Orbital - Monsters Exist

[Pirtek]

Here's my favourite order for the new album:

 

01.Monsters Exist

02.The Raid

03.P.H.U.K.

04.Tiny Foldable Cities

05.Buried Deep Within

06.Vision OnE

07.Kaiju

08.Hoo Hoo Ha Ha (Beat-Herder Mix)

09.To Dream Again

10.Dressing Up In Other People's Clothes

11.Fun With The System

12.The End Is Nigh

13.There Will Come A Time (Instrumental)

14.A Long Way From Home

[LC1]

So here's the rest of my review. I have included the first part again because I added ratings out of five.

 

 

Main album:

 

1. Monsters Exist (3/5)

I have mixed feelings about this opener. The first half is great: the intro sounds dark and brooding and lives up to the track's title. The cut-up vocal sample that comes in at 1:07 reminds me of Snivilisation, specifically "Sad But True". But after the long build-up, I feel that the first breakdown comes way too soon at 1:39. And after the second build-up, the next breakdown kills the momentum again. What's worse, though, the melody of this breakdown (from 3:30 to 4:19) is ruined by the vocal sample being gratingly high-pitched. It doesn't get better with the cheesy percussion and the first appearance of the vocal contributions of Ellie Wyatt and Philipa Alexander. This ridiculous groaning and panting, which I find really grating, spoils three further tracks on the album. It's not too distracting here (that dubious honour goes to "The End Is Nigh" and "Kaiju") and I could sort of justify it by thinking of it as representing someone fighting off the titular monsters. The music after the second breakdown is great again, so I might do an edit that ditches the part from  3:30 to 4:35. So I totally agree with the following comment:

 

purlieu, on 15 Sept 2018 - 1:14 PM, said:

Today's thinking... title track is still a tad disjointed. Every time it feels like it gets going, there's another breakdown.

 

2. Hoo Hoo Ha Ha (3/5)

 

Aural Unrest, on 12 Sept 2018 - 09:24 AM, said:

I will say one thing. I think they've ruined the track Hoo Hoo Ha Ha. The Beat-Herder Mix was so much better :(

 

That's the first thing that came to my mind when I listened to the new version. Why mess with something that's perfect? The main melody is great and very catchy but the trumpet sound turns the whole track into a cheesy novelty song. In contrast, the main theme's sound in the 2015 version is classic Orbital and manages to come across as sophisticated and a bit of lighthearted fun simultaneously. The only good thing about the album version that is not on the original is the high-pitched background bit coming in at 0:20. This has been replaced with the superior Beat-Herder mix in my playlist.

 

3. The Raid (1/5)

I'm very disappointed by this track. Not only has it the second grating appearance of the two groaners and panters, it is also a tuneless dirge with a bleakness that comes across as forced to my ears. I'm not keen on the muddy sounding drums either. It doesn't help that the voice samples are also annoying. I don't know the source but I dislike the way the man's voice sounds while shouting from 1:44 onwards. The whole intonation feels wrong with regard to the content. Also, the crowd chanting "Yeah!" in response to him shouting that the world is poison and sick feels more like them celebrating this kind of world than them "wanting to get out of it" like the man says. It's baffling because usually these kind of spoken word bits are spot on in Orbital tracks. Also, I love some darker Orbital once in a while, but it should be merged with some great melodies as well (as in "I Don't Know You People", "Beelzebeat" or "What Happens Next?"). The tune at 2:23 is not that great a melody to serve as a reward for having to endure this apocalyptic dullness of a track. It's the equivalent of Paul's cover of "A Forest" in terms of how it bores me.

 

4. P.H.U.K. (5/5)

Finally, a great track ("Hoo Hoo Ha Ha" is great, too, but not in that version). I love everything about this. When comparing this to the 2017 live version, I'm glad that they decided to go with two breakdowns here. I love all the bouncy and bleepy other bits and the ending is a great climax. But above all, the marvellous breakdowns are what makes this an instant Orbital classic. The second one in particular (which is missing in the radio edit) with its rhythmic build-up brings me so much joy whenever I hear it. This is the definitive version for me. The P.H.U.K.U. version would be a nice but inferior variation if it didn't recycle the same spoken word bits from "The Raid" I so dislike.

