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The Orb - Ambient Assassins

Author: Rezo
Monday, November 10, 2008

Ambient act The Orb are one of the most revered and respected electronic acts in history. They’ve even been immortalised in The Mighty Boosh for a new generation to discover. Here for Global Gathering, 3D’s Rezo chatted with the Brits.

What’s been happening in your world of late-
I’ve just spent the weekend in Moscow. I wanted to sneakily stay in bed, have one of those weekends where you get to the other side and not know what you’ve actually done. You know, get a bottle of brandy, drink it and think, ‘Now what did I do-’

Like your partner-in-crime’s group The KLF, and say, Kraftwerk, The Orb pioneered a style of music. So when did you catch the musical bug-
It was one Sunday in June 1988 where I remember this whole dance culture in the UK was turning itself on its head. I was a DJ and was invited to play at some Detroit house clubs with Jimmy and he was already a star, given the stuff he’d done prior. So eventually we formed a crew, where we would court and experiment and sample and edit.

What were those early days like-

We would be doing these squat parties with Paul Oakenfold until six in the morning and then play on until four in the afternoon. Then we’d go and lie on the beach until our ankles were burnt, wake up and get into the studio and do a tune. It was how things were back in the day. We wanted to be a part of an underground movement that wasn’t necessarily establishment. The BBC runs things in the UK and we wanted to be different. We wanted people to notice the little island on the edge of Europe. We wanted to rebut the catholic church’s notion that electronic music was the work of the devil – which is precisely why for this tour we have delved back into the archives into a more digital sound with some amazing visuals and vibe. Maybe we actually are the work of the devil!

WHO: The Orb
WHAT: Play Global Gathering at the Entertainment Quarter
WHEN: Sunday 31 November
MORE: australia.global-gathering.com

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