Orbital

Named after the M25, techno gods Orbital — brothers Phil and Paul Hartnoll — have wrapped an extended conceptual embrace around multiple genres since arriving in 1990 with their single, "The Chime" (reportedly mastered from cassette for a trifling £2.50). Consequently, by the time they played rock-centric Lollapalooza in '97 they were able to win over a broad church of fans with classics of electronica like "Halcyon And On and On" and "The Box" — the latter is a haunting track that made an impression on MTV (on both sides of the Atlantic) thanks to its impeccable mix of speaker-panning synths, jackhammer drums, and melancholic piano melodies. Take your Orbital odyssey into another dimension with "The Moebius" in Next Steps.

When Orbital released The Middle of Nowhere at the tail end of the '90s, the Brothers Hartnoll were producing some of the world's finest bleeding-edge techno, and coupling it with a refined sense of the cinematic — check out the widescreen dimensions of "Way Out" before treating yourself to the fizzing pleasures of "Style" . . . and then find them wrapping that same track in a bagpipe overcoat for a 1999 performance at Glastonbury, the band's spiritual home on the live circuit. Rewind to the outfit's 1991 self-titled debut — aka the Green Album — and we get the minimalist, Star Trek sampling delights of "The Moebius", a glorious twist in the fabric of techno. Our Orbital Deep Cuts reveal a backbone of political activism, and more.

Snivilisation (1994) confirmed the current of activism that had been lurking within Orbital — the album was released at the time of the Criminal Justice Bill, which was designed to give the police greater powers when breaking up raves and prosecuting their organisers. A Top Five high point on the charts suggested that popular support lay squarely within the Hartnoll brothers' camp, and tracks like "Sad But True" — featuring guest vocalist Alison Goldfrapp — confirmed their ability to build tracks with exotic textures. Here we've also included a couple of cuts from their film score for Octane (2003) alongside a bunch more live highlights from Orbital's many untouchable turns at Glasto.

Phil and Paul Hartnoll had the right idea when they named Orbital after the M25, London's rebellious rave route of choice. While they're often pegged as ambient techno pioneers (check out the sunbeam chords and operatic beauty of "Belfast"), the mischievous pair is also known for cracking the charts with seething synths and a Butthole Surfers sample ("Satan") . . . not to mention the occasional spy groove ("The Saint") or glow-stick-wielding rave anthem ("Chime"). Orbital were outlaws who shattered the idea that dance music is meant for nothing but dance floors — if anything, they crafted punk rock for club kids, from their ingenious use of samples to their frantic and frayed electronic flourishes. Celebrate the pair's late '00s reunion with our ultimate Orbital overview.