Gary Steel
The Orb have been making ambient techno since 1989, but this is the first time they have collaborated with someone – David Gilmour – from an earlier incarnation of space music.
Gilmour’s long, glacially-paced guitar notes work perfectly with the duo’s electronic textures, but it’s all a little underwhelming.
There’s nothing here that hasn’t occurred thousands of times on similar albums made by less famous musical journeymen, and it may prove most useful as a hi-fi demo disc.
The record company only sent me the conventional version of the CD, but Witchdoctor readers may be interested that a second, ‘3D’ version is available, that when played on headphones, is supposed to be a sonically immersive experience.
While Metallic Spheres is a perfectly pleasant meander, it’s the back-story that’s the most interesting thing about it: the song started out as a remix of a Graham Nash (yes, the guy from CSN&Y) track. So it’s really a remix of a remix that developed into a full-blown two-part album-length epic. Yep, it’s just like the old days when you had to get up and turn the record over. GARY STEEL
Sound = 4/5
Music = 3/5