 

5. Tiny Foldable Cities (4/5)

I like the title a lot. The music is more layered than usual for later Orbital albums and harks back to their old style, which is a good thing. But something about it keeps me from enjoying it as much as classic Orbital tracks. I'm not entranced by the two introductory melodies which are more rhythmic than addictive tunes: the one at 1:19 is too repetitve for my liking. So I was a bit disappointed at first but it has grown on me. The production is superb and I really like all the bass-heavy rhythm bits. Also, the new melody at 2:06 is great and once the best melody of the bunch arrives at 2:36, the whole thing comes together quite beautifully.

 

6. Buried Deep Within (2/5)

This doesn't do much for me: neither the ambient part nor the faster bits. Sure, everything sounds great but I expected this to be the introduction building up to some climax that is actually memorable, but unfortunately it never arrives. This is a forgettable filler that doesn’t excite me at all. The only saving grace is that it’s pleasant on the ears.

 

7. Vision OnE (5/5)

That’s more like it! This sounds like a future Orbital classic. It’s capital DANCE music without being dumb. Even though the intro reminds me of the Chemical Brothers, this gem of a track sounds like vintage Orbital. The beats are similar to “2 Deep” and the bass stabs hark back to “Adnan’s”. The way the beat kicks in with that extra sound at 1:52 gives me goosebumps every time, followed by all the bleepy goodness at 2:07. It all flows so well. And whenever you think the track couldn’t possibly get better, they add another fabulous melody such as the one at 2:32, which is echoed at 2:48 by a different sound while the previous one is morphing into something utterly beguiling in the background, especially from 3:02 to 3:10. Genius. The key change at 4:00 reminds me of the additional melody towards the end of the “Midnight” single (which the Green live version sadly omitted). Not to mention the new rhythmic tune at 4:33, which brings a smile to my face every time. If they play this live, it will be a real corker. This is as addictive as Orbital gets and the highlight of the main album.

 

8. The End Is Nigh (2/5)

Positioning this title as the penultimate track before the finale of “There Will Come A Time” is very tongue-in-cheek. However, the first time I heard the full version (live from Belfast) I was shocked and wrote the whole track off completely. Why? Because of the excruciatingly embarrassing part from 0:13 to 1:23 (which one commenter on facebook wisely referred to as “extra shitness added to the album version”). To me, this is the nadir on the whole album and one of the worst bits Orbital have ever recorded. The two groaners are back and allowed to “shine” in the spotlight. I don’t know what Paul was thinking when he decided to feature this desperate attempt at R&B or whatever this is meant to be? It certainly discourages further listening.

Luckily, I found out that if you cut out that part you will get a rather enjoyable upbeat track full of Orbital tuneage. Granted, the panting continues in the background, but as long as it’s in the background, it doesn’t draw too much attention to its ridiculousness and merely works as some extra percussion. And who would have thought it: Once they stop groaning and actually almost sing in an ethereal “Halcyon” style during the main breakdown, I even like the vocals. The music is actually full of intertwining melodies that are typical for Orbital, it’s just that they are more compressed than usual. Interestingly, Orbital dropped the offending part themselves when they played live at the BBC and mixmag on Friday (with just a few seconds of it thrown in later in the track).

 

9. There Will Come A Time (5/5)

A very special and worthy ending to the main album. Although I usually prefer instrumental versions and was surprised at first how loud Brian Cox’s voice is in the mix, I have to say that I prefer the vocal version. It is nice to have the instrumental to listen to without distractions, but having heard the other version first, I really miss the spoken bits. The music is so carefully constructed around them (or the other way round) that the instrumental seems unfinished to me. Also, it’s a bit jarring to suddenly hear the background chant of “us” at 3:32 out of context as the only word left in the instrumental. I’m pleased to report that I really like that they used the additional voice of Ellie Wyatt at 3:36. It sounds slightly sinister and reminds me of Snivilisation’s “Philosophy By Numbers”, which, come to think of it, somehow contradicts the message of this part.

