{{About|the European band|other uses|Orb (disambiguation)}} {{distinguish|Orbital (band)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}} {{Short description|English electronic music duo}} {{Use British English|date=August 2012}} {{Infobox musical artist | name = The Orb | image = OrbCopenhagen.jpg | caption = Alex Paterson and Thomas Fehlmann of the Orb at Culture Box in Copenhagen in 2005 | landscape = yes | alt = The duo behind a record table | background = group_or_band | alias = | origin = London, England | genre = {{hlist|Ambient house|dub|IDM|chill-out|electronica}} | occupation = | years_active = 1988–present | label = {{hlist|Big Life|Island|Badorb.com|Kompakt|Malicious Damage|Mercury|MCA|Cooking Vinyl}} | website = {{url|theorb.com}} | current_members = Alex Paterson<br />Michael Rendall | past_members = Jimmy Cauty<br />Kris Weston<br />Andy Falconer<br />Andy Hughes<br />Simon Phillips<br /> Nick Burton <br /> Dom Beken<br />Thomas Fehlmann }}
'''The Orb''' are an English electronic music group founded in 1988 by Alex Paterson and Jimmy Cauty. Known for its psychedelic sound, the Orb developed a cult following among clubbers "coming down" from drug-induced highs.<ref name="guardian-chills">{{cite web|work=The Guardian|last=Hodgkinson |first=Will |date=31 January 2003 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2003/jan/31/artsfeatures2 |title=Chills and thrills |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref> Its influential 1991 debut album ''The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld'' pioneered the UK's nascent ambient house movement,<ref name="century"/> while its UK chart-topping 1992 follow-up ''U.F.Orb'' represented the group's commercial peak.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/uforb-mw0000090235 |title=U.F.Orb – The Orb |website=AllMusic |access-date=20 November 2015 |last=Bush |first=John}}</ref>
Beginning as ambient and dub DJs in London, the Orb's early performances were inspired by electronic artists of the 1970s, especially Brian Eno, Cluster, and Kraftwerk. The Orb has maintained its signature science fiction aesthetic despite numerous personnel changes, including the departure of Cauty and members Kris Weston, Andy Falconer, Simon Phillips, Nick Burton, and Andy Hughes. Paterson has been the only permanent member, continuing to work as the Orb with Swiss-German producer Thomas Fehlmann and later with Martin "Youth" Glover, bassist of Killing Joke. Paterson's unauthorised use of other artists' works has led to multiple disputes, most notably with Rickie Lee Jones.<ref name="remixmag-orblivion">{{cite web |work=Remix Magazine |last=Silva |first=Joe |date=1 February 2001 |title=Living in Orblivion |url=http://remixmag.com/mag/remix_living_orblivion/ |access-date=20 March 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060507085558/http://remixmag.com/mag/remix_living_orblivion/ |archive-date=7 May 2006 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
During its live shows in the 1990s, the Orb performed using digital audio tape machines optimised for live mixing and sampling before switching to laptops and other digital media. Featuring colourful light shows and psychedelic imagery, its performances often elicited comparisons to Pink Floyd, whose guitarist, David Gilmour, collaborated with the Orb on the 2010 album ''Metallic Spheres''.
The Orb's 18th studio album, ''Buddhist Hipsters'', was released on 10 October 2025 by Cooking Vinyl.
== History == === 1988–1990: Paterson & Cauty === Alex Paterson began his music career in the early 1980s as a roadie for the post-punk rock band Killing Joke, for which his childhood friend<ref name="dont-print-that"/><ref name="made-clouds">{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jun/07/how-we-made-the-orb-little-fluffy-clouds-interview|title=How we made the Orb's Little Fluffy Clouds|type=Interview with Youth and Alex Paterson|first=Dave|last=Simpson|date=7 June 2016|work=The Guardian|access-date=7 March 2020}}</ref> Martin "Youth" Glover played bass.<ref name="Scotsman">{{cite news|work=The Scotsman |last=Smith |first=Aidan |date=16 February 2001 |title=A master of the ballistic |page=10}}</ref> Having left Killing Joke's employ, in 1986 Paterson became an A&R man.<!--The book is vague about exactly when Paterson left KJ and about when he met Cauty. According to the Killing Joke article that band didn't fall apart in 1986, but Youth left in 1982. It's only clear from the book that Paterson became an A&R man in 1986 and mat Cauty some time after that--><ref name="century">{{cite book |last=Prendergast |first=Mark |title=The Ambient Century: From Mahler to Moby – The Evolution of Sound in the Electronic Age |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |year=2003 |isbn=1-58234-323-3 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/ambientcenturyfr00pren/page/407 407–412] }}</ref><ref name="beard"/><!--this one says he was an A&R man for 6 years, complete with suit and pension plan!--> Paterson and Youth shared a flat in Battersea<ref name="beard"/><!--ref for Battersea--> and Jimmy Cauty, Youth's former bandmate from Brilliant, was a regular visitor.<ref name="made-clouds"/> Paterson and Cauty began DJing and producing music together under the name "the Orb". Their first release was a 1988 acid house anthem track, "Tripping on Sunshine", released on Youth's compilation album ''Eternity Project One''.<ref name="rough">{{cite book|last=Shapiro |first=Peter |title =The Rough Guide to Drum 'n' Bass| author-link=Peter Shapiro (journalist) |year=1999 |isbn=1-85828-433-3 |publisher= Rough Guides |pages=327–329}}</ref><ref>{{KLFDiscography}}</ref> In 1989, the Orb released the ''Kiss EP'', a four-track EP based on samples from New York City's KISS FM.<ref name="rough"/> It was released on Paterson and Glover's new record label WAU! Mr. Modo Records, which they created to maintain financial independence from larger record labels.<ref name="century"/> After spending a weekend of making what Paterson called "really shit drum sounds", the duo abandoned beat-heavy music and instead worked on music for after-hours listening by removing the percussion tracks.<ref name="keyboard">{{cite news|last=Doerschuck |first=Robert |work = Keyboard Magazine |date=1 June 1995|title=Alex Paterson/The Orb – Inside the Ambient Techno Ultraworld |pages=31–33}}</ref> Paterson and Cauty began DJing in London and landed a deal for the Orb to play the chill out room at London nightclub Heaven. Resident DJ Paul Oakenfold brought in the duo as ambient DJs for his "The Land of Oz" event at Heaven.<ref name="Irish-boyd">{{cite news|newspaper=The Irish Times |last=Boyd |first=Brian |date=23 October 1998 |page=12 |title=Unidentified Flying Orb}}</ref> Though the Orb's Monday night performances had only several hardcore followers initially, its chill-out room act grew so popular over its six-month stay that the room was often packed with around 100 people.<ref name="ocean">{{cite book|last = Toop|first = David|author-link = David Toop|title=Ocean of Sound|url = https://archive.org/details/oceansoundaether00toop|url-access = limited|publisher=Serpent's Tail|pages=[https://archive.org/details/oceansoundaether00toop/page/n71 59]–62|year=2001|isbn = 1-85242-743-4}}</ref> The Orb's performances became most popular among weary DJs and clubbers seeking solace from the loud, rhythmic music of the dance floor.<ref name="amg-bio">{{Allmusic|id=mn0000891575|first=John|last=Bush|title=The Orb|tab=biography|access-date=5 March 2020}}</ref> The Orb built up melodies using multitrack recordings linked to multiple record decks and a mixer. The group incorporated many CDs, cassettes, and BBC sound effects, often accompanied by pieces of popular dance tracks such as "Sueño Latino".<ref name="ocean"/> Though the Orb used a variety of samples, it avoided heavy rhythm and drums<ref>{{Cite news|last=McCormick|first=Neil|author-link=Neil McCormick|title=Yes, this is the cutting edge of rave music|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London|department=The Arts|page=26|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/4710794/Yes-this-is-the-cutting-edge-of-rave-music.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160226082656/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/4710794/Yes-this-is-the-cutting-edge-of-rave-music.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=26 February 2016|date=11 October 1998|access-date=11 March 2020}}</ref> so that the intended ambient atmosphere was not disrupted. Most often, the group played dub and other chill-out music, which it described as ambient house for the E generation.<ref name="rough"/><ref name="metropolis">This phrase was printed on the reverse of the "A Huge Ever-Growing Pulsating Brain{{nbsp}}..." vinyl single – {{cite magazine|last = Crispy |first = Don |url= http://metropolis.co.jp/tokyo/590/clubs.asp |title = Alex Paterson: The UK ambient house prodigy sits down with Metropolis |magazine = Metropolis |access-date = 14 January 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070704194423/http://metropolis.co.jp/tokyo/590/clubs.asp |archive-date = 4 July 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref>
{{listen |pos=left | filename = OrbLovingYou.ogg | title = "Loving You" (1989) | description = Clip from the Orb's "Loving You" (which would later become "A Huge Ever Growing Brain{{nbsp}}...") featuring a Minnie Riperton sound-alike singer. | format = | filename2 = OrbLittleFluffyClouds.ogg | title2 = "Little Fluffy Clouds" (1990) | description2 = Clip from the Orb's "Little Fluffy Clouds", featuring vocal samples of Rickie Lee Jones. | format2 = }}
Throughout 1989 the Orb, along with Youth, developed a music production style that incorporated ambient music with a diverse array of samples and recordings. The British music press later labelled the music ambient house. The culmination of the group's musical work came toward the end of the same year when they recorded a session for John Peel on BBC Radio 1. The track, then known as "Loving You", was largely improvisational and featured a wealth of sound effects and samples from science fiction radio plays, nature sounds, and Minnie Riperton's "Lovin' You".<ref name="amg-peel">{{cite web|website=AllMusic |last=Thompson |first=Dave |access-date=6 November 2006 |url={{Allmusic|class=album|id=r14521|pure_url=yes}} |title=The Orb: Peel Sessions – Review}}</ref> For its release as a single on the record label Big Life, the Orb changed the title to "A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules from the Centre of the Ultraworld". Upon the single's release, Riperton's management forced Big Life to remove the unlicensed Riperton sample, ensuring that only the initial first-week release of the single contained the original vocals of Minnie Riperton; subsequent pressings used vocals from a sound-alike.<ref name="Irish-boyd"/> Despite its running time of 19 minutes, the sample-laden single reached No. 78 on the UK singles chart. Soon thereafter, the Orb were commissioned by Dave Stewart to remix his top-20 single "Lily Was Here". The group obliged and were soon offered several more remix jobs from artists including Erasure and System 7.
