Halleluwah Orbus (an Orbus Terrarum era listening club)

Inspired by the recent listening threads by Span and MIXL2, as well as my recent re-exploration of my favorite album of all time and it's satellite remixes and albums that were released along side it.  

Orbus Terrarum needs no introduction for most of you, as evidenced by the many threads on it on this very forum.  (But if you haven't heard it, please do so...

http://www.ambientexotica.com/ambrev084_theorb_ot/

To me, what LX, Thomas, Andy, and Kris accomplished during the years of 93-97 was nothing short of spectacular.  Despite "the band" dealing with a variety of dysfunctions (including Alex's tendency to leave people's contributions off writing credits), they managed to create a dubbed out, organic, lush soundworld unlike any I have ever heard.  

Loose rules are:  please share literally any track that touches you from any artist (Orb or otherwise), that has contributed to Pomme Fritz, Orbus Terrarum, and Orbivion (golden era).  Then explain who made it and why it gives you the feels.  

I'll drop a gem or two each day (reply or no).  Feel free to comment or share your own favorite gems from this era.  Guess what, everyone wins!

Since it is the thread title, I will start with this mix of the classic song by Can.  Halleluwah Orbus (as far as I can gather by discogs and the liner notes I have), was written by Patterson, Hughes, and Fehlmann and released in '97.  The Orb literally morph Jaki's drumming into a pulsating, teutonic fun-house mirror techno that lulls you into a trance by the end of its runtime. 

https://www.discogs.com/Can-Sacrilege-1/release/9072905

Seriously, if any Orbus Terrarum fan hasn't yet heard the "ambient supergroup" FFWD album they need to check it out now.

  Quote

 

 

FFWD is an eponymous album by FFWD - Robert Fripp, Thomas Fehlmann, Kris Weston, and Dr. Alex Paterson.

For me it's probably the most psychedelic album ever released. It combines The Orb's Orbus Terrarum era style with Frippertronics and creates lush constantly evolving and mutating soundscapes where sounds and melodies appear like some dreamy hallucinations all with a very summery vibe. Like relaxing on a sunbed next to a lake while your mind slowly melts into bliss.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEaJejQfyNE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4O1FyY-j0Nc

  On 4/3/2019 at 3:25 AM, mokz said:

Seriously, if any Orbus Terrarum fan hasn't yet heard the "ambient supergroup" FFWD album they need to check it out now.

 

  Quote

 

 

FFWD is an eponymous album by FFWD - Robert Fripp, Thomas Fehlmann, Kris Weston, and Dr. Alex Paterson.

 

For me it's probably the most psychedelic album ever released. It combines The Orb's Orbus Terrarum era style with Frippertronics and creates lush constantly evolving and mutating soundscapes where sounds and melodies appear like some dreamy hallucinations all with a very summery vibe. Like relaxing on a sunbed next to a lake while your mind slowly melts into bliss.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEaJejQfyNE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4O1FyY-j0Nc

I'm assumming you  know about this beauty?

Here is "Ascension" from the FFWD demo sessions (not recorded as Orbert). You can see why it wasn't included in the album because of all the excess noodling making it less ambient....but....what a tune.  It was ripped off one of Alex's radio mixes.  Enjoy.

https://mega.nz/#!3WZijAJY!S0VN4Jdtz5pLmI5LPsQk3CldPJmSs2YGZT5Mq1XUvGY

magically finds those unfinished plateau mixes that i accidentally lost years ago

  On 4/3/2019 at 5:15 PM, dr lopez said:

magically finds those unfinished plateau mixes that i accidentally lost years ago

And I will try to upload the most excellent (unreleased) Plateau (Tulip mix) when I get home from work today.

Today I share my favorite track of Tom Green's Another Fine Day project. Life Before Land is considered to be one of the best ambient albums of all time - I would certainly agree with that assessment. Tom contributed to several Orb projects, but during the Orbus era, "Valley" would be one of his crowning achievements with the group.

Try listening to "Buckets and Spades" and then Valley back to back (or alongside each other). Tom's influence and contributions to the "band" become clear.

"...working in his Brixton back room with the minimal street-tech resources of a million other wired bedrooms, Tom Green sucks forms out of air, giving audio shape to the feeling of a sitting on a curve of sand, synchronising to tidal, primal sound loops..." DAVID TOOP, BEYOND press release 7/94

  On 4/3/2019 at 1:39 PM, Extralife said:

 

I'm assumming you  know about this beauty?

