Uploaded by TheJogwheel on Feb 9, 2011
The Orb are an English electronic music group known for spawning the genre of ambient house. Founded in 1988 by Alex Paterson and KLF member Jimmy Cauty, The Orb began as ambient and dub DJs in London. Its early performances were inspired by ambient and electronic artists of the 1970s and 1980s, most notably Brian Eno and Kraftwerk. Because of its trippy sound, the Orb developed a cult following among clubbers "coming down" from drug-induced highs.The Orb has maintained its drug-related and science fiction themes despite personnel changes including the departure of Cauty and other Orb members Kris Weston, Andy Falconer, Simon Phillips, and Andy Hughes. Paterson has been the only permanent member, continuing to work as the Orb with the Swiss-German producer Thomas Fehlmann and, later, with Killing Joke's Martin "Youth" Glover and Tim Bran of Dreadzone.
Alex Paterson prides the Orb on manipulating obscure samples beyond recognition on its albums and during its concerts; however, his unauthorised use of other artists' works has led to disputes with musicians, most notably with Rickie Lee Jones and Steve Reich. During its live shows of the 1990s, the Orb performed using digital audio tape machines optimized for live mixing and sampling before switching to laptops and digital media. Despite changes in performance method, the Orb maintained its colorful light shows and psychedelic imagery in concert. These visually intensive performances prompted critics to compare the group to Pink Floyd.
The Orb's critical and commercial success in the United Kingdom peaked in the early 1990s with the albums The Orb's Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld and U.F.Orb, the latter of which reached #1 on the British album charts in 1992. This success led to its infamous appearance on Top of the Pops, where the group showcased its quirky style by playing chess (an interest of Paterson's since his early youth) while the group's single "Blue Room" ran in the background. The Orb's mid-1990s albums were met with mixed reactions from British critics; however, its work received praise from American publications such as Rolling Stone. The group experimented with vocalists on its next two albums, which critics generally described as bland and uninspired. The Orb then shifted gears to a minimal techno style spearheaded by member Thomas Fehlmann, releasing its new material on the record label Kompakt.
100 videosYouTube Mix for The Orb- 15:01
The Orb - Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld Part 1.aviby TheJogwheel5,129 views
- 14:52
The Orb - Live in Prague 2008-11-14 Part 2.aviby TheJogwheel505 views
- 4:27
The Orb - Little Fluffy Cloudsby su0rtin849,720 views
- 8:45
The Orb - Super Soakersby Scubadevils6,446 views
- 6:19
Thomas Fehlmann - Schwerelosby shonguiz0965 views
- 4:19
Thomas Fehlmann - Wasser Im Flussby shonguiz0401 views
- 5:13
The Orb Towers of Dub Live 1994by racebedo7300 views
- 3:35
Aaliyah try again Live on Top Of The Popsby Ang4171,116 views
- 3:27
Barthezz - On the moveby BeryDj1,032 views
- 10:31
The Orb - Intro and Little fluffy clouds Live Brixton fridge 1990 [with Steve Hillage]by TheLostinasda987 views
- 5:30
The Orb - LIVE @ TAICO CLUB camps' 2010by daxjpcrew1,064 views
- 4:32
The Chemical Brothers 2011- Ketz (Original Mix)by ElectroClubHQ7,960 views
- 10:05
The Orb - Blue Room (Ambient Mix)by ChillOutSounds4,597 views
- 14:19
The Orb - Blue Room {Blue Lamp Mix}by EarthRitual578 views
- 10:01
THE ORB LIVE @ PAPIERFABRIK COLOGNE 27.03.2011by Rob30376987 views
- 48:46
OLD SKOOLIN mixed by Corey Morris aka Frequen.Cby dbafterdark578 views
- 3:24
Carter USM - Only Living Boy in New Cross TOTPby pharrya35,727 views
- 8:38
The Orb live at Balaton Soundby spamdog1133 views
- 8:51
The Orb - Live in London - O2 Arena - 23.04.2011by raff1st1647 views
- 5:31
Plaid - Where?by DarthYoungling51,056 views
good acid nobody
remembers?
TheLevifour 4 months ago