The words and music of this track take you on a journey. I was surprised how bleak it started out thematically (though the music was very soothing in an space adventure kind of way) and then even more surprised that it ended up in a more hopeful place via a dramatic call for action, which is accompanied by music similar to “Meltdown”. I also love the featherlight twinkling ending, which sounds similar to the arpeggio bit in “Halcyon”.

 

 

Original songs on bonus discs (i.e. minus alternate versions and remixes):

 

1. Kaiju (2/5)

Paul must be really fond of Ellie’s and Philipa’s groaning as they are at it again on this track. As you can imagine by now, I’m not impressed: it’s almost as grating as the first minute of “The End Is Nigh” and totally ruins this track. The music is bouncy and jolly but not really my cup of tea. It sounds a bit too generic for Orbital and I’m not on board with some of the production choices: for example, the effect on the melody made up by the vocal sample coming in at 1:58 makes it sound wafer-thin. Otherwise, this part with the second tune underneath is my favourite bit of this track.

 

2. A Long Way From Home (4/5)

Haven’t seen this mentioned anywhere but this could be called “There Will Come Another Time” as it’s really a repeat of one of the melodies from “There Will Come A Time” (the one starting at 2:07), albeit with acoustic sounds. Therefore, it would fit well following the main album’s final track as a reprise. Although in my opinion, the way “There Will Come A Time” ends is the perfect note to finish the album with.

 

3. Analogue Test Oct. 17 (2/5)

I’m sure it must be fun fiddling about with analogue gear but to me listening to this is as exciting as listening to a jam session by guitar-based bands: that is, not exciting at all. The idea behind this is certainly a nice nod to the track “Analogue Test Feb 90” (on the “Midnight”/”Choice” single) but the lack of structure and melody in this new test makes the old one sound like “Out There Somewhere” in comparison.

 

4. Fun With The System (5/5)

This is indeed great fun. The rhythm parts remind me of Leftfield and the synths sound marvellous. This should have gone on the main album instead of “The Raid” and would be a much better fit after “Hoo Hoo Ha Ha”.

 

5. Dressing Up In Other People’s Clothes (5/5)

 

 

Dressing up in Others Peoples Clothes is brilliant (one of my favourites!)

 

Oh yes, I cannot count how many times I listened to the short teaser they gave us back in February last year to announce some festival dates. These were some of the most magical sounds I had ever heard and I was sure that the whole track would be released as a single and be played live soon.

But then it never materialized until now. And it’s not even on the main album, which completely baffles me. This is the track I was most looking forward to hear in its entirety as I couldn’t get enough of the teaser’s heavenly melody and production. So I was very surprised to find that it starts differently with one minute of ambient music. But every note is perfect in this introduction and in contrast to “Buried Deep Within” there are multiple pay-offs soon after.

The transition into the familiar part from the teaser is excellent and the way isolated parts of the melody morph into further wonders at 2:21 is sublime. It sounds as out of this world as Leftfield’s “Melt”. I also love that, although its length is only four-and-a-half minutes, it even includes a breakdown that lets us hear different components in isolation just like in the old days. Sure, I could listen to the main melody ad infinitum instead of the few times it appears here, but the whole track is constructed so beautifully I can’t really complain. After all, one can always hit the repeat button.

Leaving this off the main album is an ill-advised choice which is even worse than forgetting to put the classic Orbital logo and album title on a classic-looking cover by John Greenwood. If they didn’t want to intrude on the front cover with it, there would have been plenty of space to at least include it on the back cover as they did with In Sides. “Dressing Up In Other People’s Clothes” is my favourite track on here and up there with Orbital’s very best. It should have been on the main album instead of “Buried Deep Within”.

