Search - Orb :: Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld (Dlx)

Excellent Reissue

splitendsjustifythemeans | virginia beach | 08/12/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"To celebrate the 15-year anniversary, The Orb rereleased their first album. It's also been packaged with some odds and ends from the time period. For starters, the album itself is excellent. It's been remastered, and while nothing revelatory is found, it's very much a cleaner sound, and the volume's been turned up a bit, which is nice. The bonus disc is the main reason to get this, and the tracks here also sounds like they've been cleaned up. It starts off with the 20-minute version of A Huge Ever-Growing.... from the John Peel session, which is probably even better than the original, throwing in chanting, and some Pink Floyd. Next is the Ultrabass II mix of Perpetual Dawn. True, this was already on the 2-disc U.F.Off, but it's here in its entirety. The last 5 tracks were taken from the Aubrey mixes album, which has become a rarity since it was deleted on the day of release. The Castles in Goa mix of Spanish Castles is not here, but since we still have the Youth Extended mix (which is essentially the same mix only longer), that is no real loss. The January Mix 3 of Perpetual Dawn is also missing, and was probably the mix chosen to be left off simply because it's not that good. It's ok, but not great. the 5 mixes that are here are excellent, however. The Cumulonimbus mix of Little Fluffy Clouds floats along similar to the original, with some new synth sounds added. It is mixed into the Under Water Deep Space just as it was on the original album. This mix adds some guitar, and some beats not entirely diiferent from those on Supernova.... It even actually keeps the mix into the beginning of the Castles in Goa mix, but then fades out. The Fountains of Elisha mix of Outlands gets points for bizarre originality. It sounds like Outlands mixed in with "Puttin' on the Ritz" if that makes any sense. It also keeps the original mix into the remix of A Huge Ever-Growing..., which is a good mix, and shows that Alex and Jimmy did have some good ideas together. This is is then mixed into the Extended Youth mix (this mix-in has been created just for this release as these two tracks didn't use to be next to each other). This is a very good mix, adding some great basslines and beats. I would highly recommend this for any Orb fan, and a newbie is better off getting this version for the clearer sound and bonus stuff."

Highly recommended +

Robert J. Bloem | 09/04/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As deluxed edition's go the Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld is the best I have come across. From the packaging to the bonus disc, giving a more complete experience and quaulity of sound. I already owned the album and decided to buy the deluxe edition after reading the previous "Excellent Reissue" review. Highly recommended and a must for anyone who's interested in this genre of music .



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