In 1990, Paterson and Cauty held several recording sessions at Cauty's studio, Trancentral. When offered an album deal by Big Life, the Orb found themselves at a crossroads: Cauty preferred that the Orb release their music through his KLF Communications label, whereas Paterson wanted to ensure that the group did not become a side-project of Cauty and Bill Drummond's KLF.<ref name="times-waves">{{cite news |title=Don't make negative waves |last=Toop |first=David |author-link=David Toop |date=3 June 1994 |work=The Times}}</ref> Because of these issues, Cauty and Paterson split in April 1990, with Paterson keeping the name the Orb.<ref name="amg-bio"/> As a result of the break-up, Cauty removed Paterson's contributions from the in-progress recordings and released the album as ''Space'' on KLF Communications.<ref name="made-clouds"/><ref name="klfcomm">{{LibraryOfMu|tl=web|mu-id=509|publisher=KLF Communications|date=June 1990|title=KLF Communications Info Sheet Nine|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070312052937/http://www.libraryofmu.org/display-resource.php?id=509|archive-date=12 March 2007}}</ref> Also out of these sessions came the KLF album ''Chill Out'',<ref name="beard">{{Cite magazine|magazine=i-D|title=Remixologist No. 2|date=June 1993|issue=117}} Reprinted in {{Cite book|title=Aftershocks: The End of Style Culture|first=Steve|last=Beard|type=Compendium of writings by Steve Beard|publisher=Wallflower Press|isbn=9781903364246|date=21 March 2002|pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=h0HOAgm4FRMC&dq=land+of+oz+heaven+orb&pg=PA14 14-19]}}</ref> on which Reynolds (1999)<ref name="generation">{{cite book|last = Reynolds |first = Simon |year = 1999 |isbn = 0-415-92373-5 |publisher = Routledge |title = Generation Ecstasy: Into the World of Techno and Rave Culture |page=191|quote=After appearing uncredited on the KLF's Chill Out, Paterson collaborated with Jimmy Cauty on "A Huge Ever Growing Brain."}}</ref> and Prendergast (2003)<ref>"The year 1990 began with the release of The KLF's Ambient manifesto, Chill Out. Coming direct from the same Trancentral sessions that had produced 'Loving You', Chill Out featured no credit to Paterson and soon after its release Jimmy Cauty split from The Orb."</ref><ref name="century"/> report Paterson appeared in an uncredited role. In a 2011 interview with Magnetic Magazine, Alex Paterson corroborated his involvement and contribution to the Chill Out album and said he had in fact been "ripped off" by the KLF and notably Jimmy Cauty, stating: {{quote|KLF put the Chill Out album out, which was basically a bunch of my DJ sessions at Trancentral which I never got credited for. That was one of the major reasons why Jimi and I split up. It was becoming apparent to me that everything he said he had given me, he never gave me. That shaped quite a lot of things in my head. Never to be ripped off again, I suppose. Don't worry, I got ripped off again. But as Jimi said to me, you're never really famous until you've been ripped off.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Thomas|first=Rich|title=In About Four Seconds A Teacher Will Begin To Speak—Dr. Alex Paterson Of The Orb|url=https://www.magneticmag.com/2011/11/my-philosophy-the-orb/|access-date=2021-08-30|website=Magnetic Magazine|date=15 September 2015 |language=en-us}}</ref>}}
Following the split, Paterson began working with Youth on the track "Little Fluffy Clouds".<ref name="made-clouds"/><ref name="beard"/> The group incorporated samples from Steve Reich's ''Electric Counterpoint''.<ref name="made-clouds"/> The signature of the piece centres around the repeated phrases sampled from the voice of singer/songwriter Rickie Lee Jones, her spaced-out childlike ramble taken from a promotional CD released by Geffen Records for her 1989 album, ''Flying Cowboys''. In it she muses on the picturesque images of clouds from her Arizona childhood.<ref name="slant">{{cite magazine|last = Cinquemani |first = Sal |url= https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/music_review.asp?ID=238 |title = Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld Review |magazine = Slant Magazine |access-date = 9 October 2006 |year = 2002 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20051122000926/http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/music_review.asp?ID=238 | archive-date=22 November 2005}}</ref>
=== 1991–1994: Paterson & Weston === {{listen | filename = OrbBlueRoom.ogg | title = "Blue Room" (1992) | description = Clip from the Orb's near 40-minute version of "Blue Room", the longest single to chart in the United Kingdom. | format = }} In 1991, Paterson invited freelance studio engineer Andy Falconer to join the Orb. He was closely followed by studio engineer Kris "Thrash" Weston.<ref name="melody-93">{{cite news|date=27 March 1993 |title = Pink Floyd Meets The Orb |last = Bennum |first = David |work = Melody Maker }}</ref> Steve Hillage, who Paterson had met while DJing in London,<ref name="beard"/> also joined as a guitarist. Along with producer Thomas Fehlmann, the Orb completed several additional tracks for their first album, ''The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld''.<ref name="amg-bio"/> At least six studios and twenty outside musicians were used during the three weeks of recording.<ref name="century"/> Falconer's and Weston's technical abilities and Hillage's guitar work allowed the group to craft panoramic sounds portraying aspects of space travel, including the launch of ''Apollo 11''.<ref name="century"/> ''Adventures'' sold well in the United Kingdom and received praise for its balance of ambient music, house music, and sampling.<ref name="amg-adventures">{{cite web|website=AllMusic|last = Bush |first = John |title = The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld Review |url = {{Allmusic|class=album|id=r14519|pure_url=yes}} |access-date = 9 October 2006}}</ref> Retrospectively, ''Adventures'' is considered ground-breaking for changing the way musicians view sampling and as a vital work for the genres of ambient and dance music.<ref name="Sunday-adventures">{{cite news|title=Crucial Cuts: The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld |work=The Sunday Times |last=Sandall |first=Robert |date=21 October 2001 |page=22 }}</ref> The completion of ''Adventures'' saw the departure of Andy Falconer, whose last contribution was to one of the Orb's Peel sessions. To promote the release of an edited single-disc version for an American release on Mercury Records, the Orb embarked on their first tour of the United States beginning in Phoenix, Arizona, in October 1991.<ref name="phoenix">{{cite news|work=Phoenix New Times |date=30 April 1997 |title=Eye of the Orb |last=Holthouse |first=David}}</ref>
In late 1991 and early 1992, Paterson and Weston wrote their next single, "Blue Room". Assisting with the recording was bassist Jah Wobble, keyboardist Miquette Giraudy, and guitarist Hillage.<ref name="amg-bio"/> Despite its playing time of almost 40 minutes, "Blue Room" entered the British charts at No.{{nbsp}}12 and peaked at No.{{nbsp}}8, making it the longest track to reach the charts.<ref name="amg-bio"/> The Orb promoted this single with a "legendary avant-garde"<ref name="stylus">{{cite web |url=http://www.stylusmagazine.com/articles/weekly_article/brian-eno-and-the-ambient-series.htm |title=Brian Eno and the Ambient Series |last=Weiner |first=Matthew |date=27 September 2004 |access-date=20 March 2007 |archive-date=19 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150219011533/http://www.stylusmagazine.com/articles/weekly_article/brian-eno-and-the-ambient-series.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> performance on ''Top of the Pops'' where Patterson and Weston played a game of chess in space suits while footage of dolphins and an edited version of "Blue Room" ran in the background.<ref name="Irish-boyd"/><ref name="guardian-breakdown">{{cite news|work=The Guardian |last=Sullivan |first=Caroline |date=9 April 1993 |title=The Guardian Features Page: Breakdown}}</ref> In July 1992, ''U.F.Orb'' was released featuring "Blue Room" and, in the US release, the Orb's next single, "Assassin". Weston integrated his technical and creative expertise with Paterson's Eno-influenced ambience on ''U.F.Orb'', combining "drum and bass rhythms" with "velvet keyboards" and "rippling synth lines".