Orbital - Wonky

[mcbpete]

2012 - Orbital discovers Kai's Power Goo

[Guest analogue wings]

Checked out the track expecting to share the wattum groupminds opinion... and well

 

yeah, it is a 1994 chilled techno track... buuuut... i dunno.... i think the time might actually be right for a 1994 chilled techno track. it just sounded like a bit of a breath of fresh air compared to the current electronic zeitgeist

 

and i liked that that they arent trying to either show off their "chops" or make an "up to date" dubstep influenced cringe fest

[Goiter Sanchez]

... i liked that that they arent trying to either show off their "chops" or make an "up to date" dubstep influenced cringe fest

[purlieu]

Sorry to ruin it, but

"there are nods to cutting-edge club culture on Wonky too ' including a guest appearance by hotly tipped Birmingham grime MC Lady Leshurr on the album's irresistibly vibrant electro-rap title track. The Hartnolls even give a radical post-dubstep makeover to their much-loved techno-rock classic Satan, reworking it into a razor- backed beast of shuddering bass called Beelzedub."

 

http://www.music-news.com/shownews.asp?H=Orbital-to-return-with-Wonky&nItemID=47888

[Jamesqdot]

Sorry to ruin it, but

"there are nods to cutting-edge club culture on Wonky too ' including a guest appearance by hotly tipped Birmingham grime MC Lady Leshurr on the album's irresistibly vibrant electro-rap title track. The Hartnolls even give a radical post-dubstep makeover to their much-loved techno-rock classic Satan, reworking it into a razor- backed beast of shuddering bass called Beelzedub."

 

http://www.music-new...y&nItemID=47888

 

[Redruth]

more in sides plees

[springymajig]

Upon listening to Never again it's not quite as awful as I first thought but it's still not very good at all. The problem is that they mellowed out as they got older. Now they just want to have fun. There were political messages all through their work right up until Middle of Nowhere, which was the point of no return. I love that album but really, it's light entertaining fluff compared to In Sides and Snivilisation.

 

In short: They were angry, and they had something meaningful to say, which translated well in an abstract way on their earlier material. I suspect that they're just tired of being angry now. They've just given in. They don't give a shit, and so their music reflects that.

 

At least, that's what it comes across as.

 

The whole thing is so embarrassing. That picture is awful... this is like something 12 year old kids with fruityloops would come up with, using a copy of Photoshop Elements for the artwork that their dad got with the printer he bought.

 

Out of all the great 90's dance groups that have met their downfall (FSOL, Underworld, Orb) Orbital's has been the most embarrassing. They were always my favourite of those artists. They rose higher than anyone, and so they have had further to fall, and what we have left is the offal splattered across the ground.

 

*cries*

[Guest ruiagnelo]

Out of all the great 90's dance groups that have met their downfall (FSOL, Underworld, Orb)

 

explain

[springymajig]

Out of all the great 90's dance groups that have met their downfall (FSOL, Underworld, Orb)

 

explain

 

Oh come on, nobody likes their psychedelic rock albums. They've picked themselves back up off their feet since then though, but mostly by releasing older material that was archived from their golden age.

 

Environments II is pretty sweet though, but I suspect that's largely made form older stuff too.

[Guest ruiagnelo]

Out of all the great 90's dance groups that have met their downfall (FSOL, Underworld, Orb)

 

explain

 

Oh come on, nobody likes their psychedelic rock albums. They've picked themselves back up off their feet since then though, but mostly by releasing older material that was archived from their golden age.

 

Environments II is pretty sweet though, but I suspect that's largely made form older stuff too.

 

You scared me for a moment.

 

But don't forget that the psychelelic rock phase has a different name: Amorphous Androgynous

 

FSOL never went downhill for me. Its just that, a moment came when they had to stop, and they did it. Now they are releasing old material and admire that, because it keeps the spirit alive.

[purlieu]

Ah, this is my cue for a mini-rant then.

Environments 2 has some new material on, and a fair chunk of old stuff. Environments 3 is about 80% new material though, and all the material previewed for 4 is sounding brilliant, so I think they've still got it in them.

