Orbital ‘The Altogether’ DVD
March 25th, 2002 by freddie96
ORBITAL
The Altogether 5.1
(Warner Vision)
Orbital’s live shows have always been accompanied by some of the most provocative and powerful visuals around, so you can see why they should be amongst the first mainstream artists to embrace the concept of a DVD album. And here it is: their latest album coming at you with all the high-tech gimmickry that this new format seems to depend on for its sales pitch: ‘hidden tracks, multiple angle features, surround and stereo audio and a DVD ROM interactive game’.
As one of the very few people who thought ‘The Altogether’ represented some of Orbital’s most entertaining work to date, I don’t think all this is really warranted, however. The most important organ for the appreciation of music is the ear, not the eye – or mouse finger, for that matter. Great music can bring images into the mind’s eye entirely unbidden, so having other people do that for you – even if they are the cream of contemporary video artists – ultimately detracts from the power of the music.
That’s not to say there isn’t some great work on here, as there is. Giles Thacker’s eery visuals for the hardcore ‘Tension’ have domestic objects such as anglepoises, desks and old turntables doing their thing together up in the attic (fans will recognise this from Orbital’s recent live shows). It’s simple, wryly humorous but still faintly disturbing – very much like the track it accompanies. Thacker also does the business on ‘Tootled’ with some wonderfully abstract work that once again seems to ask whether we are really in control of our technology. For my money, these pieces are amongst the most successful on ‘The Altogether 5.1′ because they don’t attempt to offer an alternative set of ‘meanings’ to the music. They dramatise what it is already present in it.
Other pieces inevitably involve narratives of one sort or another, and these are less successful. The video for ‘Funny Break’ was clearly aimed at the MTV generation so the less said about it the better (though for those interested this DVD includes a behind-the-scenes version), ‘Pay Per View’ is a rather shop-worn filmette about a punter looking for a hooker (yawn), and the glorious ‘Oi!’ has an entirely inappropriate cartoon animation inspired by Heath Robinson set in Paris (when the track itself samples Ian Dury and is about as London-sounding as they come). And so on. Brian Cant from Play School even makes an appearance…
Perhaps all this points to a side to Orbital that they wanted to share more fully with their public: the whacky, comedic side in love with popular culture that led them to record the theme to Doctor Who and a version of ‘The Saint’. If that is so, they chose the wrong vehicle, for ‘The Altogether’ remains a dark, disturbing record, and the visuals included here don’t even begin to recreate what I see in my head when I listen to it… Interestingly enough, ‘Meltdown’, a film noirish excursion into sonic apocalypse is simply represented here by an extended 24-minute version without visuals, in part because it was originally composed with the choreographer Lea Anderson for the Cholmondeleys; Orbital apparently felt no visuals could replace the original collaboration. Hold that thought, guys.
Having watched my way through this DVD – and dutifully mucked around with its so-called ‘interactive’ elements (another unnecessary distraction) – I am unlikely to do so in its entirety again. Yet when I get that state-of-the-art sensurround home entertainment system that we are all destined to own one of these days, I will almost certainly dig it out in order to play ‘Illuminate’ at very loud volume. For I have saved the best till last: Orbital’s sublime collaboration with David Gray – surely destined to be a top ten hit – clearly inspired director Sean Ash to reach for the stars. Orbital at their best create a sharp-edged beauty with a surprisingly gentle heart. The same applies here. A little more of that next time, please… FB