<ref name="century"/> ''U.F.Orb'' reached No.{{nbsp}}1 on the British album charts to the shock of critics, who were surprised that fans had embraced what journalists considered to be progressive rock.<ref name="melody-93"/><ref name="guardian-breakdown"/> Despite the Orb's success, Paterson and Weston preferred to avoid personal publicity and instead allow their music to be the focus of attention.<ref name="independent-pomme">{{cite news|last=Gallivan |first=Joseph |date=10 June 1994 |work=The Independent |title=POP: Pomme Fritz}}</ref> Because of this partial anonymity and the Orb's rotating membership, they are often recognised as more of a musical collective than a "band".<ref name="beard"/><ref name="tandt">{{cite journal |last = Tandt |first = Christophe Den |date = 20 May 2004 |publisher = Routledge |title = From Craft to Corporate Interfacing: Rock Musicianship in the Age of Music Television and Computer-Programmed Music |journal = Popular Music & Society |doi = 10.1080/03007760410001685804 |pages = 139–160 |volume = 27 |issue = 2|hdl = 2013/ULB-DIPOT:oai:dipot.ulb.ac.be:2013/194962 |s2cid = 194074850 |url = https://dipot.ulb.ac.be/dspace/bitstream/2013/194962/3/Den_Tandt_From_Craft_to_Corporate.pdf }}</ref>
Over the next year and a half, Paterson and Weston continued to produce "new" material, and the Orb left Big Life to sign a deal with Island Records.<ref name="citypaper">{{cite web|title=Q and A: Alex Paterson |last=O'Neal |first=Sean |date=19 April 2001 |url=http://www.citypaper.net/articles/041901/music.qa.shtml |work=Philadelphia City Paper |archive-date=8 December 2005 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20051208004742/http://citypaper.net/articles/041901/music.qa.shtml |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref> Their first release on Island Records was the live album ''Live 93'', which gathered highlights from their recent performances in Europe and Asia. It featured the live crew of Paterson, Weston, producers Nick Burton and Simon Phillips, as well as audio engineer Andy Hughes, who had stepped in previously when Weston had decided to stop touring.<ref name="keyboard"/> The Orb's first studio production on Island Records was ''Pomme Fritz'', a chaotic EP noted for its heavy use of strange samples and its lack of conventional harmonies.<ref name="rs-pomme">{{cite magazine|magazine=Rolling Stone |last=Wiederhorn |first=Jon |date=20 October 1994 |title=The Orb: Pomme Fritz |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/theorb/albums/album/173711/review/5946554/pomme_fritz |access-date=20 March 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080709040105/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/theorb/albums/album/173711/review/5946554/pomme_fritz |archive-date=9 July 2008 }}</ref> Though ''Pomme Fritz'' reached No.{{nbsp}}6 on the British charts, critics panned it as "doodling".<ref name="century"/><ref name="dont-print-that">{{cite news|work=The Guardian |last=Simpson |first=Dave |date=19 January 2001 |page=6 |title=The Friday Interview: 'If you print that, I'll come looking for you'|url=https://www.theguardian.com/friday_review/story/0,3605,423960,00.html|access-date=6 March 2020}}</ref> Island Records "hated it" and "didn't understand it at all", according to Paterson.<ref name="citypaper"/> Soon after production finished on ''Pomme Fritz'', Paterson, Weston, and Orb contributor Thomas Fehlmann joined with Robert Fripp to form the group FFWD as a side project. FFWD released a single self-titled album on Paterson's Inter-Modo label, which Fehlmann later described as "an Orb track which became so long that it became a whole album!".<ref name="century"/> Due to this aimlessness, FFWD lacked an artistic goal and disbanded after a single release.<ref name="century"/> Also in the summer of 1994 the Orb provided music for The Jupiter Collision, the BBC's brief info series about the Shoemaker-Levy comet. Soon after the release of ''FFWD'' in August 1994, Weston suddenly left the Orb. Paterson claimed that Weston's departure was due to his desire to have more control in the Orb.<ref name="keyboard"/> In an interview with ''i-D'', Weston attributed the split to Paterson, saying that Paterson "didn't do his 50 per cent of the work".<ref name="dont-print-that"/> Paterson reaffirmed the status of the Orb saying, "The Orb is the Orb, and nothing can change that", and continued work with Hughes and Fehlmann.<ref name="independent-earth">{{cite news|last=Prendergast |first=Mark |work=The Independent |date=17 March 1995 |page=34 |title=Earth Calling Orb, Come In}}</ref>
=== 1995–2001: Paterson, Fehlmann & Hughes === Following Weston's departure from the Orb, Thomas Fehlmann joined as a full-time studio member, but did not always participate in live performances. Paterson, Hughes, and Fehlmann then finished producing the album ''Orbus Terrarum'', on which Paterson and Weston had been working. ''Orbus Terrarum'', released in 1995, featured more "earthbound" and "organic" sounds than their previous trippy science-fiction-themed music.<ref name="keyboard"/><ref name="independent-terra">{{cite news|last=Gill |first=Andy |title=Oh, the Pity and Terra of It All |work=The Independent |date=31 March 1995 |page=31}}</ref> ''Orbus Terrarum'' suffered, as Paterson described it, "a good kicking" at the hands of the British press,<ref name="future-98">{{cite news|work=Future Music N|title=Alex Paterson: Interview |date=1 October 1998 |issue=8}}</ref> who described it as "generic" and a low point for Paterson's creativity.<ref name="dont-print-that"/><ref name="times-orbus">{{cite news|work=The Times |last=Sinclair |first=David |title=Pop on Friday|date=24 March 1995 |page=1}}</ref> ''Orbus Terrarum'' alienated many of the group's fans,<ref name="rs-orblivion">{{cite magazine|magazine=Rolling Stone |last=Wiederhorn |first=Jon |title=The Orb: Orblivion |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/theorb/albums/album/145147/review/5940398/orblivion |date=19 March 1997 |access-date=20 March 2007|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070930220941/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/theorb/albums/album/145147/review/5940398/orblivion |archive-date = 30 September 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> and reached only No.{{nbsp}}20 on the British charts.<ref name="everyhit">{{cite web|work=Everyhit.com |title=Orbus Terrarum|url=http://www.everyhit.com |access-date=24 October 2006}} (search for Orb albums)</ref> American critics gave it great acclaim, including ''Rolling Stone'' who made it their album of the month, citing its symphonic flow coupled with the Orb's "uniquely British wit".<ref name="century"/><ref name="rs-orbus">{{cite magazine|magazine=Rolling Stone |last=Wiederhorn |first=Jon |date=2 February 1998 |title=The Orb: Orbus Terrarum |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/theorb/albums/album/98991/review/5945472/orbus_terrarum |access-date=20 March 2007|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071001200030/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/theorb/albums/album/98991/review/5945472/orbus_terrarum |archive-date = 1 October 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="amg-orbus">{{cite web|website=AllMusic |first = John |last = Bush |url = {{Allmusic|class=album|id=r210890|pure_url=yes}} |title = Orbus Terrarum: The Orb}}</ref> After a long world tour, the Orb, with Andy Hughes and Steve Hillage, settled down to produce their next album, ''Orblivion''—the process of which saw a return to their spacey sounds. Though ''Orblivion'' was recorded in May 1996, it was not released until almost a year later, due to Island Records' desire to promote it as a follow-up to U2's techno-rock album ''Pop''.<ref name="shih">{{cite web|title=Orb:Interview |last=Shih |first=Howard |work=Perfect Sound Forever |url=http://www.furious.com/Perfect/orb.html|access-date=11 October 2006 |archive-date=1 July 2004 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040701192125/http://www.furious.com/Perfect/orb.html}}</ref> ''Orblivion'' sold well in Europe as well as the United States, where it reached the Billboard Top 200. The first ''Orblivion'' single, "Toxygene", was the highest-charting single by the Orb, reaching No.