 

 

Here is "Ascension" from the FFWD demo sessions (not recorded as Orbert). You can see why it wasn't included in the album because of all the excess noodling making it less ambient....but....what a tune.  It was ripped off one of Alex's radio mixes.  Enjoy.

 

https://mega.nz/#!3WZijAJY!S0VN4Jdtz5pLmI5LPsQk3CldPJmSs2YGZT5Mq1XUvGY

 

Oh, nice! Didn't know about this. Thanks!

Thomas Fehlmann's introduction into the group really helped bring in the influence of the techno/trance scene in Berlin that had been blossoming there since '90/'91. He was a producer/close associate/co-writer in Sun Electric at the time, who helped produce Orb's "little album", Pomme Fritz.  

"Waitati Post" is a highlight from one of the best/most overlooked "techno" albums of the 90s -- Present.  This album bridged some of their earlier more tranced out experiments with more of the free jazzy feel of their later work.  A crossroads of everything I love by them; and a clear influence on one of my favorite eras of the Orb.  You can hear some of the kookiness that appeared on Pomme Fritz, as well as some of the more driving sounds of Thomas Fehlmann's solo work.  

If you are not familiar with the work of Tom Thiel and Max Loderbauer (Sun Electric),  it is time to remedy that now. 

"When information is in the hands of the few, you are at their mercy -- you play by their rules."

A timely sample from one of "Le Petit Orb's" most epic remixes -- Killing Joke - Democracy (The Russian Tundra Mix).  A Huge sounding mix written by just Alex and Thomas that expands on some of the sounds we have heard from Sun Electric and even tracks like OOBE and Plateau. Killer bassline and drumming of course by Paul Ferguson (who you hear on Slug Dub).  Some of Alex's best sample work on here as well -- contrasting Cold War era news broadcasts with TV jingles and other odd outbursts from the same times. 

Sit back, relax, and enjoy. 

  On 4/3/2019 at 11:41 PM, Extralife said:

Today I share my favorite track of Tom Green's Another Fine Day project. Life Before Land is considered to be one of the best ambient albums of all time - I would certainly agree with that assessment. Tom contributed to several Orb projects, but during the Orbus era, "Valley" would be one of his crowning achievements with the group.

 

Try listening to "Buckets and Spades" and then Valley back to back (or alongside each other). Tom's influence and contributions to the "band" become clear.

 

"...working in his Brixton back room with the minimal street-tech resources of a million other wired bedrooms, Tom Green sucks forms out of air, giving audio shape to the feeling of a sitting on a curve of sand, synchronising to tidal, primal sound loops..." DAVID TOOP, BEYOND press release 7/94

Listen to what Tom Green adds to this lush mix of "Secrets" off Orblivion...floating down a river in an alien rainforest.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6Kxg3_zlog

Alex and Andy take on one of the best (or most irritating depending on your perspective) alt rock tunes of the 90s and lay on the dub THICK.

Extended reading:

http://dubbe.blogspot.com/2011/12/cranberries-zombie-camels-hump-mix.html

  On 4/5/2019 at 11:34 PM, Extralife said:

Thomas Fehlmann's introduction into the group really helped bring in the influence of the techno/trance scene in Berlin that had been blossoming there since '90/'91. He was a producer/close associate/co-writer in Sun Electric at the time, who helped produce Orb's "little album", Pomme Fritz.  

 

 

"Waitati Post" is a highlight from one of the best/most overlooked "techno" albums of the 90s -- Present.  This album bridged some of their earlier more tranced out experiments with more of the free jazzy feel of their later work.  A crossroads of everything I love by them; and a clear influence on one of my favorite eras of the Orb.  You can hear some of the kookiness that appeared on Pomme Fritz, as well as some of the more driving sounds of Thomas Fehlmann's solo work.  

 

If you are not familiar with the work of Tom Thiel and Max Loderbauer (Sun Electric),  it is time to remedy that now. 

Present is a lovely album, I find most SE (and possibly most Fehlmann-heavy stuff?) quite lacking in the melody department but Present is their best in that sense.

Looking forward to hearing that extra FFWD track later!

Bumping for the sake of the dude who said he hadn’t heard Orbus yet.

Without fail at least a couple times a year I lose my mind at how good Orbus Terrarum is, and how at the time the British press called it generic ambient music. Oxbow Lakes and White River Junction alone make it a transcendent album.

its so, so good and has carried me through a lot of big moments in my life. Lots of late night meditative listens for sure.