| U.F.Orb | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 6 July 1992 (1992-07-06)[1] | |||
| Recorded | Metalworks studio Toronto Canada 1991 | |||
| Genre |
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| Length | 73:55 | |||
| Label | Big Life | |||
| Producer |
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| The Orb chronology | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |  [2] |
| Encyclopedia of Popular Music |  [3] |
| Entertainment Weekly | A[4] |
| NME | 9/10[5] |
| Record Collector | [6] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [7] |
| Select | 5/5[8] |
| Spin Alternative Record Guide | 9/10[9] |
| Uncut | [10] |
| The Village Voice | B−[11] |
U.F.Orb is the second studio album by English electronic music group the Orb. It was released on 6 July 1992 as their last work with record label Big Life.[1] Upon its release, the album reached No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart. The music database AllMusic described it as "the commercial and artistic peak of the ambient-house movement."[2]
Orb member Kris Weston integrated his technical and creative expertise with Alex Paterson's Eno-influenced ambience on U.F.Orb, creating "drum and bass rhythms" with "velvet keyboards" and "rippling synth lines".[12] U.F.Orb reached number one on the UK Albums Chart to the shock of critics, who were surprised that fans had embraced what journalists considered to be progressive rock.[13] Heavily influenced by the Orb and U.F.Orb in particular, many trip hop groups sprang up emulating the Orb's "chill-out blueprint".[14] U.F.Orb expresses the Orb's fascination with alien life with its bizarre sound samples and in the album's title itself.[15] The album's single, "Blue Room", is itself a reference to the supposed Blue Room of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, which was investigated as a possible UFO evidence-holding room.[16]
"Blue Room", a near 17-minute piece, features bass playing by Jah Wobble and guitar by coproducer Steve Hillage. The full version of the song is 40 minutes and was released as a single. The initial UK vinyl release featured a limited edition which came in a sealed blue heavy PVC cover and featured two art prints and a bonus 12-inch of the soundtrack to the film The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld: Patterns and Textures.
On 1 October 2007, the album was reissued on two CDs as part of Universal Music's "Collector's Series". All the tracks were remastered, and the release coincided with the 15th anniversary of the album's release. The second CD includes remixes from the singles released around the period of the original album.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "O.O.B.E" | Alex Paterson, Kris Weston, Thomas Fehlmann | 12:51 |
| 2. | "U.F.Orb" | Paterson, Weston | 6:08 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Blue Room" | Paterson, Weston, Miquette Giraudy, Steve Hillage, John Joseph Ward, Neil Fraser | 17:34 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Towers of Dub" | Paterson, Weston, Fehlmann | 14:58 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Close Encounters" | Paterson, Weston, Orde Meikle, Stuart McMillan | 10:27 |
| 2. | "Majestic" | Paterson, Weston, Martin Glover | 11:06 |
| 3. | "Sticky End" | Paterson, Weston | 0:49 |
| Total length: | 1:13:55 | ||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "O.O.B.E" | Paterson, Weston, Fehlmann | 12:51 |
| 2. | "U.F.Orb" | Paterson, Weston | 6:08 |
| 3. | "Blue Room" | Paterson, Weston, Giraudy, Hillage, Ward, Fraser | 17:34 |
| 4. | "Towers of Dub" | Paterson, Weston, Fehlmann | 15:00 |
| 5. | "Close Encounters" | Paterson, Weston, Meikle, McMillan | 10:27 |
| 6. | "Majestic" | Paterson, Weston, Glover | 11:06 |
| 7. | "Sticky End" | Paterson, Weston | 0:49 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Blue Room" (Edit) | Paterson, Weston, Giraudy, Hillage, Ward, Fraser | 3:09 |
| 2. | "Blue Room" (Remix) | Paterson, Weston, Giraudy, Hillage, Ward, Fraser | 7:37 |
| 3. | "Assassin" (The Oasis of Rhythms Mix) | Paterson, Weston, Lewis Keogh | 15:14 |
| 4. | "Blue Room" (Full Length) | Paterson, Weston, Giraudy, Hillage, Ward, Fraser | 40:00 |
| Total length: | 2:19:55 | ||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "O.O.B.E" | Paterson, Weston, Fehlmann | 12:51 |
| 2. | "U.F.Orb" | Paterson, Weston | 6:08 |
| 3. | "Blue Room" | Paterson, Weston, Giraudy, Hillage, Ward, Fraser | 17:34 |
| 4. | "Towers of Dub" | Paterson, Weston, Fehlmann | 15:00 |
| 5. | "Close Encounters" | Paterson, Weston, Meikle, McMillan | 10:27 |
| 6. | "Majestic" | Paterson, Weston, Glover | 11:06 |
| 7. | "Sticky End" | Paterson, Weston | 0:49 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "O.O.B.E" (Andy Hughes Mix) | Paterson, Weston, Fehlmann | 11:58 |
| 2. | "Towers of Dub" (Ambient Mix) | Paterson, Weston, Fehlmann | 10:14 |
| 3. | "Blue Room" (Ambient at Mark Angelo's Mix) | Paterson, Weston, Giraudy, Hillage, Ward, Fraser | 8:57 |
| 4. | "Close Encounters" (Ambient Mix 1) | Paterson, Weston, Meikle, McMillan | 12:49 |
| 5. | "Majestic" (Mix 1) | Paterson, Weston, Glover | 11:52 |
| 6. | "Assassin" (Chocolate Hills of Bohol Mix) | Paterson, Weston, Keogh | 11:06 |
| Total length: | 2:24:22 | ||
Peppered with surreal humour, hypnotic sound paintings like 'Close Encounters' and Top 10 single 'Blue Room' have barely dated.
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| Studio albums |
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| Live and session albums |
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| Compilations |
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| Remix and mix albums |
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| EPs |
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| Singles |
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| Video albums |
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| Related articles |
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