{{nbsp}}4 in the United Kingdom on 8{{nbsp}}February 1997. Despite high sales, ''Orblivion'' received a lukewarm reception from the British press.<ref name="remixmag-orblivion"/><ref name="cartwright">{{cite news|work = The Guardian |date=2 April 1997 |page=2 |title=Pop The Orb: Brixton Academy |first = Garth |last = Cartwright}}</ref> As with ''Orbus Terrarum'', ''Orblivion'' was better received by American critics, including ''Rolling Stone'', who praised its "contrast of chaos and euphony".<ref name="century"/><ref name="rs-orblivion"/> Meanwhile, the stresses of touring sat heavily on Paterson; he considered retiring the Orb, but continued touring and producing.<ref name="option-97">{{cite news|title=Minimal Impact |last=Berkowitz |first=Kenny |work=Option |date=1 November 1997}}</ref> In 1997 the band sold their studio ''Joe's Garage'' to the Godfrey brothers of Morcheeba.<ref name="SoundonSound studio">[http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/1997_articles/dec97/morcheeba.html "Sound On Sound Morcheeba studio 1997"] Sue Sillitoe, "Morcheeba: From Clapham to The Orb" ''Sound on Sound'', December 1997</ref> That same year, they contributed a cover of "Jo the Waiter" to the Gary Numan tribute album ''Random''.
Paterson and Fehlmann, along with usual collaborators Hughes, Nick Burton, and Phillips, wrote and produced ''Cydonia'' for a planned 1999 release.<ref name="amg-bio"/> Featured on the album were appearances from Robert Fripp, John Roome (Witchman), and Fil Le Gonidec, one of the Orb's live performers. Singers Nina Walsh and Aki Omori appeared on two tracks each, providing vocals and co-writing lyrics with Paterson. Paterson felt that this new direction of songwriting for the Orb was more similar to the experimental work of ''Orbus Terrarum'' than to the techno-pop of ''Orblivion''.<ref name="vh1-cydoniareview">{{cite web|publisher=VH1 |date=27 February 2001 |last=Demby |first=Eric |url=http://www.vh1.com/artists/news/1440987/02262001/orb.jhtml |title=Orb Back From Orblivion With New LP, Cydonia |archive-date=29 November 2004 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20041129193833/http://www.vh1.com/artists/news/1440987/02262001/orb.jhtml |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref> Island Records was in a period of restructuring due to its recent purchase by Universal Music Group, and ''Cydonia'' was not released until 2001.<ref name="citypaper"/><ref name="amg-cydonia">{{cite web|last = Bush |first= John |url= {{Allmusic|class=album|id=r518403|pure_url=yes}} |title=Cydonia Review |access-date=10 October 2006 |website=AllMusic}}</ref> Upon release, critics noted that ''Cydonia'' merged pop, trance, and ambient-dub music, which they felt to be a conglomeration of bland vocals and uninventive ambience that lacked the appeal of the Orb's earlier work.<ref name="amg-cydonia"/><ref name="sherald">{{cite news|title=A dance pioneer who's just going round in circles |last=Walker |first=Richard |page=10 |date=4 March 2001 |work=Sunday Herald}}</ref><ref name="birmingham-cydonia">{{cite news|last=Cowen |first=Andrew |title=What goes around comes around |date=19 March 2001 |page=13 |work=Birmingham Post}}</ref> ''NME'' harshly described it as "a stillborn relic, flawed throughout by chronically stunted ambitions" and describing its only appropriate audience to be "old ravers" seeking nostalgia.<ref name="nme-cydonia">{{cite web|work=New Musical Express |last=Pattison |first=Louis |year=2001 |access-date=13 October 2006 |title=Orb : Cydonia |url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/3953.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071119052420/http://www.nme.com/reviews/3953.htm |archive-date=19 November 2007 }}</ref>
The Orb were generally regarded by the British press as past their prime and an "ambient dinosaur" out of place in the current dance music environment.<ref name="Scotsman" /><ref name="sherald" /> After the release of ''Cydonia'', Hughes left the group for undisclosed reasons, becoming "another acrimonious departure from the Orb" according to ''The Guardian''.<ref name="dont-print-that" /> === 2001–2004: Paterson, Fehlmann & Phillips === [[File:Badorb.jpg|thumb|right|Paterson's record label Badorb.com had only fourteen releases in its brief existence.]] In 2001, Alex Paterson formed the record label Badorb.com as an outlet for Orb members' side projects. To promote both Badorb.com and ''Cydonia'', the Orb toured internationally, including their first visit to the United States in four years.<ref name="vh1-tour">{{cite web|title=The Orb Rolling Through U.S. On Tour |first=Eric |last=Demby |publisher=VH1 |date=6 March 2001 |url=http://www.vh1.com/artists/news/1441340/03062001/orb.jhtml |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20050123102639/http://www.vh1.com/artists/news/1441340/03062001/orb.jhtml |archive-date=23 January 2005 |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref> ''NME'' described the Orb's tour as "charming" and that they were "freed from the Floydian pretensions that dogged the band throughout the mid-'90s".<ref name="nme-concert">{{cite web|work=New Musical Express|last=Hall |first=John |title=The Orb: Brighton Concorde II |url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/orb/4544 |access-date=13 October 2006 |year=2001}}</ref>
The Orb, now composed of Paterson, Phillips, and Fehlmann, with guest John Roome, accepted an invitation to join the Area:One concert tour with Moby, Paul Oakenfold, New Order and other alternative and electronic artists.<ref name="mtv-area">{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1443083/04232001/moby.jhtml#/news/articles/1443083/04232001/moby.jhtml |title=Area:One Festival's Details Come into Focus |date=23 April 2001 |last=Reimer |first=Courtney |publisher=MTV |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20040606125600/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1443083/04232001/moby.jhtml |archive-date = 6 June 2004 |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref> Though the Orb were paired with more mainstream artists during the tour such as Incubus, Paterson and Fehlmann made their next releases a series of several low-key EPs for German label Kompakt in 2002. The Orb found critical success on Kompakt;<ref name="amg-okie">{{cite web|last=Kellman |first=Andy|title= Okie Dokie It's the Orb on Kompakt Review|website=AllMusic |url={{Allmusic|class=album|id=r807246|pure_url=yes}} |access-date=10 October 2006}}</ref> but Badorb.com collapsed soon after releasing the compilation ''Bless You''. Badorb.com had released fourteen records over the course of fourteen months from artists including Guy Pratt (Conduit), Ayumi Hamasaki, and Takayuki Shiraishi, as well as the Orb's three-track ''Daleth of Elphame EP''. Though Badorb.com was an internet-based record label, they sold only vinyl releases (with one exception, the Orb EP), which Paterson later remarked was a poor idea because "not many people{{nbsp}}... have record players".<ref name="guardian-interview">{{cite web|work=The Guardian |last = Peel |first=Ian |date=6 May 2004 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2004/may/06/interviews.popandrock |title=Talk time: Alex Paterson |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref>
{{listen |pos=left | filename = The Orb - Aftermath.ogg | title = "Aftermath" (2004) | description = Featuring rapping by MC Soom-T, "Aftermath" showcased the Orb's willingness to experiment with other genres on ''Bicycles & Tricycles''. | format = }}
