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The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld

 
Album Review: The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld
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Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld

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Similar Albums:

Chill Out, Music Has the Right to Children, Selected Ambient Works 85-92, 76:14, Excursions in Ambience: Third Dimension, Flying High, Badorb.com: Bless You, 777 [US], U.F.Orb, Double Fine Zone, Microgravity
  • Artist: The Orb
  • Rating: StarStarStarStarStar
  • Release Date: 1991 08
  • Total Time: 109:41
  • Genre: Electronica

Review

Much like the early Orb-related project recorded as Space, Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld simulates a journey through the outer realms -- progressing from the soaring ambient-pop of "Little Fluffy Clouds" and the stoned "Back Side of the Moon" (a veiled Pink Floyd reference) to "Into the Fourth Dimension" and ending (after more than two hours) with the glorious live mix of "A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain." A varied cast of samples (Flash Gordon, space broadcasts, foreign-language whispers) and warm synthesizer tones provide a convincing bed for the midtempo house beats and occasionally dub-inflected ambience. With a clever balance of BBC Radiophonics Workshop soundtracks, '70s ambient meister-works by Eno, Hillage, and Floyd, plus the steady influence of Larry Heard's sublime Chicago house, Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld is the album that defined the ambient house movement. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide

Tracks



CD 1

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
Little Fluffy Clouds (Lyrics) Youth, Dr. Alex Paterson The Orb (4:27)
Earth (Gaia) Dr. Alex Paterson, Kris Weston The Orb (9:48)
Supernova at the End of the Universe Steve Hillage, Miquette Giraudy, Dr. Alex Paterson The Orb (11:56)
Back Side of the Moon Steve Hillage, Miquette Giraudy, Dr. Alex Paterson The Orb (14:15)
Spanish Castles in Space Dr. Alex Paterson, Guy Pratt The Orb (15:06)


CD 2

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
Perpetual Dawn Dr. Alex Paterson The Orb (9:32)
Into the Fourth Dimension: Essenes in Starlight Andy Falconer, Dr. Alex Paterson The Orb (9:15)
Outlands Dr. Alex Paterson, Thomas Fehlmann The Orb (8:23)
Star 6 & 7 8 9 Dr. Alex Paterson The Orb (8:10)
A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules from the Centre of the Ult Jimmy Cauty, Dr. Alex Paterson, Ray Ripperton The Orb (18:49)

Credits

Greg Hunter (Engineer), Dr. Alex Paterson (Producer), Andy Falconer (Engineer), Thrash (Mixing), Jimmy Cauty (Engineer), Andy Falconer (Mixing), Jimmy Cauty (Mixing), Greg Hunter (Mixing), Youth (Producer), Baku (Producer), Youth (Mixing), LX (Remixing), Thrash (Engineer), Thomas Fehlmann (Mixing), Paul Evans (Photography), Eddie Manasseh (Producer), Dr. Alex Paterson (Mixing), Steve Hillage (Producer), Andy Falconer (Producer), Timothy Russell (Engineer), Jimmy Cauty (Producer), Timothy Russell (Mixing), Readymade (Producer), Guy Pratt (Guitar (Bass)), Dr. Alex Paterson (?), Dr. Alex Paterson (Engineer)
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Wikipedia: The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld
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The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld
Studio album by The Orb
Released August 1991
Recorded Berwick Street Studios
Genre Ambient House
Length 109:41
Label Big Life
Producer Alex Paterson, Andy Falconer, Kris Weston
Professional reviews
The Orb chronology
Kiss EP
(1989)		 The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld
(1991)		 U.F.Orb
(1992)
Deluxe Edition
Cover of a 2003 reissued 3-CD deluxe edition

The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld is the seminal 1991 ambient house concept debut album by the electronic music collective The Orb. The album's framework is of a two-hour psychedelic trip through music genres and studio electronics, pushing the threshold of live stage performance. The double album is a continuous progressive composition consisting of several tracks advancing the travel concept and composed of vocal samples and sound effects interspersed with original music.

There are three versions, a 109:41 minute UK release, a 70:41 minute U.S. release and a 182:05 minute UK Deluxe Edition reissue that was released in mid 2006.

