Pipping the Criminal Justice Act to the post by a year, Orbital 2 (known colloquially as the Brown Album) dared to offer one last hedonistic night out before the police came to shut it all down, basking in the trance-inducing repetition that blurs those early hours into the halcyon glow of the rising sun.
Sourcing samples from Star Trek, Withnail & I, zebra crossings, didgeridoos, and sitar, the Hartnoll brothers’ music reaches across continents, cultures, and concepts, bridging worlds that seemed otherwise divided. So, whether they’re referencing Steve Reich, Meat Beat Manifesto, Hawkwind, or The Planet of the Apes, there’s a cohesion to the pumping rhythms and electric synthesis that forms the Brown Album’s spine.
And that’s a cohesion that remains 30 years on, exuberantly manifested at our sold-out event where the pair, sporting torch-beam glasses, tore the roof off Chalk with their engrossing medley of banged beats and effervescent electronics.
To cater for each and every taste, they’ve re-released this landmark album in a range of formats, expanding the tracklist with bonus cuts, reimaginings, live versions, extended edits, and a whole plethora of fancy extras. Just like a twist in the fabric of space, this has looped back round and is blowing our minds all over again.