Though their musical style had changed somewhat since the 1990s, the Orb continued to use their odd synthetic sounds on 2004's ''Bicycles & Tricycles'',<ref name="amg-bicycles">{{cite web|last=Theakston |first= Rob |title=Bicycles & Tricycles Review |url={{Allmusic|class=album|id=r662958|pure_url=yes}} |access-date=10 October 2006 |website=AllMusic}}</ref> to mixed reviews. ''The Daily Telegraph'' praised ''Bicycles & Tricycles'' as being "inclusive, exploratory, and an enjoyable journey";<ref name="telegraph-bicycles">{{cite news|work=The Daily Telegraph |last=Perry |first=Andrew |date=1 May 2004 |page=12 |title=Staying in CDs: Bicycles & Tricycles}}</ref> other publications dismissed it as "stoner dub" and irrelevant to current electronic music.<ref name="times-bicycles">{{cite news|last=Verrico |first = Lisa |date=14 May 2004 |page=19 |work=The Times |title=The Orb: Bicycles & Tricycles}}</ref><ref name="herald-bicycles">{{cite news|last=Pearson |first=Bth |date=8 May 2004 |title=CDs |work=The Herald |page=2}}</ref><ref name="popmatters-bikes">{{cite web|work=PopMatters |title=Bicycles & Tricycles Review |url=https://www.popmatters.com/music/reviews/o/orb-bicycles.shtml |last=O'Neil |first=Tim |date=29 July 2004 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060422002411/http://www.popmatters.com/music/reviews/o/orb-bicycles.shtml |archive-date=22 April 2006 |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref> Like ''Cydonia'', ''Bicycles & Tricycles'' featured vocals, including rapper MC Soom-T who added a hip hop contribution to the album.<ref name="jive-bicycles">{{cite news|work=Jive Magazine |date=23 July 2004 |last=Bradley |first=Ryan |title=The Orb: Bicycles and Tricycles |url=http://www.jivemagazine.com/review.php?rid=671&rtid=2}}</ref> The Orb left Island Records and released the album on Cooking Vinyl and Sanctuary Records. To promote the album, the band began a UK tour with dub artist Mad Professor. Though the Orb still pulled in large crowds, ''The Guardian'' noted that they lacked the intensity found in their earlier performances.<ref name="ogrady">{{cite web|last=O'Grady |first = Carrie |title=The Orb Concert Review: Coronet, London |work=The Guardian |date=18 May 2004 |url =https://www.theguardian.com/music/2004/may/18/popandrock1 |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref>
=== 2004–2007: Paterson & Fehlmann, the Transit Kings ===
After two more EPs on Kompakt, the Orb (now composed of only Paterson and Fehlmann) released ''Okie Dokie It's the Orb on Kompakt'', which featured new material in addition to tweaked versions of their previous Kompakt output.<ref name="amg-okie"/> By this stage, ''AllMusic'' observed, Thomas Fehlmann had become the primary creative figure in the Orb, "inhibiting Alex Paterson's whimsical impulses".<ref name="amg-okie"/> Because of this, ''Okie Dokie'' was considerably more focused and less "goofy" than ''Cydonia'' and ''Bicycles & Tricycles''.<ref name="amg-okie"/><ref name="miami">{{cite web|last=Beta |first=Andy |work=Miami New Times |date=10 November 2005 |title=Okie Dokie It's The Orb on Kompakt |url=http://www.miaminewtimes.com/Issues/2005-11-10/music/rotations4.html |access-date=20 March 2007|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110911165916/http://www.miaminewtimes.com/2005-11-10/music/the-orb/ |archive-date = 11 September 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> Fehlmann's trademark hypnotic loops and delays made him the centre of ''Okie Dokie'' production and, according to ''Pitchfork Media'', made it "difficult to say where [Paterson] is in the picture".<ref name="pfmedia-okie">{{cite web|work=Pitchfork Media |last=Sherburne |first=Philip |date=2 December 2005 |title= Okie Dokie, It's the Orb on Kompakt |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/6029-okie-dokie-its-the-orb-on-kompakt/ |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref> The Orb's releases with Kompakt gained them back much of their musical credibility with the press and showed that they could "age gracefully".<ref name="miami"/><ref name="365mag-okie">{{cite web |work=365mag |last=Cybana |first=Ariel |date=11 November 2005 |url=http://www.365mag.com/index.php?pg=murw&recnum=2241&Title=The+Orb+%2F+Kompakt+on+365MAG+International+Music+Magazine |title=Okie Dokie It's The Orb on Kompakt |access-date=20 March 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-date=27 September 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927225557/http://www.365mag.com/index.php?pg=murw&recnum=2241&Title=The+Orb+%2F+Kompakt+on+365MAG+International+Music+Magazine }}</ref>
In August 2006, the founders of the Orb—Paterson and Cauty—released ''Living in a Giant Candle Winking at God'', their debut album as the Transit Kings with Guy Pratt and Pratt's associate, Dom Beken.<ref name="transitkings-bio">{{cite web|title=WaitingRoom: Transit Kings (biography) |url=http://www.transitkings.com/TransitKings/WaitingRoom.html |website=Transitkings.com|access-date= 9 October 2006}}</ref> The album featured appearances from Smiths' guitarist Johnny Marr and comedian Simon Day.<ref name="independent-transit">{{cite news|work=The Independent |last=Gill |first=Andy |page=18 |date=17 June 2005 |title=Transit Kings – Token (Malicious Damage)}}</ref> Beken described ''Living in a Giant Candle Winking at God'' as "self-consciously musically written and less sample-based" compared to the members' previous work.<ref name="higherfrequency">{{cite web|title=Transit Kings interview @ Fuji Rock Festival 2006, Japan |url=http://www.higher-frequency.com/e_interview/transit_kings/index.htm |access-date=26 October 2006 |last=Cotterill |first=Matt}}</ref> ''Living'' had been in production since 2001, but due to members' other obligations, it was delayed for several years.<ref name="transitkings-bio"/> The album received mixed critical reactions; ''The Times'' called it "Orb-lite" and proclaimed it to be "Deep Forest-style sludge".<ref name="times-transit">{{cite news|last = Greenwood |first=Phoebe |date=19 August 2006 |page=30 |work=The Times |title=Transit Kings}}</ref> After the album's release, Cauty left the Transit Kings on "extended leave", leaving the project in indefinite limbo,<ref name="higherfrequency"/> and Beken joined the Orb for a period.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Interview with keyboardist and programmer, Dom Beken (Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets)|url=https://www.soundtech.co.uk/music-retail/nord/news/interview-with-dom-beken-nick-masons-saucerful-of-secrets|access-date=2020-11-03|website=Sound Technology Ltd}}</ref> Paterson and Beken reunited in 2008 as High Frequency Bandwidth, an ambient hip hop group on the Malicious Damage label.
=== 2007–present === [[File:The Orb, Cork, October 2025a.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|The Orb live in Cork, Ireland, October 2025]]
The Orb's next studio album, ''The Dream'', was released in Japan in 2007 and the following year in the United States and United Kingdom. Fehlmann is absent on ''The Dream'' and Paterson was instead reunited with Youth and joined by Tim Bran of Dreadzone.<ref name="amg-dream">{{cite web|url = https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-dream-mw0000787912 |title = The Dream > Review |website=AllMusic |access-date = 11 June 2008 |last = Bush |first = John}}</ref> The album saw a return to the Orb's sounds of the early 1990s, with peculiar vocals and playful samples.<ref name="pitchfork-dream">{{cite web|url = http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/51099-the-dream |date = 9 June 2008 |access-date= 11 June 2008 |last= Ewing |first = Tom |work = Pitchfork Media |title = The Orb: The Dream Pitchfork Record Review |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080610065221/http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/51099-the-dream <!--Added by H3llBot--> |archive-date = 10 June 2008}}</ref><ref name="bbc-dream">{{cite web| url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/release/f29x/ |work = bbc.co.uk |last = Jones |first = Chris | date=22 February 2008 |access-date=11 June 2008 |title = The Orb: The Dream review}}</ref> The Orb also brought in jazz and house music singer Juliet Roberts<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.mirror.co.uk/lifestyle/going-out/music/review-the-orb---the-dream-295512 |work = Mirror.co.uk |date = 29 February 2008 |access-date=11 June 2008 |last = Martin |first = Gavin |title = Review: The Orb – The Dream}}</ref> and guitarist Steve Hillage.<ref name="amg-dream"/>
After the July 2006 re-release of ''The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld'' 3-CD Deluxe Edition, 2007 and 2008 saw releases of expanded 2-CD editions of the band's subsequent regular studio records: ''U.F.Orb'', ''Pomme Fritz'' EP, ''Orbus Terrarum'', ''Orblivion'' and ''Cydonia''. In late 2008 a double-cd compilation of BBC Radio 1 sessions called ''The Orb: Complete BBC Sessions 1989–2001'' was released.
