Orbital: A Beginner’s Guide (ALBUM REVIEW)

I can still recall the moment Orbital first entered my life. Coming to after kipping on a friend’s floor after a night on the tiles, the room suddenly filled with the delightfully ethereal sampled vocal of Kirsty Hawkshaw, expertly fucked about with on Orbital’s slowest of slow burner introduction to ‘Halcyon + on + on’. A somewhat lengthier and bouncier mix of its original, arguably the track’s definitive version and of course, the delicious denouement of Orbital’s magnificent second album commonly known as ‘Brown’, my gateway to Phil and Paul’s unique variety of Hartnoll techno heaven.

Released on London Records, ‘A Beginners Guide’ serves as the perfect introduction to a new generation of Orbital fans, unfamiliar with the duo’s ecstasy fuelled acid house rave culture origins. Containing bite-sized versions of a painstakingly crafted selection of their best tracks spanning more than 30 years, ‘A Beginners Guide’ also teases and tantalises, making the listener stampede their way into the brothers’ stellar back catalogue, particularly their era-defining opening brace of long players. 

The 17-track collection kicks off with ‘Chime’, what else could it be? The record that put them over the top, way back in 1989, seems to have shed not an ounce of its charm despite its obviously home-made feel, allegedly crafted in a room beneath the stairs at their parents’ house. Orbital’s debut album (AKA ‘Green’) is also represented by the elegiac ‘Belfast’ whereas ‘Halcyon’ ‘Lush’ and ‘Remind’ carry the torch for ‘Brown’. 
 
Older fans of a band who have always managed to stay relevant will perhaps be unaware of their most recent UK Top 10 album ‘Optical Delusion’. Released only 18 months ago, three of its tracks appear on ‘A Beginners Guide’ namely, Dirty Rat featuring Sleaford Mods, ‘Ringa Ringa’ a collaboration with Mediaeval Baebes and ‘Are You Alive’ including Brighton based outfit Penelope Isles as guest. 
 
The band’s ‘Green + Brown album’ tour reaches our shores next spring including a Leeds Academy date on 4th April. Be there or be square. 
 
Words by Michael Price 
Orbital official