Orbital To Reissue 1991 Debut Album Ahead Of The Green & Brown Album UK Tour
UK Music News
by
Desh Kapur UK-Editor/Photographer
ORBITAL TO REISSUE SEMINAL 1991 EPONYMOUS DEBUT AKA ‘THE GREEN ALBUM’
AVAILABLE 19TH APRIL 2024 VIA LONDON RECORDS AS: 4LP BOX SET / 4CD BOXSET / BLACK & LIMITED COLOURED 2LP / 2CD / CASSETTE – ALL AUDIO FULLY REMASTERED BY PHIL & PAUL HARTNOLL
AHEAD OF ‘THE GREEN + BROWN ALBUM TOUR’ THIS SPRING REVISITING AND REINTERPRETING BOTH CLASSIC ALBUMS IN THEIR ENTIRETY TICKETS ON SALE NOW HERE
ORBITAL are to reissue their seminal self-titled 1991 debut album, known to fans as ‘The Green Album’, on 19th April via London Records. Formats include a 4LP Box Set, 4CD Box Set, Black and Coloured 2LP, 2CD, and Cassette, pre-order here. All tracks have been fully remastered by Phil and Paul Hartnoll for the very first time.
The news arrives as the duo confirm details for ‘The Green + Brown Tour’ this Spring, in which they will revisit not only ‘The Green Album’ but also its legendary successor ‘The Brown Album’ at their upcoming UK + Ireland dates in April and May. Tickets are on sale now here.
Originally released on 30th September, 1991, ‘The Green Album’ contains landmark Orbital tracks including their breakthrough 1990 single “Chime”, and the evergreen comedown classic “Belfast”. The comprehensive reissue package also includes early Orbital favourites like “Satan” plus previously unavailable tracks, making it a must have for fans of the pioneering electronic music duo.
Additionally, Orbital will also be revisiting their pre-’The Green Album’ EPs with a series of ‘Orbital LED’s’ (Limited Edition Drops). Again, these will be fully remastered versions of the duo’s original 12” EP series, with brand new artwork. Fans will be alerted to these extremely limited releases on the day of release.
Following the success of “Chime”, Pete Tong signed Orbital to London/ffrr Records, and Tong allowed the Hartnolls the freedom to record the album they wanted to make. Where their contemporaries on the rave circuit would knock out ten formulaic 4/4 piano bangers with guest vocalists and call it an album, for their debut Orbital wanted to explore wider textures, different rhythms, stranger mind spaces. “Our heroes were always Kraftwerk, Cabaret Voltaire, the Severed Heads – people who made proper, satisfying, full albums,” explains Paul, “and we were like, yeah, that’s what we want to do.”
It was this ambition that led to Orbital becoming giants of electronic music. The Hartnoll brothers would go on to redefine what dance music could do and the place it took within popular culture itself. Their music has influenced and inspired artists from Björk to Bicep and they have collaborated with minds as diverse as Madonna,Kraftwerk and Professor Brian Cox.
Following ‘The Green Album’ their second self-titled album – aka ‘The Brown Album’ – cemented Orbital’s position as musical visionaries. A career of creative leaps quite unlike those usually seen in the fast turnover world of dance music followed, including creating soundtracks for Hollywood films including 1997’s Event Horizon, and most recently for Mike Myers Netflix series The Pentaverate.
Alongside their boundary-pushing work in the recording studio, Orbital earned a reputation as one of the best live acts on the planet. This year marks the 30th anniversary of their legendary 1994 Glastonbury performance, often cited as converting the festival to dance music.
33 years after its initial release, and over 10 years since last pressed on vinyl, the remastered ‘The Green Album’ arrives ahead of the recently updated ‘The Green + Brown Album Tour’, which will see the legendary electronic music duo revisit and reinterpret both albums in their entirety, including performing several of the tracks live for the very first time. The tour will start in New York in March and Orbital will appear at Coachella Festival in California on April 13th and 20th before returning for the UK and Ireland leg. Dates can be found below.
Since reuniting with London Records, Orbital have released the 2022 compilation ’30 Something’, which contained reworks, remakes, remixes and re-imaginings of their landmark tracks, and last year’s critically acclaimed new studio album ‘Optical Delusion’ which gave Orbital their UK Album Chart Top 10 album since 1999’s ‘Middle Of Nowhere’.
ORBITAL – ‘THE GREEN + BROWN ALBUM TOUR’ – LIVE – 2024
UK Dates April 24 Exeter, The Great Hall April 25 Southampton, O2 Southampton Guildhall April 26 Birmingham, O2 Institute Birmingham April 27 London, Troxy April 28 Nottingham, Rock City May 2 Bristol, Bristol Beacon May 3 Glasgow, The Barrowland Ballroom May 4 Manchester, O2 Victoria Warehouse May 5 Dublin, Vicar Street
LP4 [Deluxe Boxset Only] C1 Fahrenheit 3D3 C2 Open Mind Jam* C3 The Other One * D1 Satan (Rhyme and Reason Vocal Mix) D2 Midnight (Sasha Remix)
CD FORMATS
CD 1 01 The Moebius 02 Speed Freak 03 Oolaa 04 Desert Storm 05 Fahrenheit 303 06 Steel Cube Idolatry 07 High Rise 08 Chime (Live) 09 Midnight (Live) 10.Belfast 11 I Think Its Disgusting
CD 2 01 Torpedo town (PKA ‘untitled’) 02 Macro Head 03 Satan 04 L.C.1 05 Belfast / Wasted (Wasted Vocal Mix) 06 Crime 07 Fahrenheit 3D3 08 Open Mind Jam * 09 The Other One* 10 Satan (Rhyme and Reason Vocal Mix) 11 Midnight (Sasha Remix)
CD 3 [Deluxe Box Set Only] 1 Chime 12” 2 Deeper 12” 3 Omen – The Fool 4 Omen – The Tower 5 2 Deep 6 Open Mind 7 Midnight 8 Choice 9 Analogue Test Feb ’90 10 Choice (Eye and I Mix)
CD 4 [Deluxe Box Set Only]* 1 Synergy (Live) 1.1 Satan 1.2 LC1 1.3 Chime 1.4 Son of Chime
My life is a soundtrack, i track my life through music, photography is my passion, my escape, my expression. Without both i have pieces missing, thankfully i’m blessed and get to combine both.
Born in Manchester, lived in Australia for 22 years where i was heavily involved in the Australian Music Industry, firstly in bands (Singer) and then managing bands (all original), I moved back to the UK, Wales specifically 10 years ago