In May 2009, the British Malicious Damage Records (run by the members of Killing Joke) announced the release of the Orb's ninth regular studio album ''Baghdad Batteries (Orbsessions Volume III)'' on 11 September 2009.<ref name="baghdad">{{cite web |title=The Orb prep Baghdad Batteries |publisher=Resident Advisor |date=1 May 2009 |url=http://www.residentadvisor.net/news.aspx?id=10509 |access-date=22 June 2009 }}</ref> A reunification of Paterson and long-term collaborator Thomas Fehlmann who last worked together on ''Okie Dokie It's the Orb on Kompakt'', the album was promoted with a launch party with Paterson and Fehlmann performing the whole album live at The-Situation Modern in Clapham, England on 10 September.<ref name="baghdad"/> A track "Chocolate Fingers" was uploaded onto the label's MySpace profile.<ref name="myspace-malicious">{{cite web |url=http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=64437237&blogId=491206097 |title=malicious update 26.05.09 |date=26 May 2009 |publisher=MySpace, Malicious Damage Records |access-date=22 June 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207065936/http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view |archive-date=7 February 2009 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Unlike the first 2 albums in the ''Orbsessions'' series, which consisted of archive recordings, ''Baghdad Batteries'' comprised brand new material recorded at Fehlmann's Berlin studio.<ref name="baghdad"/>
In March 2010, Internet station Dandelion Radio broadcast a seventeen and a half-minute long Orb session track by Paterson and Fehlmann on the Andrew Morrison show. This new track was titled "Battersea Bunches" and was a remixed version of the soundtrack to a short movie of the same title by Mike Coles and Alex Paterson—a film installation to be seen at London's Battersea Power Station on 1{{nbsp}}June 2010 as part of an evening of art and music. The film and its soundtrack (together with remixes) were later released as the CD/DVD album ''C Batter C'' on 11 November 2011.
In mid-2010, Alex Paterson teamed up with Youth to compile a retrospective compilation album of tracks from the WAU! Mr Modo label. The album titled ''Impossible Oddities'' was released on CD and double Vinyl on 25 October 2010 via Year Zero records.
The Orb released the ''Metallic Spheres'' album in October 2010, featuring David Gilmour of Pink Floyd. It was released by Columbia Records.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-orb-featuring-david-gilmours-metallic-spheres-to-be-celebrated-through-original-laser-show-and-appearances-by-the-orb-103943418.html | title=The Orb Featuring David Gilmour's Metallic Spheres to be Celebrated Through Original Laser Show and Appearances by The Orb | publisher=PR Newswire | date=28 September 2010 | access-date=10 October 2010 | author=Columbia Records| author-link=Columbia Records }}</ref>
In 2011, Alex Paterson teamed up with producer Gaudi and vocalist Chester Taylor for the creation of their experimental and ongoing collaborative project SCREEN, releasing the album ''We are Screen'' by Malicious Damage Records. In 2012, the Orb worked with dub musician Lee "Scratch" Perry to produce a reggae-infused album titled ''The Orbserver in the Star House'', which was recorded in Berlin over a period of several months and features the single "Golden Clouds".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.jambase.com/article/the-orb-lee-scratch-perry-golden-clouds-video|title=The Orb & Lee 'Scratch' Perry: 'Golden Clouds' Video|website=JamBase.com|access-date=25 June 2021}}</ref> The title song was based on an earlier version of Little Fluffy Clouds, with the lyrics rewritten by Perry reflecting his childhood in Jamaica and the property Golden Clouds near his home.
In 2013, the Orb performed with the Kakatsisi drummers of Ghana on the West Holts stage at Glastonbury Festival.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Orb feat. Kakatsitsi – Glastonbury highlights |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/events/ej58q9/play/acr38g/p01dhfh1 |website=BBC|access-date=13 December 2020}}</ref>
On 22 June 2018, the Orb released their fifteenth studio album, ''No Sounds Are Out of Bounds''. During 2019, the Orb have been touring with a 30th anniversary tour, performed by Alex Paterson and London based producer/sound engineer Michael Rendall.
The Orb released their sixteenth studio album, ''Abolition of the Royal Familia'', on 27 March 2020. It includes contributions from Youth, Roger Eno, Gaudi, David Harrow and Steve Hillage and Miquette Giraudy (System 7).
On 28 April 2023, The Orb released their seventeenth album, ''Prism'', on the Cooking Vinyl label.
The Orb collaborated with Chocolate Hills to produce the latter's second album, Yarns From The Cholocate Triangle, released 16 June 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Yarns From The Chocolate Triangle, by Chocolate Hills, The Orb |url=https://theorb.bandcamp.com/album/yarns-from-the-chocolate-triangle |access-date=2024-02-11 |website=The Orb |language=en}}</ref>
On 10 October 2025 the Orb released their eighteenth studio album, Buddhist Hipsters, on Cooking Vinyl featuring collabarations with Roger Eno, Youth, Steve Hillage & Miquette Giraudy, Andy Falconer, Violeta Vicci, Paul Ferguson, Andy Cain, Rrome Alone and Eric Von Skywalker.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Biggane |first=Dan |date=2025-07-16 |title=The Orb announce new album Buddhist Hipsters ahead of UK tour |url=https://www.classicpopmag.com/news/the-orb-announce-new-album/ |access-date=2025-10-15 |website=Classic Pop Magazine |language=en-GB}}</ref>
== Artistry ==
=== Musical style and influences === Andy Beta of ''Pitchfork'' wrote: "The Orb have always been mad hatters, tinkering with genre boundaries and aural expectations; they’re heretics who explore the borders of house music, progressive, and ambient. Whether pushing the physical limits on what constitutes a single or dropping a fuzzy cover of the Stooges’ “No Fun” during an otherwise chill Peel Session, Dr. Alex Paterson and his cohorts can soothe and startle in equal measure."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pitchfork |date=2016-09-26 |title=The 50 Best Ambient Albums of All Time |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/9948-the-50-best-ambient-albums-of-all-time/ |access-date=2025-06-08 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref>
The Orb's members have drawn from an assortment of influences in their music.<ref name="ps-aubrey">{{cite web|title=Auntie Aubrey's Excursions Beyond the Call of Duty Part 2 Review |last=Hart |first=Vince |date=1 April 2002 |url=http://www.progressive-sounds.com/Music-Reviews/orb-aunt-aubries-excursions.asp |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref> The Orb's central figure, Alex Paterson, had early musical tastes and influences that included King Tubby, Alice Cooper, Prince, Kraftwerk, and T.Rex.<ref name="ra-interview">{{cite web|title=Dr Alex Paterson – music as medicine| url=http://www.residentadvisor.net/feature_view.asp?id=444 |last = Jarvis |first=Matt |author2=Helen Hayden |publisher=Resident Advisor |date=30 March 2004 |archive-date=1 March 2005 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20050301035432/http://www.residentadvisor.net/feature_view.asp?id=444 |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref> Among these, Paterson cites Kraftwerk as one of the most important, claiming they created the foundation from which all modern dance music has been built.<ref name="guardian-chills"/> While in Brixton with Martin Glover as a teenager, Paterson was also exposed to a large amount of reggae music, such as The Mighty Diamonds, The Abyssinians, and Bob Marley.<ref name="guardian-chills"/> The reggae influence on Paterson and the Orb can readily be heard in tracks such as the single "Perpetual Dawn" and ''U.F.Orb'''s "Towers of Dub". The earliest ambient influences of the Orb came in 1979 during Paterson's roadie days with Killing Joke. While with the band in Neuss, Paterson listened to Brian Eno's ''Music for Films'' while on LSD and watched "the Ruhr steel works explode in the distance", noting that "[t]he scene seemed to be taking place in the music as well".<ref name="century"/> The same night, Paterson was also inspired while listening to Cluster's ''Grosses Wasser'' and found that the steel works' "huge metal arms were crushing molten rocks in time to the music", which was something he'd "never seen, or heard, anything like it before".<ref name="guardian-chills"/> Along with Cluster and Kraftwerk, Paterson was also influenced by other German experimental music from Can and composer Karlheinz Stockhausen.<ref name="keyboard"/> ''Modulations'' calls Paterson's music a "maximal" version of Brian Eno's "minimal" ambience,<ref name="modulations">{{cite book|editor=Shapiro, Peter |title=Modulations – A History of Electronic Music: Throbbing Words on Sound |publisher=Caipirinha Productions |year=2000 |isbn= 1-891024-06-X |pages = 160–162|title-link=Modulations A History of Electronic Music }}</ref> though according to Paterson, Eno resents Paterson's use of his music as an influence.<ref name="metropolis" />
