The Orb: Albums Ranked Worst to Best
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 เม.ย. 2022
- It's finally time for my last video on The Orb for a while, finishing off my discography review and ranking all their studio albums.
Support me on Patreon: / thewonkyangle
More The Orb reviews: • The Orb (Discography R...
More countdowns & rankings: • Countdowns & Rankings - เพลง
Okie Dokie It's The Orb On Kompakt < Prism < Metallic Spheres
alright, so here's my upcoming plans for my next discography reviews, in the order that I currently plan to do them:
- M83 (recommended to me off-hand by a Patreon supporter, sounded like it would be a fun change of pace to do a series on an outfit that sits more on the fringe of what's considered electronic music)
- µ-Ziq (he came second place in the poll I did last year and saw a lot of enthusiasm, think it's probably about time to cover him. gonna have to seriously limit that odds & ends tho)
- Tangerine Dream (haven't done a series on a 70s synth pioneer outfit in a long time, could really stand to serve that audience again. tho I will NOT be covering their entire catalog, only doing videos on their studio albums from 1970 to 1986 and then an odds & ends that'll cover a small handful of projects they've done after that, maybe some live & soundtrack albums as well. if I tried to cover everything then I'd be stuck on them for like 4 years straight and we'd all really hate their style by the end lol)
- The Prodigy (as something quick to balance out the TD series, that's guaranteed to get a lot of views lol)
- Amon Tobin (been requested a decent bit especially recently, and he will definitely make for a fun & varied series so I can throw him in the lineup. don't hold me as much to this particular pick tho, might switch to something else when I actually get past the other 4 depending on what my and other people's moods are)
that's all I have planned for now, we'll find out what comes after when I get to that point
would love to see the prodigy! also what about moby?
Im super glad about the prodigy lol, and I'm excited for m83 too! And I agree with quicketscoped, moby would be really cool!
@@sclitchmusic he said a while ago that he had a lot of complicated thoughts on moby and needed to do a full review of him so I am expecting that at some point (but I would much rather see the prodigy)
Tangerine dream sounds cool they’re my favorite band
I wonder who the next one could be (thonk)
15. Bicycles & Tricycles
14. The Orbserver in the Starhouse
13. Metallic Spheres (start of good albums for me)
12. Baghdad Batteries (I'm kind of a defender, but I just like it and don't think it's anything amazing)
11. Abolition of the Royal Familia
10. Orblivion
9. No Sounds Are Out of Bounds
8. Cydonia
7. Okie Dokie It's The Orb on Kompakt
6. The Dream (start of great albums, sometimes can start back at Cydonia or so though)
5. Moonbuilding 2703 AD
4. COW / Chill Out World (it's honestly hard to say why this one does so much for me, but I still love this album)
3. U.F.Orb
2. The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld
1. Orbus Terrarum
I'm not gonna say these guys fell off after a certain Weston guy left, they were just at their best in the 90s for me. Dr. Alex is probably my favorite part of that album with the other two guys giving great contributions in their own right, even if it's not as banger-centric as the obvious one or U.F.Orb. idk who's next but I'm excited for it!
This series was a ride. I haven't heard much from The Orb, but I might binge some of their albums now because they sound interesting.
The orbs adventures into the ultraworld is a fantastic album .it's one of the first electronic music albums I ever bought and this was 1991 .so to think it's a sound from 30 years ago .so so ahead of its time
Well, it looks like The Orb have finally been exhausted on this channel. I really have enjoyed this series all the way through, and I do think that they have made a lot of great/excellent albums throughout their careers. Here’s my ranking so far:
1. The Orb’s Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld
2. Orbus Terrarum
3. Cydonia
4. The Dream
5. No Sounds Are Out of Bounds
6. Moonbuilding 2703 AD
7. U.F.Orb
8. COW / Chill Out, World!
9. Metallic Spheres
10. Orblivion
11. Abolition of the Royal Familia
12. Okie Dokie It’s The Orb on Kompakt
13. Baghdad Batteries
14. The Orbserver in the Star House
15. Bicycles & Tricycles
Looking forward to the next series!
You really have got the reviews for each album fairly spot on. The order is fairly personal.
Personally, U.F.Orb is higher because it was the go to chill out album at the end of the night after the club, that chill out starter to the album that you're not a fan of was such a pleasant welcome to the hours of doof doofs. I'd have Orblivion higher; think it is better than Orbus Terrarum only because it's difficult to find the right time to listen to Orbus Terrarum. It's not a nice album to chill to; it is too sharp. Orblivion is easier on the ear. The rest; probably put them around where you have them.
