Monday's Long Song

 

In 2010 The Orb released Metallic Spheres, a collaboration with Pink Floyd's guitarist David Gilmour born during a charity session. There is only one song on each side and a superb fusion of ambient and old style psychedelic guitar. It was an album that is played in many chilled out bars when I was in Asia these days. Last year a remix of this album was released and shows the beauty of this collaboration once again. For me a perfect start into the week.

The Orb & David Gilmour - Round Side: Seamless Solar Spheres Of Affection (Round Side)

Dragon Of The Ocean

 

The Orb again. There are less artist releasing so many albums during their 35 years lasting career. Last week their latest album Prism was released. Looking at the cover my first thought was that they move towards Pink Floyd because it reminded me much at Dark Side Of The Moon with it's switched light beams. But listening to the album it has nothing to do with the psychedelic pioneers of the late 60's. Prism is another album that sprawling, genre-bending work that shows their creativity in electronic works. It is an album you should listen to and not just hearing to enjoy all facets of their music. They travel from dark ambient sound over reggae to dub and drum and bass. An album that surly will played more than once at my place.

International Treasure

 

It is more than two years ago when The Utopia Strong appeared the first time on this little corner of the internet when they released their first album. Now they are back with their new album and I it seems like their new one will be on heavy rotation at my place during the next times. The band is still ruled by former world snooker champion Steve Davis and Kavus Torabi an British-Iranian musician and composer. Their sound is still based on improvisations based on krautrock and progressive rock but now they added more sequencers, guitars, harmonicas and pipes to their own spaced out sound. Sometimes they have a calm but hypnotic The Orb like groove on Persephone Sleeps and on the other side they are able to make a kind of a progressive techno dance track on Castalia. All in all an album that is great in it's variety and easiness.

Squirrels In Jumpsuits

 

We all know that Alex Paterson is still open for new collaborations and so it is not astonishing that walks on his new EP on a similar road Paul Simon did decades ago. Roland & Albert Meet The Orb Upcountry in Uganda is the result of a work with Belgian/Uganda musicians trying to connect Uganda rhythms and guitars with his electronic sounds. The result is nothing more or less a positive song spotted with guitar licks to start into a sunny Saturday.

Purple Haze, Yellow Sunrise

 

One of those albums that I played often during last year was The Kempe Stone Portal by The Vendetta Suite. Not only because it was not only one sound. Gary Irwin, the mastermind behind this showed us his inspirations he got through the last decades. From Weatherall to The Orb he combined almost everything in between. Now a few songs were remixed and I can't get enough of the remix by David Holmes. He and Irwin shared a long friendship over a few decades and the result is a unique mixture of ambient and psychedelic sounds. One of the best decisions to relax after another hard day's work.

Hell Yeah Recordings · The Vendetta Suite - The Kempe Stone Portal (David Holmes & Timmy Stewart Remixes)

2021 - Long 1/2

 

The year is almost over and it is time to have a look back to the releases from 2021. I have to say that there were many albums released that are worth to be mentioned in a retrospective. Not all albums that impressed me or made fun got it on the year and list. What doesn't mean that they are no good at all but I decided to list 21 albums from this year without scoring in the order. 

Dry Cleaning - New Long Leg

Sault - Nine

Ben Watt - Storm Shelter

The Orb - Abolition of the Royal Familia (Guillotine mixes)

International Music - Ententraum

Mogwai - As The Love Continues

Nashville Ambient Ensemble - Cerulean

Curtis Harding - If Words Were Flowers

Dot Allison - Heart Shaped Scars

Parquet Courts - Sympathy For Life

Alan Vega - After Dark

Weekend

 

The first working week of this year is over and this year started with a lot of trouble with computing center. I had to do the same jobs twice because our company switches to a new generation of and IBM analysis tool because my programmings in the new world won't work correct until we completely switched. So I came home often exhausted and only wanted to rest and relax. So I spent some times listening to The Orb's overseen release from last year Abolition of the Royal Famila. This album will be released in March as a remix album named Guillotine Mixes. The first one I listened to was by Dom Beken and Kris Need - names that tells me nothing. But it is a relaxed nine minutes trip into other spheres.

Speeding

 

Thomas Fehlmann is an electronic musician, producer and DJ now living in Berlin. He made his first releases with Palais Schaumburg, a German band in the times when punk changed into New Wave. They were known for their combination of guitars and electronic sounds. With the raise of the club scene he got rid of the guitars and commit oneself in electronic sounds. Some people might know him as a long-time member of The Orb. During the last week I got the news that he is going to release a new album under his own name. Exactly what I expected - a pulsating excursion on electronic sounds.