It has been 3 years since we have heard anything from The Orb and being an avid fan of the bunch for many years, when it comes to their music I am almost biased of anything they produce but of course this 6th release is very, very good indeed. Like their last album, ‘UFOrb’, the title Cydonia is associated with extraterrestrial; Cydonia being the presumed “face of Mars”.

On previous albums, The Orb have used sampled vocals but this time ‘round they have joined forces with buddies Aki and Nina Walsh to perform the vocals. Alex Patterson (from The Orb) whipped out his old punk poetry book from when he was a wee lad and together they dissected bits and pieces and alas, 4 new songs are born.

‘Ghostdancing’ is simply divine with the sound of harps and one of the lass’ crooning voices and it seems, as she’s in a bubble waiting to explode. So smooth, so sultry, and lazy yet beaming with power. Love this one. ‘Turn It Down’ also sparks my interest. It’s tough, dark and leftfield; just the way I like it. ‘Firestar’ is a cranky little number and less than a minute long but it definitely standouts, then ‘A Mile Long Lump Of Lard’ slides in with more off beat demented sounds; beats that demand to be heard. As the pace decreases I breathe I sigh off relief as I felt like I was trapped in a some sort of spacecraft travelling in outer space…but that’s not necessarily a bad thing! The girl’s luscious vocals return and come to our aid with ‘Centuries’ and bring us back to earth.

Fans of The Orb; you know what to expect. For lovers of beautiful things and all things obscure, be sure to add this to your collection.

BUY: Cydonia – The Orb from chaosmusic.com