The Orb is a British electronic music band known for pioneering the genre o… Read Full Bio ↴The Orb is a British electronic music band known for pioneering the genre of ambient house. The Orb is heavily influenced by dub music, and much of their later output has been in the electronic dub category, more so than ambient house.

The group was formed in 1988 by Dr. Alex Paterson (full name Duncan Robert Alex Paterson) and Jimmy Cauty (one half of The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu and later The KLF). The Orb's first release was the acid house anthem "Tripping on Sunshine".

In May 1989, The Orb released the "Kiss EP", which was heavily influenced by New York's KISS FM. Paterson began DJing around London, England at this time when he met Paul Oakenfold. At Oakenfold's behest, Paterson began DJing at Land of Oz, the chill-out room at Heaven.

Paterson mixed samples of BBC nature recordings, NASA space broadcasts and everything in between into the music of ambient pioneers such as Brian Eno. Around this time, Paterson met Steve Hillage and Hillage later contributed guitar to the Orb's "Blue Room" single. In return Paterson worked on Hillage's System 7 project.

In October 1989 The Orb released the 22-minute single "A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules From the Centre of the Ultraworld", which contains large chunks of Minnie Riperton's "Loving You". The single managed to reach the lower end of the UK chart. Although Paterson and Cauty had been working on a debut album, the two split in April 1990. Cauty removed Paterson's contributions to the album and released the remainder as "Space".

Killing Joke's Youth, who'd recently found dancefloor success with Blue Pearl assisted with the single "Little Fluffy Clouds", but existing commitments made it impossible for him to be anything more than a part-time member. In his place, Paterson recruited Kris Weston (aka Thrash), a young studio engineer who had worked on "Little Fluffy Clouds" and recently left Fortran 5.

In April, 1991, The Orb's debut album, "Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld" was released in the United Kingdom to critical acclaim. The double-album obtained a top 30 placing in the UK.

"U.F.Orb" was released in July, 1992. It featured the 39 minute 59 second "Blue Room" which was their third single to reach the UK charts, although the album version was only 17 minutes long. Early pressings of the album were available in three differently coloured sealed plastic packs (black (10,000) and blue (5,000) in the UK and green (1,000) in the US) containing an additional disc with the soundtrack from Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld (Patterns & Textures edition), a mail order only long form video released by the Orb.

During 1993 and 1994 The Orb were dismayed by Big Life's intention to re-issue some of the Orb's earlier material. As a result, Paterson and Thrash opted out of their contract and Paterson signed an international deal with Chris Blackwell's Island Records. The double-album "Live '93" soon followed. It was a mix of recordings made in Glastonbury, Copenhagen and Tokyo. The album's credits included, Simon Phillips, Nick Burton, Kris Weston, Fluff and of course Paterson.

In June, 1994, they released their first studio album for Island, "Pomme Fritz (The Orb's Little Album)". The album reached number six on the UK, but critics hated it, even comparing Paterson to Pink Floyd's Syd Barrett.

August, 1994 saw the release of a collaboration between Robert Fripp, Paterson, Weston, and Thomas Fehlmann, hence the name FFWD or Fripp, Fehlmann, Weston and Duncan. Weston's input was already diminishing by this time and following the release of FFWD, he finally parted company with Paterson. He was replaced by Thomas Fehlmann.

"Orbus Terrarum" was released in March, 1995. In February, 1997, following an ambitious world tour, they released "Orblivion".

The retrospective "U.F.Off" came in October, 1998 and was initially available in a Limited Edition double CD.

"Cydonia", although recorded in 1999, was delayed by Island until its release in February, 2001. Several different versions of the album were leaked on the Net some time before the official release.

The 2004 released album "Bicycles & Tricycles" strongly departed from their earlier ambient sound, and incorporated strong hip-hop influenced rhythms, including rap on one of the tracks.

In 2005 The Orb released a new studio album, "Okie Dokie It's The Orb On Kompakt", which focused heavily on the microhouse and pop ambient sounds that the Kompakt label is well known for.

2005 also saw the release of "Orbsessions Volume 1", which was an album of rarities from throughout The Orbs' career.

Sadly, Andy Hughes, long-time mixer and producer of many of The Orb's works, passed away on June 12 2009, following a 'short illness'.

Once More
The Orb Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Tree grow to new dimensions
Leaves fall further than before
TV's blare with the sound of confusion
Music keeps playing about illusions

There are so many tomorrows
That I'm never sure
Until, my love

You're mine once more

Tree grow to new dimensions
Leaves fall further than before

TV's blare with the sound of confusion
Until you're mine, once more

Overall Meaning

The Orb's song Once More is a contemplative piece that invites the listener to reflect on the uncertainties of life and relationships. The opening lines speak to growth and change, as represented by the image of a tree growing to "new dimensions" and leaves falling "further than before." This could be interpreted as a metaphor for personal growth and the inevitability of change. The next couple of lines reference the constant noise and distraction of modern life, with TVs blaring and confusion reigning. Despite this, though, the music continues to play on, giving a sense of stability and continuity.

The refrain provides a glimmer of hope amidst the confusion and uncertainty. The singer acknowledges that there are many "tomorrows" that are unknown and unpredictable. However, with the love of another person, even the most uncertain future can be faced with confidence. The phrase "you're mine once more" suggests that the singer has experienced this kind of uncertainty before, but has found solace and stability in a past relationship. The idea is that, as long as that love can be found or rekindled, the uncertainties of life are somewhat less daunting.

Overall, the song Once More is a poignant reflection on the nature of life and the power of connection. The imagery of growth and change, combined with the constant noise of modern life, shows how disorienting and overwhelming things can be. However, the refrain of the song offers a glimmer of hope by suggesting that, no matter what the future holds, love can provide stability and comfort.

Line by Line Meaning

Tree grow to new dimensions
Nature and the world around us are constantly evolving and growing, just as we should strive to do the same.

Leaves fall further than before
The effects of change and growth can be seen and felt, even in the smallest details of life.

TV's blare with the sound of confusion
The media bombards us with information and opinions, causing confusion and uncertainty in our lives.

Music keeps playing about illusions
Even in the midst of confusion, music provides an escape and a way to connect to something deeper and more meaningful.

There are so many tomorrows
The future is vast and uncertain, with endless possibilities and opportunities waiting to be explored.

That I'm never sure
It's easy to get lost or unsure about the path we should take in life.

Until, my love
Love is a powerful force that can bring clarity and purpose to our lives.

You're mine once more
When we find love, we can return to it again and again for comfort and strength, even in the face of uncertainty and confusion.

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: AKIKO OMORI, ALEX DOCTOR PATERSON, ANDREW PAUL HUGHES, THOMAS FEHLMANN, XUAN K. DANG

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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