Thanks for doing the discography. There aren't any people in my personal life who listen to the Orb so it has been good commenting to people about them.
👍
Oh boy, we're so far apart on this one:
1. Orblivion (Delta MKII, Asylum, Toxygene... absolutely brilliant album)
2. Orbus Terrarum (Difficult sound at first, but gives away it's beauty after repeated listening)
3. Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld (Still a beautiful record 31 years later)
4. U.F.Orb (Classic ambient house, Towers of Dub is amazingly trippy)
5. Abolition of the Royal Familia (Love that old school sound. could've been made in the '90's)
6. Chill Out, World! (The Orb's KLF moment, pure bliss)
7. Cydonia (Not well received, but a pretty good album nonetheless)
8. No Sounds are Out of Bounds (Catchy songs mixed with more traditional Orb music)
9. Baghdad Batteries (A lot of Fehlmann magic here)
10. Okie Dokie (If you like the artists from Kompakt, then you'll dig this album too)
11. The Dream (Not bad, not great)
12. Bikes & Trikes (Jap. Version) (Slightly better than the other release, but still too fragmented)
13. Moonbuilding 2703 AD (Dunno what the fuzz is about, it's a bit boring)
14. The Orbserver in The Starhouse (I know he's a legend and all, but Perry kinda ruins it)
15. Metallic Spheres (Sounds like The Orb's a backing band for Gilmour instead of a true collab)
31:31 cheers for putting The Dream at #2. I love it. Some fans hate it, but I love it. So many lovely sounds.
1 - Orbus Terrarum
2 - Live 93
3 - Pomme Fritz
4 - UFOrb
5 - Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld
6 - Moonbuilding 2703 AD
Everything else is either crap, or total unnecessary rehash, IMHO.
I love Thomas Fehlmann BTW, he is a huge contributor to Orbus Terrarum. But other than there, he is antitetical to the ORB, I feel. Well, not completely, as the O Loco mixes are brilliant.
I can dig the position of Cydonia. For me it's a favorite and highly underrated.
*Orblivion* is my favorite.
I love how you keep saying 'absolutely fantastic' which is the vocal sample on orblive version of Plateau! 😂
I think, therefore I ambient... ❤
I can’t wait to hear your thoughts on prism. Personally, I think it’s probably the best orb album I’ve heard since moonbuilding (which was my third favourite). And that is certainly saying something since I really liked their albums after that. After hearing it 3 days in a row, it’s topped moonbuilding by a landslide and is now by third favourite right under ABTU and U.F.Orb. Heck might even be on the same level as them. Love the crap out of this thing.
16. The Orbserver in the Star House (fav track: Ball of Fire)
15. Bicycles & Tricycles (fav track: The Land of Green Ginger)
14. COW / Chill Out, World! (fav track: Wireless MK 2)
13. Baghdad Batteries (fav track: Super Soakers)
12. Metallic Spheres (fav track: Metallic Side)
11. Cydonia (fav track: Thurday's Keeper)
10. U.F.Orb (fav track: Towers of Dub)
9. Orbus Terrarum (fav track: Montagne D'Or (Der gute Berg))
8. Moonbuilding 2703 AD (fav track: Moonbuilding 2703 AD)
7. Prism (fav track: Living in Recycled Times)
6. Okie Dokie It's The Orb on Kompakt (fav track: Falkenbrück)
5. Orblivion (fav track: Toxygene)
4. Abolition of the Royal Familia (fav track: The Weekend It Rained Forever (Oseberg Buddha Mix (The Ravens Have Left the Tower)))
3. The Dream (fav track: Vuja De (favorite Orb song))
2. No Sounds Are Out of Bounds (fav track: Soul Planet)
1. The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld (fav track: Star 6 & 7 8 9)
I was a big fan of The Orb back in the day. I had no idea there were that many albums around!
There's a few side projects as well, remixes, and LX mix CDs.
Obviously Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld is the best. A stone cold classic that, back in the 90s (when I was out dancing to house and techno) totally changed the musical landscape. I still listen to it and use it to test new speakers.
I love the hard to find "Aubrey Mixes: The Ultraworld Excursions". That more housey version of Little Fluffy Clouds is just awesome.
Some of No Sounds Are Out of Bounds is really good. Pillow Fight @ Shag Mountain sounds like 90s Orb. Which is a good thing.
Orblivion is a "dizzying masterpiece from beginning to end" (I agree). Not necessarily their high water mark (they're still going! See Prism!) - but certainly approaching genius just on its own terms.
Orblivion was my first album I heard by then and heard it when it first came out in 97 and still one of my favorites.