The Orb have often been described as "The Pink Floyd of the Nineties",<ref name=guardian-spencer>{{cite news|work=The Guardian |date=5 June 1994 |last=Spencer |first=Neil |title=Neil Spencer meets their inspirational founder, Alex Paterson}}</ref> but Paterson has stated that their music is more influenced by experimental electronic music than progressive rock of the 1970s.<ref name="guardian-chills"/> He has noted though that the Pink Floyd album ''Meddle'' was influential to him as a child in the 1970s.<ref name="melody-93"/> The psychedelic prog-rock similarities have led critics to describe the Orb as hippie revivalists;<ref name="birmingham-adventures">{{cite news|work=Birmingham Post |last=Cowen |first=Andrew |date=10 February 2001 |title=CD Reviews: Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld |page=4}}</ref> Paterson has strongly rejected the tag, claiming that even as a youth, he was "one of those punks who hated hippies".<ref name="times-hippie">{{cite news|work=The Times |last=Sandall |first=Robert |date=12 July 1992 |title=Hippie dippie draw: Orb}}</ref>
During production of ''Cydonia'' and ''Bicycles & Tricycles'', Paterson's biggest influences were drum and bass and trip hop music, as seen on the tracks "Ghostdancing", "Thursday's Keeper", and "Aftermath".<ref name="birmingham-guru">{{cite news|title=Ambient gurus refuse to lie down |work=Birmingham Post |date=21 October 1998 |page=15 |last=Cowen |first=Andrew}}</ref> The Orb's more recent influences consist largely of German techno producers, such as Triola, who were inspired by the Orb's earlier work.<ref name="amg-okie"/> Paterson cites the music of Kompakt as one of his primary modern influences and claims it to be among the best modern ambient music.<ref name="independent-top10">{{cite news|work=The Independent |last=Paterson |first=Alex |page=16 |date=7 May 2004 |title=The Ten Best Ambient Works}}</ref>
=== Imagery and themes === Imagery has always been an important part of the Orb's persona.<ref name="toop-live">{{cite news|title=Live and on the record |work=The Times |date=28 October 1992 |last=Toop |first=David |author-link = David Toop}}</ref> This is most prominent during live performances, where they often project surreal images against onstage screens. Common images include morphing faces, futuristic cityscapes, and aliens.<ref name="rollingstone-live97">{{cite magazine |magazine=Rolling Stone |title=Review of the Hammerstein Ballroom, NY live show |date=9 May 1997 |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/theorb/articles/story/5925017/the_orb |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090630032852/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/theorb/articles/story/5925017/the_orb |archive-date=30 June 2009 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> They have long associated their act with absurd symbology with images such as floating pigs.<ref name="birmingham-guru"/> This has carried over to their music videos, most of which are spacy, brightly coloured montages of surreal images including astronauts, clouds, and neon dolphins. Because of their use of psychedelic images at shows, the Orb's shows are frequently compared to those of Pink Floyd, who also used in-show imagery and films.<ref name="rollingstone-live97"/> Paterson cites Godfrey Reggio's and Philip Glass's film Koyaanisqatsi as a primary influence to their concert imagery.<ref name="option-97"/>
The Orb's album art features much of the same imagery as their live act. Graphic design group The Designers Republic created the cover art for the earlier work, including ''Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld'', ''U.F.Orb'', and the singles from those two albums.<ref name="backside">{{cite web|title=Orb:Albums|url=http://www.backsideoftheorb.com/index.php?view=albums|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060529002106/http://www.backsideoftheorb.com/index.php?view=albums |archive-date=29 May 2006 |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref> For their next album, the Orb poked fun at their Pink Floyd comparisons with the cover of ''Live 93'' featuring a floating stuffed sheep over the Battersea Power Station, which had appeared on the cover of Pink Floyd's ''Animals''.<ref name="JAM">{{cite news|work=JAM (Florida Music Magazine) |date=26 April 1995 |title=Alex Paterson Interview}}</ref> The artwork found in Badorb.com releases was similar to the Orb's odd artwork of the mid-1990s, as it was stylistically similar and contained little writing.<ref name="citypaper"/>
Some of the more prominent motifs in the Orb's work are outer space and science fiction, including alien visitations, space flight, and mind control. These have included the use of samples from serious sources such as NASA transmissions to comedic clips from films like Woody Allen's ''Sleeper'', from which the group also took their name. ''U.F.Orb'' especially expressed a fascination with alien life with its bizarre sound samples and in the album's title itself.<ref name="phoenix"/> The title of its most popular single, "Blue Room", is a reference to the supposed Blue Room of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, which was investigated as a possible UFO evidence holding room.<ref name="times-hippie"/> Their 2001 album is named after the Cydonia Mensae region of Mars.<ref name="remixmag-orblivion"/> Due to Paterson's focus on science fiction and astronomical phenomena, ''The Guardian'' described Paterson as "pop [music]'s primary spokesperson on aliens".<ref name="dont-print-that"/>
== Techniques, technology, live performances == [[File:The Orb in performance (Walt Disney Concert Hall, 19-03-2006).jpg|thumb|left|Paterson and Fehlmann at a 2006 performance at the Walt Disney Concert Hall]]
In the Orb's early DJ events in the 1980s, Paterson and Cauty performed with three record decks, a cassette player, and a CD player all of which were mixed through an Akai 12-track mixer.<ref name="shih"/> They used their equipment to harmonise recorded music and sound effect samples into an "endless sound continuum" for audiences of worn-out dancers.<ref name="century"/> Even after the Orb began producing original material, they kept the same sample-heavy model for live acts by spontaneously integrating obscure samples into their pre-recorded tracks. During promotional tours for ''Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld'' and ''U.F.Orb'', they performed using a digital audio tape machine and experimented with other media sources such as dubplates. The tape machines held individual chords, rhythms, and basslines for each composition, allowing the Orb to reprocess them and mimic the act of DJing.<ref name="tandt"/> Members could then easily improvise with these samples and manipulate them using sound effect racks.<ref name="keyboard"/> Often, the Orb had a live musician accompanying them, such as Steve Hillage on guitar. Their shows in the early 1990s would often be three hours of semi-improvised, continuous music featuring a wealth of triggered samples, voices, and pre-recorded tracks which were barely identifiable as the original piece.<ref name="times-anything">{{cite news|work=The Times |last=Gray |first=Louise |date=18 November 1993 |title=Where anything goes}}</ref>
The Orb began performing regularly at the Brixton Academy in the early 1990s, where they used the high ceilings and large space for their "well-suited amorphous sound", frequently performing their newest and more experimental pieces there.<ref name="guardian-performance97">{{cite news|last=Cartwright |first=Garth |work=The Guardian |date=2 April 1997 |title=Pop the Orb: Brixton Academy Review}}</ref> Andy Hughes took Weston's place at live performances after the 1993 tour, though Weston did reappear for the Orb's concert at the rainy Woodstock '94.<ref name="amg-bio"/> The Orb played for late night raves on the first two nights of Woodstock '94 in addition to artists including Aphex Twin, Orbital, and Deee-Lite. The next year, the Orb's touring group consisted of Paterson, Hughes, Nick Burton on drums, and Simon Phillips on bass. This live setup created a "cacophony" of "gigantic, swarming sounds".<ref name="times-something">{{cite news|last=Gray |first=Louise |work=The Times |page=1 |date=11 April 1995 |title=Something in the Air: The Orb}}</ref> Though the Orb's performances use much onstage equipment and many props, Paterson prefers to present them as "a non-centralised figure of amusement on stage".<ref name="independent-earth"/>