Also, this is the only place I've been that seems to have a near-universal hatred for the Amorphous stuff. A lot of people like it! Anyway, yeah, it's called Amorphous Androgynous because they don't want it to be seen as part of the FSOL oeuvre, which is fair.

 

Also, Barking was a piece of shit, but otherwise I haven't lost faith in Underworld.

 

I am completely agreed about the turning point with Orbital, though. The Middle of Nowhere is like Brown/Snivilisation/In Sides on auto-pilot - Way Out, Spare Parts Express and Style are lovely, the rest I could take or leave. The Altogether and Blue have a small collection of decent tracks between them, but even then there's something about the production that makes them sound really tacky. I can't work out exactly what it is, but it really sounds like they weren't produced in the same way at all. The chunky analogue sound just disappeared. And the rest of it was appalling. I thought David Gray collaborations, TV themes and titles like 'Acid Pants' were their low point, but no, they've decided to come back with a dubstep version of Satan and a track called 'Stringy Acid'. Sigh.

[brisk]

I'm reserving judgement on FSOL until they release their next "proper" post-Dead Cities album, that has been due for about... 10 years now. These little distractions like Archives and Environments have been OK, but they never felt on par with the quality of the rest of their discography imo. In fact, because they've been so quick to release all these "outakes", it has somewhat tarnished my prior love for them. I no longer get excited when I see a new FSOL release is coming, which is a shame really. I did enjoy their Oasis remixes though, oddly enough.

 

As for Orbital, they've been on the slippery slope for ages and "never" just proves how utterly irrelevant they are now. Terrible single really. It just sounds really meek and even a little amateur to be honest. Hard to believe it's from the same guys who made Belfast. They should have stayed retired after that travesty that was the Blue album.

 

Of all these 90s classic electronic bands, Leftfield were the smartest. They made 2 superb albums and then retired on a high. It's unlikely, but if they ever did reform/release another album, I imagine they would be the ones who actually got it right.

[Guest Margatroid]

You guys were the only forum I could find discussing this, so I registered just to post about it...

 

I think you pretty much have the Orbital album timeline right. Middle of Nowhere did feel like they were on autopilot, but I think it was still a great record. "Know Where To Run" and "Nothing Left" are both excellent, as is "Otoño." The album wasn't surprising or innovative, but it was Orbital doing what they do best and being great at it. Probably the height of their powers.

 

The Altogether was where they became goofy and self-indulgent. I remember being extremely disappointed upon its release... Orbital were always the most special to me out of the big 90s electronic groups; I felt like they had access to some kind of cosmic magic that nobody else did, so the silly vibes and the Dr. Who cover just felt strange. I guess Snivilisation had some silly stuff too, so maybe the real problem was the change in production values like purlieu said... It all just felt cheesy and forced, and definitely didn't have that same magic to it. Their signature "Orbitalness" had vanished somehow.

 

And then the Blue Album came out, and it was an overly self-conscious career retrospective, which I accepted because supposedly it was their final album. I think I've only listened to that one all the way through about five times, and the only track I particularly liked was "You Lot."

 

Orbital's career trajectory reminds me a lot of Devo's... The Middle of Nowhere was like their "Shout," a tuneful but unadventurous record heralding the beginning of the end, The Altogether their "Total Devo," a bizarrely silly and out-of-character indulgence, and the Blue Album their "Smooth Noodle Maps," a career capstone with a lot of grand gestures and hands-in-the-air anthemics.

 

The thing is, when Devo came back 20 years later to do "Something For Everybody," it actually turned out pretty well... It certainly didn't sound like the stuff they made in their 20s and 30s, but they'd had enough time away from their music to re-evaluate what made it good, and they returned to that form for the most part. Despite being old, they managed to recapture some of the magic.

 

So, as much as I don't want to hear a dubstep version of "Satan," I'm holding out hope that this album won't be total garbage. I was disappointed by "Never" at first, but after listening to it a few times I like it more. It's mellow, but it really does sound like Orbital before they went sour. I can accept a more mellow record from guys who are in their 40s. Expecting them to make music with the same fire and anger they had in their 20s is unfair, and they would be faking it if they tried to do so.