 

6. To Dream Again (4/5)

I prefer more melodic tracks so it isn’t up there with the best of the other tracks but there are plenty of trademark Orbital sounds to keep the listener happy and at 0:15 there’s even another variation on those iconic chord changes that have cropped up time and again since their release of “Impact”. It has that urgent drive of Underworld bangers, especially when the final part starts at 3:35. As a rhythm-based track it would actually make a great fit between the melody-heavy “Vision OnE” and “The End Is Nigh”.

 

7. Copenhagen (5/5)

This was a great comeback single last year (after the pleasant but slightly perfunctory reworking of “Kinetic”) and feels like vintage Orbital of Brown quality. The bleeps at the beginning set the scene in a similar way as “Patchwork Guilt” and are beautifully embellished at 1:24. It’s full of dramatic shifts, but stills flows brilliantly. The vocal sample used as a refrain is great, too: very catchy without being cheesy. My favourite part is probably the slightly sinister melody at 3:13.

By the way, the 2017 live version from Manchester improves upon the part immediately following the last breakdown by adding some more 303 action.

As with “Dressing Up In Other People’s Clothes”, I’m quite shocked that this didn’t end up on the main album. Especially since Paul said in an interview that he was working on a longer version of it for the album, which was to include an extra introductory section. Some people’s argument that it was released digitally a year ago doesn’t really count. After all, “Hoo Hoo Ha Ha” was premiered over three years ago (in its superior version) and I guess a lot of the tracks on the bonus disc produced by Paul himself were probably started in 2016. (The part of “Dressing Up In Other People’s Clothes” that was put out as a teaser one-and-a-half years ago is identical to the one on the bonus disc, too.)

 

Overall verdict

 

To conclude, the main album itself is a mixed bag that would have left me very disappointed apart from the highlights. My overall rating would be 3.3 out of 5.

However, the wealth of bonus material found on the extra discs offers the chance to redress the balance. If I had to choose nine tracks only, I would go for the following including the Beat-Herder version of "Hoo Hoo Ha Ha" and my own edit of "The End Is Nigh":

 

1. Copenhagen - 5/5
2. Hoo Hoo Ha Ha (Beat-Herder mix) - 5/5
3. Fun With The System - 5/5
4. P.H.U.K.- 5-/5
5. Tiny Foldable Cities - 4/5
6. Dressing Up In Other People’s Clothes - 5/5
7. Vision OnE - 5/5
8. The End Is Nigh (3:25 edit) - 4/5
9. There Will Come A Time (vocal version) - 5/5

 

My overall rating for this would go up to 4.8 out of 5, and it would be my third-favourite Orbital album after Brown and In Sides.

 

If I could include more songs, I would select the following for reasons of pacing (even though it would get a slightly weaker rating because of the individual ratings of the added tracks #1 and #9, which both get 4/5):

 

1. Monsters Exist (4:48 edit)
2. Hoo Hoo Ha Ha (Beat-Herder mix)
3. Fun With The System
4. Copenhagen
5. P.H.U.K.
6. Tiny Foldable Cities
7. Dressing Up In Other People’s Clothes
8. Vision OnE
9. To Dream Again
10. The End Is Nigh (3:25 edit)
11. There Will Come A Time (vocal version)

[Pirtek]

Excellent review!!! I agree with most of your opinions. I 100% agree with you about Dressing up in Other People's Clothes :D

[Jamesqdot]

Well, I've listened to the whole thing on YouTube now. This is the first Orbital album I won't be buying.

 

Good to hear some positive comments on here, though.

[xfxf]

Five or so listens in, quite enjoying it.  Interestingly the tracks I like are ones others in here don't seem to.

[Tricone RC]

Won't be listening to any of these trax until the album is in my hand, but can't wait. Glad to hear it's in the vein of In Sides and Sniv, two albums that probably did more than any others to get me into electronic music. They had a fantastic formula that worked back then, why not stick to doing what you do best. 