Contents

Track listing

UK

Side one

  1. (earth orbit one) "Little Fluffy Clouds" (A. Paterson/M. Glover) – 4:27
  2. (earth orbit two) "Earth (Gaia)" (A. Paterson/K. Weston) – 9:48
  3. (earth orbit three) "Supernova at the End of the Universe" (A. Paterson/S. Hillage/M. Giraudy) – 11:56

Side two

  1. (lunar orbit four) "Back Side of the Moon" (A. Paterson/S. Hillage/M. Giraudy) – 14:15
  2. (lunar orbit five) "Spanish Castles in Space" (A. Paterson/J. le Mesurier/G. Pratt) – 15:05

Side three

  1. (ultraworld probe six) "Perpetual Dawn" (A. Paterson/E. Maiden) – 9:31
  2. (ultraworld probe seven) "Into the Fourth Dimension" (A. Paterson/A. Falconer/P. Ferguson) – 9:16
  3. (ultraworld probe eight) "Outlands" (A. Paterson/T. Fehlmann) – 8:23

Side four

  1. (ultraworld nine) "Star 6 & 7 8 9" (A. Paterson/T. Green/H. Vickers) – 8:10
  2. (ultraworld ten) "A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules from the Centre of the Ultraworld (Live Mix Mk 10)"(A. Paterson/J. Cauty/M. Riperton/R. Rudolph/S Darlow/S. Lipton/B. Woolley/T. Horn) – 18:49

US

Side one

  1. "Little Fluffy Clouds" – 4:27
  2. "Earth (Gaia)" – 9:49

Side two

  1. "Supernova at the End of the Universe" – 11:55
  2. "Perpetual Dawn (Solar Youth Mix)" (A. Paterson/E. Maiden/J. Nelson/S. Phillips/M. Glover) – 3:48

Side three

  1. "Into the Fourth Dimension" – 9:14
  2. "Outlands" – 8:20
  3. "Star 6 & 7 8 9" – 4:22

Side four

  1. "A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules from the Centre of the Ultraworld (Live Mix Mk 10)" – 18:47

UK: 2006 Deluxe Edition reissue

Disc one

  1. "Little Fluffy Clouds" – 4:27
  2. "Earth (Gaia)" – 9:48
  3. "Supernova at the End of the Universe" – 11:56
  4. "Back Side of the Moon" – 14:15
  5. "Spanish Castles in Space" – 15:05

Disc two

  1. "Perpetual Dawn" – 9:31
  2. "Into the Fourth Dimension" – 9:16
  3. "Outlands" – 8:23
  4. "Star 6 & 7 8 9" – 8:10
  5. "A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules from the Centre of the Ultraworld (Live Mix Mk 10)" – 18:49

Disc three

  1. "A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules from the Centre of the Ultraworld [Peel Session]" – 20:14
  2. "Perpetual Dawn [Ultrabass II]" – 7:12
  3. "Little Fluffy Clouds [Cumulo Nimbus Mix]" – 6:39
  4. "Back Side of the Moon [Under Water Deep Space Mix]" – 8:42
  5. "Outlands [Fountains of Elisha Mix]" – 8:39
  6. "A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules from the Centre of the Ultraworld (Aubrey Mix Mk 11)" – 7:13
  7. "Spanish Castles in Space [Extended Youth Mix]" – 13:39
  • Track 3 mixed by Pal Joey
  • Track 4 mixed by Steve Hillage
  • Track 5 mixed by Ready Made
  • Track 6 mixed by Jimmy Cauty & Dr Alex Patterson
  • Track 7 mixed by Youth

History

The Orb have always primarily been composed of one individual, Alex Paterson, along with numerous and varied assistants throughout the group's recording career.[2] Paterson's late 80's and early 90's chillout dj sets in Paul Oakenfold's "Land of Oz" night in the club Heaven are legendary.[3] and included collaborations with another ambient house pioneer Jimmy Cauty. Paterson says:

“ "We'd build melodies up by overdubbing and mixing multiple tracks and then take an eight track (or was it a twelve track?) into Heaven, just linking it up to three decks ([turntables]), loads of CD players, loads of cassettes... we used to keep it very, very quiet. We never used to play any drums in there. It'd be, just like, you know, BBC sound effects, really... four or five hours playing really early dub reggae... For All Mankind [a documentary of NASA's Apollo missions, with a soundtrack by Brian Eno]. We had white screens so we could put up visuals as well. We had home movies of ducks in the park. We'd go for everything. It was all layering on top of each other. "[4] ”

Following success in the singles market (including the 1988 "Tripping on Sunshine", 1989 "Kiss EP" and 1989 "Huge, evergrowing brain that rules from the center of the Universe"),[5] Paterson and Cauty started work on their first album.[6] Cauty left in 1990 to pursue another band, The KLF, with Bill Drummond,[7]. Paterson moved on to his next collaboration "Little Fluffy Clouds" in Autumn 1990 with Killing Joke's Youth. The track was recorded by an 18 year old studio Engineer and future Orb collaborator Kris "Thrash" Weston.

