One record at a time: 555. One record at a time: Orbital - A Beginners Guide

For the past two years, a Post-it note has sat on my desk recording every record I have pre-ordered. The need for this sophisticated archival system is illustrated perfectly by the two copies of Orbital’s "A Beginner’s Guide" now sitting in front of me. They are not merely the same record, but also sourced from the same retailer, complete with the same bonus art print. It turns out audit trails are not actually a bad thing if they prevent you from ordering the same record twice; even if mine is fluorescent yellow and stuck beneath a mug.

Released in 2024, this compilation carries a bizarre warning on the sleeve aimed at the “Orbital-initiated” and the “Orbital-completist”. In essence, it tells them the record is not for them and asks that they leave this “auditory gateway” on the shelf for a newcomer to discover. As a means of alienating the existing fanbase while simultaneously making newcomers fear they are about to join a cult, it is impressively efficient.

Happily, I occupy a middle ground the sleeve-note author would probably call “Orbital-acquainted”. I own several of their albums on compact disc or as digital files, but I am no completist and none has spent much time in heavy rotation. A compilation like this lets someone like me revisit the obvious tracks while sampling a few that previously slipped past unnoticed. Further proof that this record is not intended for the “Orbital-purist” comes from the fact that all but one of the tracks appear in edited form, but as a casual listener, that does not trouble me.

Predictably, and quite properly, proceedings begin with the band’s debut single, “Chime”. As a dance classic, this song demands attention. Like many great dance records, its strength lies in the simplicity of the “Solid Bass” riff, the 303 burblings and the patient accumulation of small ideas until resistance becomes pointless. The brisk single edit presented here reduces it to its most vital components and gets out before anyone can complain. 

The Yamaha FM synthesis “Solid Bass” patch returns on “Halcyon”, but this has never been a favourite of mine because it samples Opus III’s “It’s a Fine Day”, another dance track I have never particularly liked. That rather places “Halcyon” at a disadvantage before it has even put its shoes on. Still, the arrangement is clever. Although a TR-909 supplies the beats, they are pushed back into the mix and the bass is left to drive the groove, giving the track a soft-focus momentum that is both propulsive and oddly weightless. 

“Belfast”, by contrast, is one of those Orbital tracks I love without reservation. Its chiming melody and rolling pulse manage to sound both wistful and warmly euphoric, proving that electronic music can tug at the heart without arriving with an acoustic guitar and a troubled expression. It unfolds with such graceful inevitability that it feels spacious, warm and entirely unhurried.

“Lush” is a different proposition entirely: frenetic, fantastic and apparently powered by a machine that has mistaken urgency for a moral virtue. The rushing percussion, stabbing synths and restless shifts generate a momentum that seems perpetually on the verge of running away with itself, yet the Hartnolls keep control of the whole hurtling contraption. 

I am less persuaded by “The Box”. Its cinematic atmosphere and creeping rhythms are skilfully assembled, but the track feels more like an intriguing corridor than a room I particularly want to remain in. I can appreciate the scenery, yet after a while I start looking for an illuminated exit sign.

Then there is “Style”, an annoying track that I loathe. I understand that its clattering samples, playful construction and wilful oddness are probably meant to be mischievous, but to me they resemble the contents of a kitchen drawer being shaken to settle an argument. Some listeners will hear invention. I hear my cutlery getting messed up.

And so the compilation is very much a case of swings and roundabouts. Some tracks, such as “Belfast” and “Lush”, remind me why Orbital can be so thrilling. Others, particularly “Style”, make me suspect the Hartnolls briefly mistook irritation for innovation. That unevenness is not necessarily a flaw in a beginner’s guide. Orbital’s gift is to make electronic music that is eccentric without collapsing into novelty and accessible without sanding away all the interesting edges, although “Style” gives the novelty boundary a vigorous rattle. As an introduction, it succeeds. As a definitive survey, it wisely does not pretend to be one.

