and company could hang with the techno avant-garde of the new millennium, taking the minimalist blueprint of many who had followed the Orb and delivering a great record within that context. The follow-up The Dream is just as good, but in a completely different way. Ironically, it sounds more Orb-like than any other record they've done. (There's a certain invers   [ read more ]

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Much like the early Orb-related project recorded as Space, Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld simulates a journey through the outer realms -- progressing from the soaring ambient-pop of "Little Fluffy Clouds" and the stoned "Back Side of the Moon" (a veiled Pink Floyd reference) to "Into the Fourth Dimension" and ending (after more than two hours) with the glorious live mix of "A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain." A varied cast of samples ({#Flash Gordon}, space broadcasts, fore   [ read more ]

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A brief, 12-track trip through the Orb's singles archive, U.F. Off includes mixes of just about every single from "A Huge Evergrowing Pulsating Brain" through "Toxygene" (though not in strictly chronological order). Singles compilations for electronic artists hardly ever fit the bill for longtime listeners or neophytes, yet this one is put together well and remains a solid addition to any collection. The double-disc version includes additional remixes plus a few unreleased tracks ({&"Mickey Mars   [ read more ]

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The commercial and artistic peak of the ambient-house movement, U.F.Orb strides past the debut with more periods of free-form ambience and less reliance on a standard 4/4 beat. From the opening "O.O.B.E." through the bass-heavy gait of "Blue Room" and "Towers of Dub," the flow is more natural and ranges farther than most would have expected. The bevy of contributors (including Steve Hillage, Jah Wobble, Youth, Thomas Fehlmann, and Slam) never threatens to overload the proceedings,   [ read more ]

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The perfect response to a music-scene swamped by what Paterson himself called "lame ambient noodling for seventy minutes," Orbus Terrarum brings the mothership back to earth for a collision with some surprisingly harsh percussion and noisy synth. The melodies and dub lines of previous Orb recordings are still in the mix, and the esoteric bent of Pomme Fritz is muted somewhat. Orbus Terrarum is definitely not the place to start, but it's still a worthy successor to U.F.Orb. The final track    [ read more ]

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Comprised of recordings made just after 1997's Orblivion (and subsequently trapped in major-label-restructuring limbo for nigh on three years), Cydonia is a hodgepodge of Orb styles and sounds, a quality production that nevertheless meanders too far and duplicates too many ideas first heard on Orb records ten years in the past. Much of Cydonia (the title is a reference to a region of Mars where astronauts reportedly found evidence of ancient civilization) aligns to the slightly spacey, slight   [ read more ]

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Absurd title aside, Okie Dokie marks the Orb's absolute absorption into Cologne's Kompakt label, following a series of 12" releases and compilation appearances dating back to late 2002. The principal factor is Thomas Fehlmann, a longtime associate and Kompakt elder statesman whose presence is felt on every track, consequently inhibiting Alex Paterson's whimsical impulses. There are no incongruous vocal appearances, silly spoken bits, or lumbering dubwise squibs. All the unnerving flights o   [ read more ]

CD $16.13

With I'll Be Black, Dr. Alex Paterson -- the main man behind the Orb -- takes a casual, two-disc stroll through the mighty "Trojan"'s back catalog, picking up sentimental favorites, drugged out dubs, and quirky tunes along the way. Paterson's liner note reminiscing about the reggae label is a good indicator of how free form the disc will sound, so don't expect any mind-blowing revelations. Instead, it's a mighty good hang out session with little bits of sampled dialogue and leftover Orb   [ read more ]

CD $22.78

If the Orb's 1995 release Orbus Terrarum was an extended meditation on the earthbound, the band's follow-up in Orblivion rises from the muck of primordial ectoplasm for a guided tour of late 20th century Western culture's more paranoid face. From the Cold War (the album kicks off with Joseph McCarthy's intoning of the immortal invective "Are you now, or have you ever been...") to the pre-millennial ranting of David Thewlis' warped, apocalyptic monologue from Mike Leigh's {#Naked} ("The bar   [ read more ]

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The Orb's 2005 classic on the Kompakt label -- aptly titled Okie Dokie It's the Orb on Kompakt -- easily proved that Dr. Alex Paterson and company could hang with the techno avant-garde of the new millennium, taking the minimalist blueprint of many who had followed the Orb and delivering a great record within that context. The follow-up The Dream is just as good, but in a completely different way. Ironically, it sounds more Orb-like than any other record they've done. (There's a c   [ read more ]

CD $16.13

The commercial and artistic peak of the ambient-house movement, U.F.Orb strides past the debut with more periods of free-form ambience and less reliance on a standard 4/4 beat. From the opening "O.O.B.E." through the bass-heavy gait of "Blue Room" and "Towers of Dub," the flow is more natural and ranges farther than most would have expected. The bevy of contributors (including Steve Hillage, Jah Wobble, Youth, Thomas Fehlmann, and Slam) never threatens to overload the proceedings,   [ read more ]

CD $22.78

It's fair to say that the Orb never would have reached the British pop Top 40 without the influence and promotion of John Peel, who sponsored three sessions between 1989 and 1995. (There have also been two additional dates for other presenters.) Peel, a veteran of the late-'60s British music scene, appreciated the Orb's blend of futurism and folky traditionalism, seeing them not just as dance saviors but another dot in the line that connected pixilated popsters like T. Rex and {$the Incredibl   [ read more ]

CD $18.98