Tag: Orion

Orion feat. Niklas von Arnold – Follow The Lights

“You’ve basically just demoted this to stock music.”

Tim: You know what we don’t have enough of, Tom? TV game show theme tunes.

Tom: Hey, let’s not forget the Casualty garage remix that got to number 1. Actually, yes, let’s forget it.

Tim: Yes, let’s. This instead would make a good one.

http://soundcloud.com/oriononline/orion-follow-the-lights-ft-1

Tim: Well, bad bits first: it goes on longer than it really should, the chorus doesn’t quite hit the heights it should and to be honest it pales into insignificance in comparison to some of his other work.

Tom: That’s quite harsh. I can’t disagree with anything you say, though: that chorus is far more downbeat that it really should be.

Tim: I don’t mean it to be harsh – his other work really has been very good indeed. However, I’m not sure why, but within thirty seconds of this starting I was put in mind of the Treasure Hunt music and from then on I couldn’t stop thinking of it as a theme tune. The bouncy strings underneath work both to build tension and to give a ‘you can do it’ boost, parts of it are quiet enough to work as a bed to talk over and as for the lyrics, well, “Follow The Lights” is a perfectly good framework on which to build a contest.

Tom: You’ve basically just demoted this to stock music. Again, quite harsh, but not entirely unjustified.

Tim: Yeah – this really wasn’t intended to come across so harshly, but it just fits. So I say let’s make it.

Tom: If you want something that sounds like Treasure Hunt, though, try Muse’s MK Ultra.

Tim: Oh. Oh wow, that really is quite impressive.

Orion – Beginning of My Heartbreak

“For your delectation, a cracking synth tune.”

Tim: For your delectation, a cracking synth tune.

https://soundcloud.com/oriononline/beginning-of-my-heartbreak

Tom: Crikey, that’s good.

Tim: Or, to put it more precisely, a cracking synth tune somewhat in need of a vocal. Last time we looked at Orion, I wanted an instrumental version; now, I want a vocal on this.

Don’t get me wrong – as a synth line, it’s good. It’s very good indeed. But it’s a backing track. That build and then release at around 2:30? Great, but imagine how much better it would with someone singing their heart out on top of that.

Tom: Now, I was all set to disagree with you during the first minute of the track, but you’re right: there’s not enough variety in here (let’s face it, the melody is pretty simplistic) to sustain four and a half minutes.

Tim: In the SoundCloud comments, it’s been compared to various tracks by Vangelis (composer of, amongst others, Chariots of Fire and the phenomenal Conquest of Paradise, though that one’s nothing like this track). That’s not remotely unfair, as there are a lot of similar elements, but part of me thinks that there’s still room for more.

Of course, I could be wrong – maybe there’ll be a release with words stuck on the top and it’ll sound awful, in which case I’d be begging for this back again. Either way, as the composerer, Orion has done a fantastic job, and if there’s a singer out there he fancies teaming up with, why not give it a go?

Orion – In The End

That pretty much defines ‘uplifting electronica’.

Tim: I like this, mostly.

Tom: Good grief, that’s a cracking bit of instrumentation. That pretty much defines ‘uplifting electronica’. There’s just so much going on.

Tim: My dad’s told me he can’t stand Florence and the Machine, and previously I’ve always just nodded and said ‘yes dad’ in a rather patronising ‘you’re old and you’re not meant to like it’ way. Now, though, I’m on my way to understanding what he’s talking about, because my word does this voice here grate occasionally.

Tom: I don’t think it’s her voice – she’s the victim of a poor microphone and recording studio.

Tim: You think?

Tom: If I’m right, there’s a high-frequency sound, like air escaping from a balloon, that’s been recorded along with her. Either that or she’s had some kind of tracheotomy, but I think that’s unlikely.

Tim: A tad, yes, so fair enough. She’s a mostly anonymous singer (Orion’s the dance producer who came up with the excellent backing), and those long notes in the chorus that should be beautiful and soaring just make me want to turn it down a bit. Which a real shame, because the tune it’s over is fantastic. Can we get this rerecorded? Or at least a vocal-less version?

Tom: I think the term’s “instrumental”—

Tim: Which I was going for before I realised that technically there aren’t any actual instruments in there, so I thought it would sound a bit odd.

Tom: —but you’re right – it’d be just as good as an additional synth line. Aside from that, though: brilliant.