The vinyl edition contains six fewer tracks than the compact disc, but sacrifices must be made if we are to enjoy that dust flecked sound and the faint sense that merely lowering a stylus counts as an event. For the newcomer, "A Beginner’s Guide" is a lively and approachable route into Orbital. For the “Orbital-completist”, the sleeve has already asked you to step away from the merchandise, although I suspect that warning will not be obeyed. 3/5

One record at a time: 330. Orbital - Monsters Exist

I only own one Orbital album on vinyl and it is a signed copy of "Monsters Exist" from 2018. I saw this album being advertised on Pledge Music and for some reason I decided to back it. I'm not a massive Orbital fan as I find their music moves between two extremes. Tracks like "Belfast" and "Funny Break" are immaculate, but I really don't like "The Box" or "Style". I think I must gave just gambled that this record would be more to my taste than their previous efforts and hoped for the best.

Happily I like this album and despite being pressed by GZ Media, these two slabs of vinyl actually sound pretty good. The overall package is nice and even included a download card (which you don't seem to get nowadays).

The title track that opens proceedings is a nice piece which leans more to the electronica side of the band's output rather than the banging dance music side. Another highlight on the fist disc is the brilliant "P.H.U.K." which has a harder edge but is bristling with hooks and ideas. "Hoo Hoo Ha Ha" is so characteristically Orbital it almost makes me long for a bit more innovation rather than using the same ideas from the past.

On the second disc "Buried Deep Within" is another interesting slice of electronica but "Vision OnE" and "The End is Nigh" don't really hold my interest. We end on a massive downer with Professor Brian Cox providing an unvarnished description of the end of the universe and reminding us all of our own mortality. Way to kill the mood Prof. 3/5

Orbital (but not On+On+On)

For some reason I re-evaluate my opinion on certain artists every so often. I’m never sure why I do this. Is it to ensure my taste is what I think it is? Am I really so unsure of myself that I have to check to see if I really enjoy the music in my collection? Yet, I’m glad I do this, as I sometimes learn to appreciate the genius of artists I have previously dismissed.

One group I knew carried all the ingredients for great music, yet one I never warmed to, were Orbital. My brother was always a big fan; but somehow they left me cold. I disliked their music chiefly because of the track ‘Halcyon’. The reason I hated this track was because it samples of the abhorrent ‘Opus III’ track ‘It’s a fine day’. I found the original song intensely irritating and it doesn’t matter how you reverse, fade and otherwise manipulate the sound of the vocal, I will always dislike it. Ok, so I shouldn’t dismiss an artist because I didn’t like one of their biggest hits, but I hated (and still do) that track intensely.

Another reason I never liked Orbital much was because ‘Chime’ was always too slow and had been surpassed by the time I became fully aware of it in the early 90’s. The more electronic and experimental nature of Orbital’s back catalogue passed me by as I became obsessed with the frenetic dance music that was abundant in the 1990’s. The next time I became aware of Orbital was when ‘Style’ was doing the rounds in 1999. I hated it. Still do.

So what possessed me to buy ‘Work’ in 2002 I will never know. I liked a few tracks but not enough to listen to it more than a handful of times and certainly not enough to rip it to my hard drive. Their version of the theme to ‘The Saint’ and their remix of Kraftwerk’s ‘Expo 2000’ were good and made me realise there was a true ‘Orbital Sound’, yet it didn’t really make me want to listen to their work.

For some reason 2010 finds me quite obsessed with the music of Orbital. Some kind of early 90’s nostalgia has brought me back to ‘Belfast’, ‘Satan’, ‘Remind’, ‘Lush’, and ‘Choice’. More recent work such as ‘Funny Break’, ‘Illuminate’ and ‘Nothing Left’ are also mesmerising to me.

Having purchased their entire back catalogue, I still feel it is something of a mixed bag in terms of quality. They definitely have a tendency to be over indulgent and some tracks (‘Bath Time’, ‘Style’, ‘Halcyon’ etc) I find intensely irritating (I can’t warm to ‘The Box’ at all either I’m afraid). Yet when they get it right, well, Orbital are capable of hitting highs no other artist is capable of. Listen to tracks such as the live version of ‘Remind’ from their last ever Peel Session in 2004 and you will realise that Orbital were at one time, a groundbreaking and indispensable part of not only dance music, but electronic music in general. Make no mistake: they are important.