aAt today’s genre-bending Glastonbury, it’s hard to draw a clear line between electronic and rock music, but 30 years ago, when Orbital first played their Pyramid Stage set and turned the “indie kids” on to techno, it represented a groundbreaking moment for the festival and British music culture.
Speaking with The Guardian’s chief pop music critic Alexis Petridis on Saturday morning, brothers Phil and Paul Hartnoll reflected on how the festival has evolved over the years and their role in transforming it from a traditional rock event into the more tolerant event it is today.
Orbital began playing around Sevenoaks in Kent, honing their show in the same vein as their inspirations Kraftwerk, Cabaret Voltaire and New Order: “They all played live… using backing tracks would be boring,” says Paul, but at the time there was no established pathway for electronic musicians and there was superficial resistance to artists wanting to mix with live instruments.
In their determination to be “raw, responsive and raw,” Phil recalls having to resist the expectation that they would use ear mics and campaign for a mini-studio to be installed onstage. From there sprang a club circuit and a network of electronic musicians who worked their way into rock venues and mainstream music culture.
“This network started to develop all over the country, with DJs like us travelling and connecting with people,” Paul says. “There was no dance network before that. It was a really magical time.”
Inspired by progressive rock such as Pink Floyd, they began making footage for their live shows: “If you’re going to be on stage, you need something behind you.” True to their DIY ethos and diverse sources, they shot their early videos on an oscilloscope. Their more politically charged vocal samples reflected Paul’s love of anarcho-punk acts like the Dead Kennedys and Flux of Pink Indians, as well as his frustration with the narrow-minded view of much other electronic music.
“I used to listen to dance music and hear people singing about love and wonder why no one sings about good things. I thought that was missing from dance music. I never realised that that’s not what people taking ecstasy in clubs want to hear.” But it was also what set Orbital apart, and ultimately resonated with politically-minded crowds like Glastonbury.
Today, Phil says, they embrace a spirit of experimentation in their live shows, with songs born out of “happy (and sometimes sad) mistakes” onstage, and set lists that reinvent recorded songs. “We could play a song for an hour if we wanted to.”
But even after their initial success as “the first dance music tour in rock venues”, Orbital wasn’t easily received, Paul said; he recalled his brothers being “faceless”. Appearance on Top of the Pops in 1990When they were forced to dress up for their debut single, “Chimes,” for TV audiences, “it seemed too flashy for us… The BBC insisted that if they didn’t have a singer, they needed dancers,” Paul says. “They didn’t really know what to do with us.”
They made the most of it, downing vodka oranges and jumping into the crowd to dance to Snap with the audience, he added: “Top of the Pops disappeared soon afterwards… but we didn’t finish it.”
Their Glastonbury debut was conditionally backed by festival founder Michael Eavis, who praised Orbital for putting on a “really good show” and playing “decent” music. “It was a real rock’n’roll festival. There was no dance music,” Phil says. Industry gatekeepers like NME’s indie kids scorned electronic music as “boring.” But audiences were quicker to adapt, he recalls. When Orbital appeared following Björk on what is now the Other Stage, “everyone went wild.”
Now the brothers understand the role they played in breaking down that divide: “We were like a bridge between indie and electronic,” Paul says, joking that they pioneered a new genre called “prog rave.”
“Hey, are you a pioneer or something?” Phil added.
The brothers said they’re still making music, citing a recent remix of Fontaines DC as an example, and that they plan to eventually release a new album. Paul said he enjoys writing and creating more now than when he was younger, saying, “You never know what’s going to come next, and that’s what’s fun.” However, he added that their 11th album, which follows last year’s Optical Delusion, won’t be released anytime soon.
“We’ll have to break up again,” Phil joked, referring to the brothers’ historically tumultuous relationship, “and then we’ll get back together when we need money,” Paul added.
For now, they’re celebrating 30 years since their landmark Glastonbury appearance, playing a setlist for “all their old fans” (plus some special guests, who they declined to reveal who) on the Park Stage tonight. The festival and its audience may have changed over the decades, but Orbital hasn’t. “It’s been 30 years, but we’re still going down the same path!”