[Pirtek]

Pitchfork

 

https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/orbital-monsters-exist/

[Extralife]

Pitchfork

 

https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/orbital-monsters-exist/

Hmm. Definitely not one for the Pitchfork set. Interesting how the slam Altogether but rate Blue. Opinions, eh?

[dr lopez]

pitchfork is retard

[LC1]

Excellent review!!! I agree with most of your opinions. I 100% agree with you about Dressing up in Other People's Clothes :D

Thanks for your feedback!

 

 

Five or so listens in, quite enjoying it.  Interestingly the tracks I like are ones others in here don't seem to.

Well, a friend's favourites from Orbital's 2012 live set were "Beelzedub" and "Wonky", the ones I enjoyed the least. It's a matter of personal taste and it would be boring if we all agreed on everything.

[purlieu]

Interesting how the slam Altogether but rate Blue. Opinions, eh?

 

 

Yeah, this is baffling. I'm happy that The Altogether seems to be getting a better reputation over time, although I do understand why they still might not like it. But the idea of anyone rating Blue above what's come since is utterly baffling to me.

[Pirtek]

 

Pitchfork

 

https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/orbital-monsters-exist/

Hmm. Definitely not one for the Pitchfork set. Interesting how the slam Altogether but rate Blue. Opinions, eh?

I have the Japanese version Blue Album with Intiation on, which is by far the best thing on it. (IMO of course) :)

[purlieu]

There's a pirate version with Technologicque Park on it which I'm always tempted to get as I love that track. Mind you, Transient is my favourite from that era. It's such a misleading opener, always makes me think it's going to be this gorgeous, innovative album and then after Pants it becomes bland, and from Bath Time becomes really cringey. 

Monsters Exist - title track continues to grow, I'm even hating The End is Nigh less now. The most annoying thing about the album now is Buried Deep Within being so short. It sounds like a shit radio edit of an excellent track. 

[Pirtek]

There's a pirate version with Technologicque Park on it which I'm always tempted to get as I love that track. Mind you, Transient is my favourite from that era. It's such a misleading opener, always makes me think it's going to be this gorgeous, innovative album and then after Pants it becomes bland, and from Bath Time becomes really cringey.

 

Monsters Exist - title track continues to grow, I'm even hating The End is Nigh less now. The most annoying thing about the album now is Buried Deep Within being so short. It sounds like a shit radio edit of an excellent track.

I remember when the film XXX came out and I bought the soundtrack just for Technoligicque Park. Great track. I love the title track for Monsters Exist. The album is definitely a grower!

[Pirtek]

The most annoying thing about the album now is Buried Deep Within being so short. It sounds like a shit radio edit of an excellent track.

I do feel they should of tinkered with it a bit more, but I do really like this one. It sets up Vision OnE nicely which is another great track.

[Pirtek]

After many, many listens, I can now play the deluxe version of Monsters Exist (along with the Hmv bonus disc) in the order Orbital intended. Haven't figured out where it will go in the order of Best to worst albums yet. Early days still.....

[purlieu]

I'm still skipping Brian Cox and the Kareful remix, but otherwise yeah, I'm finding it more and more enjoyable. My only real reservation at this point is still the length of Buried Deep Within.

[Pirtek]

I've got used to the Brian Cox version. As LC1 said, it makes more sense.

[Silent Member]

Listening to this album conjured images of politicians in their fifties awkardly dancing off beat. I didn't even finish it, pause menu music.

[Pirtek]

My only real reservation at this point is still the length of Buried Deep Within.

I know what you mean, it could do with being fleshed out a bit more and extended. But I really like it and like I said before, it sets up Vision OnE nicely.

[purlieu]

I've got used to the Brian Cox version. As LC1 said, it makes more sense.

 

I just really, really hate Brian Cox.

[Pirtek]

 

I've got used to the Brian Cox version. As LC1 said, it makes more sense.

I just really, really hate Brian Cox.

lol! His voice is a bit annoying.

[purlieu]

[Extralife]

“We are all going to die. Cheerio!”

[Rotwang]