 

Anyway, maybe it will suck, but we should at least give it a listen before we pass judgment... I'm holding out hope for a bit of that classic Orbital magic.

[superstix]

I'm holding out hope for a bit of that classic Orbital magic.

[Bambi]

Last track of the album 'Where is it going?' is back to the old classic Orbital stabs magic. Stringy Acid is also pretty good as it is a rework of a 22 year old Orbital tune from a cassette.

[joseph]

I'm holding out hope for a bit of that classic Orbital magic.

 

LOOL

[springymajig]

Another new track. It's ok. Sounds nothing like Orbital. Has embarrassing wubwubwub bass line. Apart from that, it's "nice".

 

[awepittance]

woah, that midi piano at the beginning sounds straight outta 1995

[sweepstakes]

Holy crap.

[sweepstakes]

It already has 251 likes on Youtube and 3 dislikes.

[awepittance]

the track gets better, but jeeze what a bad way to open up a track from 2012

[beerwolf]

You guys were the only forum I could find discussing this, so I registered just to post about it...

 

I think you pretty much have the Orbital album timeline right. Middle of Nowhere did feel like they were on autopilot, but I think it was still a great record. "Know Where To Run" and "Nothing Left" are both excellent, as is "Otoño." The album wasn't surprising or innovative, but it was Orbital doing what they do best and being great at it. Probably the height of their powers.

 

The Altogether was where they became goofy and self-indulgent. I remember being extremely disappointed upon its release... Orbital were always the most special to me out of the big 90s electronic groups; I felt like they had access to some kind of cosmic magic that nobody else did, so the silly vibes and the Dr. Who cover just felt strange. I guess Snivilisation had some silly stuff too, so maybe the real problem was the change in production values like purlieu said... It all just felt cheesy and forced, and definitely didn't have that same magic to it. Their signature "Orbitalness" had vanished somehow.

 

And then the Blue Album came out, and it was an overly self-conscious career retrospective, which I accepted because supposedly it was their final album. I think I've only listened to that one all the way through about five times, and the only track I particularly liked was "You Lot."

 

Orbital's career trajectory reminds me a lot of Devo's... The Middle of Nowhere was like their "Shout," a tuneful but unadventurous record heralding the beginning of the end, The Altogether their "Total Devo," a bizarrely silly and out-of-character indulgence, and the Blue Album their "Smooth Noodle Maps," a career capstone with a lot of grand gestures and hands-in-the-air anthemics.

 

The thing is, when Devo came back 20 years later to do "Something For Everybody," it actually turned out pretty well... It certainly didn't sound like the stuff they made in their 20s and 30s, but they'd had enough time away from their music to re-evaluate what made it good, and they returned to that form for the most part. Despite being old, they managed to recapture some of the magic.

 

So, as much as I don't want to hear a dubstep version of "Satan," I'm holding out hope that this album won't be total garbage. I was disappointed by "Never" at first, but after listening to it a few times I like it more. It's mellow, but it really does sound like Orbital before they went sour. I can accept a more mellow record from guys who are in their 40s. Expecting them to make music with the same fire and anger they had in their 20s is unfair, and they would be faking it if they tried to do so.

 

Anyway, maybe it will suck, but we should at least give it a listen before we pass judgment... I'm holding out hope for a bit of that classic Orbital magic.

 

Pleased you joined us mate. Nice to have you.

[Mindphaser]

Here`s a positive review of the new album. http://www.uncut.co....d/orbital-wonky

[sweepstakes]

Here`s a positive review of the new album. http://www.uncut.co....d/orbital-wonky

That press photo is horrible, even for a press photo. I hoped that kind of cheesy photo-warping had died with the nineties. Maybe that's the point, this revival is a big middle finger to the last 15 years of electronic media.

[mcbpete]

Man I so hope that all my fears about his this album turn out to be wrong and that I'll feel as enthused after listening to it as that guy does, I really do .....