Glastonbury 1993. One of the most amazing performances I’ve ever experienced! I was on another planet
Orbus Terrarum is one of my favourite albums of all time.
Live 93 is underrated and overlooked live album, trippy and atmospheric.
It's nice that many people here likes Orblivion and ranks it as The Orb's best!
My brother bought me Pomme Fritz for my birthday, I was intrigued. I think Orblivion is my fav
Ngl, I was expecting The Dream to be #1. An interesting ranking, to be sure. I have really enjoyed this series (as you can tell by me commenting on nearly every video in the series :P).
Here's my ranking. You'll really laugh at what I put at #1. Interestingly, my 2nd top and 2nd bottom are both the same as The Wonky Angle's.
#1) Bicycles & Tricycles
#2) The Dream
#3) Orblivion
#4) The Orb's Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld
#5) Orbus Terrarum
#6) U.F.Orb
#7) Orbserver In The Star House
#8) Cydonia
#9) Abolition Of The Royal Familia
#10) Moonbuilding 2703 AD
#11) Okie Dokie It's The Orb On Kompakt
#12) No Sounds Are Out Of Bounds
#13) COW / Chill Out, World!
#14) Baghdad Batteries
#15) Metallic Spheres
I grouped them a little. The top group is "mostly great", the middle group is "mostly good", the bottom group is "mostly bad". I've realised that despite The Orb being one of my favourite artists ever, they've never made a perfect album. Everything they release has at least a couple of tracks that are boring, bland or plain unpleasant.
U.F.Orb was the best of the early albums IMO and there's been pleasant surprises on pretty much all of the albums since. I'm working through them on Amazon Music at the moment. The Dream is a good one.
Montagne D'Or from Orbus Terranum is a great track.
I suggest a Shamen video next.
Eezer Goode! Eezer Goode!
En-Tact. What an important album.
Disc 2 really carries Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld for me
You should do a future sound of London best to worst if not done already?
I still have my original copy of 'Aubrey Mixes: The Ultraworld Excursions,' pre-ordered and collected when it was released (for an entire day!) 😀
I do think this has a slight edge on 'Adventures beyond the ultraworld' and is probably my favourite.
Aubrey Mixes?
The original, unreleased Cydonia would have been a much better album. Most of the tracks have been released elsewhere but as a collection tracks it's very good and much better than the version that was released commercially.
Prism would be 1 🎉!
What does he say at 6:14 "Plastic desrails"? Aha, Plastic Thrills, not listed as being on the standard release of the album.
The 90s. Sigh. There was a day when I asked, "Has music hit a dead end?"
Then I heard The Orb.
30 year old Orb vet here and seen them several times,the last just last year.Reall not a fan of their more ambient work as my list will testify. Here's my list...1>Ultraworld 2>UF Orb 3>Dream 4>NSAOOB 5>Orblivion 6>Orbus 7>Abolition 8>BB 9>B&T 10>Cydonia 11>Orbserver 12>Okie 13>Moon 14>Metallic 15> COW.
The Dream is the only album from The Orb that I've listened to in full; I've also listened to small bits of Baghdad Batteries and No Sounds Are Out of Bounds, and.. 😅 At least I gave them a try, but my taste is very picky, as you already know
(and for some reason I actually like Plastic Thrills 😅 It sounds nostalgic to me)
I am really mixed on The Dream if feels a wired pop album. It does have a few amazing tracks but I have a hard time with it. Cydonia sounds like classic era album by comparison.
A COW album could have been a much better ambient album with longer tracks if it wasn't honed to a vinyl format ( 45 min/ max) 😮💨
Pomme Fritz?
don't personally consider that a main album as it's pretty much just one track and a collection of glorified self-remixes, it is an interesting listen but if I had to treat it as a proper album it'd feel pretty undercooked to me in comparison with the other stuff they were putting out in that era
I guess if I had to put it in the ranking I'd put it either one spot above or below COW / Chill Out World depending on my mood?
wonky slush
wocky angle
A best chronological lost of Orbital albums??
idk what a "best chronological" list is but I have also done a worst to best ranking on them th-cam.com/video/hNmhuaea1Tk/w-d-xo.html
AAAHHHH MY GUYEEE GOT A ... haircut???
Live 93. There is no better album.
Very underrated live album
Cydonia is my LEAST favorite! Pomme Fritz is their most interesting release in my opinion, wish it was on here.
but of those on the list, I would say Orbus Terrarum
Too many endless descriptions that are repetitive and say nothing in the end...less IS more!
Why are you reading of a script on a screen ?
Live 93 is No1
Top three,,Adventures in ultraworld,,UF orb,,Pomme Fritz...