Orbital – Sahara Tent

Phil and Paul Hartnoll, the brothers behind the luminary electronic band Orbital have returned after a few-year hiatus, and show no signs of rustiness. With only fifty minutes for their set, the brothers Hartnoll wasted no time and worked feverishly amidst a massive rack of synthesizers and gear sequencing beautiful and complex elements together. True to form–and their untarnished reputation–they singlehandedly demonstrated the value in thoughtful composition. Their tracks were rich and full of detail, providing ample backdrop for dancing while not getting lost in build-up house music cliches. Amidst the seemless transitions and alluring tapestries of interwoven melodies “Halcyon + On + On” (complete with their live mash-up inclusions of samples of Belinda Carlisle’s “Heaven is a Place on Earth” and Bon Jovi’s “You Give Love a Bad Name”) and “Satan” (in all of its aggressive glory) were choice highlights. It’s rare as a journalist to feel nostalgic for the music of by-gone decades with such a nonstop influx of new progressive music always around every corner, but Orbital alone generated the feeling in abundance. Their craftsmenship and precision easily puts to shame many live electronic acts of fame in today’s music world.