The Orb used ADAT recorders for performances from 1993 to 2001 and utilised large 48-track decks, which Paterson described as being a "studio onstage".<ref name="remix">{{cite web|work=Remix Magazine |last=Micallef |first=Ken |date=1 September 2004 |title=The Orb |url=http://remixmag.com/mag/remix_orb/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050913095705/http://remixmag.com/mag/remix_orb/ |archive-date=13 September 2005 |access-date=20 March 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> They hooked synthesisers, such as the ARP 2600, to MIDI interfaces to recreate specific sounds that appeared on their albums.<ref name="keyboard"/> The Orb's methods of studio music creation changed as well. For more recent albums such as ''Cydonia'', they used inexpensive equipment such as Korg's Electribe products, which Paterson described as employing more of a "bedroom techno" approach.<ref name="remixmag-orblivion"/> Despite their use of laptops during performances and in-studio computers, Paterson says that he still cherishes vinyl and does not find purchasing CDs or downloading music to be nearly as satisfying.<ref name="guardian-interview"/>
=== Sampling and remixing === One of the Orb's most notable contributions to electronic music is their idea of blurring the distinction between sampling and remixing.<ref name="tandt"/> Albums such as ''Pomme Fritz'', though released as a piece of original work, consist largely of manipulated samples. Conversely, the Orb's remixes typically use only small sections of the original track, most notably in the case of their single "Toxygene". "Toxygene" was originally commissioned as a remix of Jean Michel Jarre's "Oxygene 8" from ''Oxygene 7-13''.<ref name="spheres">{{cite news|work=The Sunday Times |title=Music of the Spheres: Orb |last=Smith |first=Andrew |date=16 February 1997 |page=13}}</ref> The Orb "obliterated it" and reassembled only a few fragments for their remix, much to the chagrin of Jarre, who reportedly refused to release it;<ref name="spheres"/> The Orb released the track themselves under the name "Toxygene", which further irritated Jarre, to whom Paterson retorted "The French are always five years behind us, anyway."<ref name="spheres"/> In statements made after the release of "Toxygene", Jarre denied that he rejected the original remix because of disliking it.<ref name="dotmusic">{{cite web|date=27 January 1997 |last=Aston |first=Martin |title=Dotmusic Talent: Jean Michel Jarre |url=http://www.dotmusic.co.uk/MWtalentjjarre.html |work=Dotmusic (retrieved from the Internet Archive) |access-date=30 April 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/19980708105644/http://www.dotmusic.co.uk/MWtalentjjarre.html |archive-date = 8 July 1998}}</ref>
Other artists have become agitated due to the Orb sampling their work, though Paterson jokingly suggests that "[t]hey don't know the half of it."<ref name="citypaper"/> Paterson says that he finds a "beauty" and a "cleverness" with slipping unlicensed samples into compositions without anyone recognizing it.<ref name="keyboard"/> Even though fans often try to guess the origins of many of the samples, Paterson states that they are rarely correct and that they would "die" if they discovered, for example, where the drums on "Little Fluffy Clouds" originated from.<ref name="remixmag-orblivion"/> He has said that record labels have cautioned him, "Don't tell anyone where you got your samples until we get them cleared!".<ref name="remixmag-orblivion"/>
{{listen | filename = OrbToxygene.ogg | title = "Toxygene" (1997) | description = Clip from "Toxygene", the Orb's controversial pseudo-remix of Jean Michel Jarre's "Oxygene 8". | format = }}
The Orb have used a wide variety of audio clips from sources ranging from McCarthy era speeches to prank phone calls by Victor Lewis-Smith to David Thewlis' apocalypse-driven rant from the film ''Naked''.<ref name="rollingstone-live97"/> Paterson obtains many samples from recording TV and radio for hours at a time and picking out his favourite clips.<ref name="keyboard"/> He and other members of the Orb record nature sounds for use on albums, especially ''FFWD'' and ''Orbus Terrarum''. The Orb's combination of ambient music and sampling from lower fidelity audio sources often creates a "fuzzy texture" in the sound quality, depersonalising the Orb's music.<ref name="tandt"/> The Orb are lauded for their "Monty Python-esque levity" in their use of audio samples,<ref name="rs-orblivion"/> though ''NME'' asserts that Paterson "sabotage[s] his majestic soundscapes" with "irritatingly zany" sounds.<ref name="nme-aubrey">{{cite web|year=2002 |last=Thomas |first=Olly |title=Orb : Auntie Aubrey's Excursions Beyond The Call of Duty Part 2 |url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/orb/6159 |work=New Musical Express |access-date=20 March 2007}}</ref>
The Orb has been a prolific remixing team, having completed over 80 commissioned remixes since 1989.<ref name="backside"/> Even during periods of label conflict and contractual limbo, the Orb found steady work remixing for artists including Depeche Mode, Lisa Stansfield, and Front 242. The Orb's remixes from the early and mid-1990s feature a large number of comical samples, ''Progressive-Sounds'' describe them as "ahead of their time" and ''NME'' notes them as "not entirely incompatible with contemporary chilling".<ref name="ps-aubrey"/><ref name="nme-aubrey"/> Some pieces, such as their Bee Gees cover collaboration with Robbie Williams, received criticism for being "beyond a joke" for their use of strange noises.<ref name="nme-aubrey"/> The Orb's remix of Nine Inch Nails' "The Perfect Drug", too, was described as "silly", as they made it sound like Trent Reznor was "drowning in his bathtub".<ref name="amazon-nin">{{cite web|access-date=23 October 2006 |last=Bateman |first=Jeff |title=The Perfect Drug Editorial Review |url=https://www.amazon.com/Perfect-Drug-Nine-Inch-Nails/dp/B000001Y7W|website=Amazon.com}}</ref> Though Paterson maintains that much of the Orb's remix work is done to support other artists, he admits some of their remixes for major artists were performed so they could "pay the bills".<ref name="birmingham-guru"/>
== Band members == '''Current members'''
* Alex Paterson (1988–present) * Michael Rendall (2018–present)
'''Former members'''
* Jimmy Cauty (1988–1990) * Andy Falconer (1990–1991) * Kris Weston (1990–1994) * Thomas Fehlmann (1994–2017) * Andy Hughes (1994–2001) * Simon Phillips (2001–2004)
=== Timeline === {{#tag:timeline|ImageSize=width:800 height:auto barincrement:26 PlotArea = left:100 bottom:100 top:00 right:10 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1988 till:{{#time:d/m/Y}} TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Legend = position:bottom columns:4 ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:3 start:1988 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:1 start:1988
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==Discography== {{Main|The Orb discography}} *''The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld'' (1991) *''U.F.Orb'' (1992) *''Orbus Terrarum'' (1995) *''Orblivion'' (1997) *''Cydonia'' (2001) *''Bicycles & Tricycles'' (2004) *''Okie Dokie It's the Orb on Kompakt'' (2005) *''The Dream'' (2007) *''Baghdad Batteries (Orbsessions Volume III)'' (2009) *''Metallic Spheres'' (2010) {{small|(with David Gilmour)}} *''The Orbserver in the Star House'' (2012) *''More Tales from the Orbservatory'' (2013) *''Moonbuilding 2703 AD'' (2015) *''COW / Chill Out, World!'' (2016) *''No Sounds Are Out of Bounds'' (2018) *''Abolition of the Royal Familia'' (2020) *''Prism'' (2023) *''Buddhist Hipsters'' (2025)
== References == {{reflist|30em}}
== External links == * {{Official website}} * {{discogs artist}} * {{musicbrainz artist|id=42c14c80-bd17-47e4-9bb2-a35897638c4d|name=The Orb}} * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6r0HsA3Kk9Q Area One video]
{{The Orb}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Orb, The}} Category:The Orb Category:British ambient music groups Category:English electronic music groups Category:English house music groups Category:English remixers Category:Chill-out musicians Category:Caroline Records artists Category:Mercury Records artists Category:Island Records artists Category:MCA Records artists Category:Columbia Records artists Category:Trip hop groups Category:Musical groups established in 1988 Category:1988 establishments in England Category:Electronic music groups from London Category:English DJ duos Category:Rave culture in the United Kingdom Category:Big Life artists Category:Cooking Vinyl artists Category:Sanctuary Records artists Category:V2 Records artists Category:Live Here Now artists