Orbital / Delphic

We arrive in Brixton, plenty of time to spare; no traffic nightmares and find a parking space right outside the venue. After such a perfect start to the evening, I check the tyres on the car to make sure nothing unnoticed has gone wrong.

Doors barely open and we head in. The Hartnoll brothers split as Orbital in 2004 which was unwelcome news in our household. Their musical reunion has spurred a few other eager followers to arrive early too and support band Delphic take the stage to a half filled venue (far better than many acts we've seen here). Their sound lacks a trademark or direction but is pleasant enough. At times they remind me of a disjointed Underworld but as the crowd thickens, the slight bounce spreads. I'm not sure they're the right choice for support but the mood slowly builds until they leave the stage.



The Academy looks good and though the bars appear quite full, the queues are dealt with pretty quickly. As 9:00pm approaches, I'm not sure I've ever seen it this busy in here. We make our way a bit further forward to a spot with more space and as the lights dim further, TVs appear in the band's backdrop to a static TV crackle, and the intro to 'Mobius' plays out to flashing white lights. Samples of 'Time Becomes A Loop' alternate between left and right speakers. The lads arrive on stage with trademark torches affixed either side of their heads. The jangling keys of 'Out There Somewhere (part 1)' act as a powerful time machine and transport us back in time – Rave is alive and well and not sitting in the front bedroom. The high end of the sound spectrum works the house sound system and the additional Orbital supplied stacks. The breaks drop in for 'Out There Somewhere (part 2)' and the mood is lifted further. No more standing around, the compulsion to dance has taken over and judging by the bouncing heads and arms appearing and disappearing in the strobe light, I'm not alone!

As the set continues, the volume builds and when the pseudo trumpets kick in for 'Impact' and the 4:4 old school rave score keyboards are layered over the top, the torch-adorned heads on stage are really bobbing. The bass is really, really loud and reaches a crescendo half way through the track as it all breaks down and builds with new added effects. A sound seemingly belonging to an unlikely union of electric guitar fused with electro-bagpipes replaces the standard keyboards sound.



A slightly funked-up bass and gut-rattling version of 'Remind' builds the pace again. It's not frantic but there's plenty of time for that yet. It's now that we decide to head into the middle a bit further and with epic timing, 'Satan' is unleashed. The crowd erupts and the strobes are punctuated by bright yellow lights each time the bass line hits a beat. There is a metal guitar looping under the normal mix which comes to the forefront and then fades back a layer or two.

There is a mass of equipment on stage but nothing that most musicians would be able to identify as an instrument, so what do Orbital do? The set list and music behind it all remains the same (or very similar) throughout a tour, but the sequencers are used in a live situation to loop parts of the 'arrangements' and blending and fading different layers and sounds in and out. The tunes are put together live – making every performance unique. Different filters are applied and it can all be done according to the reaction of the crowd. The reactions are pretty instant as the initial high end loops for 'Belfast' play in. With the familiar operatic voice in the background and the bouncing deep drum sound drum. The vibe becomes a lot more blissful and many hands are aloft, playing air keyboards. It's a classic, and I feel privileged to be part of it. 'Chime' is another classic but this version fades from left to right with rim-shot drums mixed in and the keys left to run unaccompanied over and over. The speed of the electronic mainstay of the original tunes increases and so does the bouncing of feet reverberating through the floor. A really subtle hook of Madonna's 'Material Girl' is mixed in as the track draws to a close through to 'Chime Crime'.



'Halcyon' can't fail but to bring a smile. It too uses samples from familiar 80's tracks: Belinda Carlisle's 'Heaven Is A Place On Earth', and Bon Jovi's 'Livin' On A Prayer', and then drops in the funky bass. The mainstay of this track is the sliced and diced lyrics of Opus 3's 'It's A Fine Day'. They are whisked together with Hartnoll glue to form a brilliant live version.

As the evening comes to a close, Alison Goldfrapp's lyrics ring out over the haunting backing to a mashed together version of 'The Box part 1 and 2'. The clever samples of ropes creaking in the rigging form beats. An amazing show ends with a great rendition of 'Dr ?', the Doctor Who theme. It's part of Orbital's large armoury of soundtrack-related offerings and it goes down a treat and rounds off the night brilliantly.

With such a long time to build up hopes of an Orbital comeback, those hopes being realised and managing to be part of it, there was much scope for being let down or sold short. I'm pleased to say that wasn't the case. The only minor criticism would be the lack of coverage for the Snivilisation album. I sincerely hope that Orbital keep doing their thing! The world of electronic music is a much richer place for it!

FUTURE GIGS