Orbus Terrarum

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Orbus Terrarum
Orbus Terrarum cover
Studio album by The Orb
Released 1995
Genre Ambient house
Length 79:18
Label Island Records
Producer Alex Paterson, Andy Hughes, Thomas Fehlmann, Kris Weston
Professional reviews
The Orb chronology
Pomme Fritz
(1994)
Orbus Terrarum
(1995)
Orblivion
(1997)

Orbus Terrarum is an album by electronic music artist The Orb released on Island Records in 1995.

Before leaving The Orb, member Kris Weston had begun work on Orbus Terrarum. However, when he left The Orb, German producer Thomas Fehlmann joined as a full-time studio member. The Orb, now consisting of Alex Paterson, Andy Hughes, and Fehlmann, finished producing Orbus Terrarum. Unlike previous albums by The Orb, Orbus Terrarum featured more "earthbound" and "organic" sounds instead of the trippy science fiction themed music they had previously written.[1][2] Orbus Terrarum suffered, as Paterson described it, "a good kicking" at the hands of the British press,[3] who described it as "generic ambient music" [4] and stated that it was a low point for Paterson's creativity.[5] Orbus Terrarum further alienated many of the group's fans as they had with Pomme Fritz,[6], causing the album to only reach #20 on the UK charts, much lower than their previous albums.[7] American critics, however, gave it great acclaim, including Rolling Stone who made it their album of the month, citing the album's symphonic flow coupled with The Orb's "uniquely British wit".[8]

In the Mighty Boosh episode "Mutants", Vince Noir derides Howard Moon's generic-looking face by comparing it to this album: "Look at your face - Ambience; Pure ambience. It's like the Orb's third album".

[edit] Track listing

  1. "Valley" – 7:36
  2. "Plateau" – 13:18
  3. "Oxbow Lakes" – 7:28
  4. "Montagne D'or (Der Gute Berg)" – 10:41
  5. "White River Junction" – 9:36
  6. "Occidental" – 13:54
  7. "Slug Dub" – 17:03

[edit] References

  1. ^ Doerschuck, Robert. "Inside the Ambient Techno Ultraworld", Keyboard Magazine. 
  2. ^ Gill, Andy. "Oh, the Pity and Terra of It All", The Independent, 1995-03-31, p. 31. 
  3. ^ "Alex Paterson Interview", Future N Music, 1998-10. 
  4. ^ Sinclair, David. "Pop on Friday", The Times, 1995-03-24, p. 1. 
  5. ^ Simpson, Dave. "The Friday Interview", The Guardian, 2001-01-19, p. 6. 
  6. ^ Wiederhorn, Jon (1997-03-19). The Orb: Orblivion. Rolling Stone.
  7. ^ The Orb. Everyhit.com. Retrieved on 2006-10-24.
  8. ^ Wiederhorn, Jon (1998-02-02). The Orb: Orbus Terrarum. Rolling Stone.

[edit] External links