In April 1991, the Orb released their first album The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld for an audience familiar with their groundbreaking singles and several John Peel radio sessions.[8] The album was received in the UK and Europe with critical acclaim. The album rose to position #29 in the UK Album charts. By mid-91, the Orb had signed a deal to release the album in the U.S. but were forced to edit the double-disc 109:41 minute UK release down to a one disc 70:41 minutes. The full double-disc version was later released in the U.S. by Island. As of April 25 2006, only the 70:41 minute US release is available for purchase in Apple's iTunes Music Store.

Album covers

US Cover

The two covers are primarily distinguished by the outing of the Floydian Battersea Power Station on the US cover. The images are attributed as follows in the lining:

Critical reception

  • Melody Maker (12/91) - Ranked #22 in Melody Maker's list of the top 30 albums of 1991[9] - "...some of the most unique sounds of the year..."
  • NME (10/2/93, p.29) - Ranked #45 in the NME Writer's list of the `Greatest Albums Of All Time.'[10]
  • Alternative Press (7/95, p.116) - "...probably [the Orb's] most influential [release]. A combination of light rhythms, inter-stellar spaces, and random knob-turning, ADVENTURES BEYOND THE ULTRAWORLD soared into our minds with an ambient shriek unheard since Eno first experimented with the concept..."
  • Q (11/96, p.155) - 3 Stars (out of 5) - "...[this] 1991 debut album...has all the trademark devices of The Orb in place: helicopter noises, vocal samples, slabs of dub, sudden washes of apparently random noise, absurd titles...and very long tracks..."[citation needed]
  • Spin (9/99, p.160) - Ranked #82 in Spin Magazine's "90 Greatest Albums of the '90s."[11]
  • Muzik (2/02) - Ranked #7 in Muzik Magazines Top 50 Dance Albums if All time[12]
  • Pitchfork (2003) - Ranked #100 in Pitchforks Top 100 records of the 1990s "... supremely hypnotizing ... simultaneously liquid enough to put you to sleep and frighteningly exotic enough to hype your nerves up"[13]
  • Slant Magazine (2003) - Ranked #4 in Slants The 25 Greatest Electronic Albums of the 20th Century[14]


Tracks details

Instrumentation and samples

Contributors

Musicians and engineers

Samples

Influences

Release history

Year Type Label Catalog
2006 CD Island/Universal 948 002-2
1994 CD Big Life/Island Red 535005
1994 CS Big Life/Island Red 535005
1994 CD Big Life BRDCD5
1991 CD Big Life 314-511034-2
1991 CS Big Life 314-511034-4
1991 CD Big Life 511034
1991 CS Big Life 511034

Recording details

  • the coach house, London.
  • do not erase, London
  • marcus studios, London.
  • soho, London.
  • mit cafe.
  • Berwick Street Studio, London.
  • Brixton, southside.
  • outer space, inner space
  • Trancecentral, London. Cautys/KLF studio

Citations

External links

Adrien Denning review

Eamon McCucker review

Howard Shih interview (1997)

Footnotes

  1. ^ Weisbard & Marks, 1995. p.282
  2. ^ Prior to The Orb, Paterson was a roadie for Killing Joke, and worked in Brian Eno's EG Records.
  3. ^ Paterson's "White Room chillout sets are mentioned here
  4. ^ David Toop Ocean of Sound. London: Serpent's Tail, 1995
  5. ^ The singles are detailed here
  6. ^ Cauty later released the collaboration as "Space"
  7. ^ There is some evidence to indicate they split because of artistic differences, Paterson viewed himself as a musician, Cauty as a DJ and there was some concern that Cauty was treating The Orb as a side project. There are direct parallels between Space and Adventures but Cauty removed Paterson's attribution from the credits
  8. ^ The "Maida Vale" Peel sessions are listed here
  9. ^ The full Melody Maker 1991 Top 30 list is available here
  10. ^ The full NME 1993 Greatest Albums list is available here. You have to scroll down to the 1993 section
  11. ^ Retrieved from the Internet Archive here
  12. ^ Full list is here. Scroll down, list is very long.
  13. ^ Full list is available here
  14. ^ Full article available here

References

  • Weisbard, Eric; Craig Marks (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. ISBN 0679755748. 
v • d • e
The Orb
Alex Paterson • Thomas Fehlmann
Jimmy Cauty • Kris Weston • Simon Phillips • Andy Hughes • John Roome
Main albums
The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld • U.F.Orb • Live 93 • Pomme Fritz • Orbus Terrarum • Orblivion • U.F.Off • Cydonia • Bicycles & Tricycles • Okie Dokie It's The Orb on Kompakt • The Dream
Related articles
Youth • The KLF • Space • FFWD • Badorb.com • Transit Kings

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

 

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