The Orb never caught on in the States the way they did at home in the UK. Even the full-length, 40-minute version of the band’s epic single “The Blue Room” famously went Top 40 there. Still, the Orb’s luster has faded in recent years. With its staggered international release, “Bicycles and Tricycles” will doubtfully have enough momentum to push the Orb back near the top of the electronic heap. All the same, Alex Paterson’s particular brand of psychedelic genius–dub beats and bass lines, disembodied vocals, half-familiar samples–is in fine form here. Longtime fans will love rumbling songs such as
“Tower Twenty Three,” though the same folks will resent the way rapper Me Soom T breaks the mood on “Aftermath.”
Take away: Electronic trip
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Edited by Cara DiPasquale ([email protected]) and alBerto Trevino ([email protected])