Hand on heart I don’t think you’ll find as much variety on any single song as you will on those by Orbits; fundamentally a (fairly new) Norwegian trio with contributors from elsewhere in Norway and abroad including, to my surprise, Zach Tenorio Miller (who has dropped the ‘Miller’ for some reason), from Los Angeles-based Arc Iris and who is somewhat of a keyboard virtuoso, in live shows.
We’ve previously featured two singles from the album ‘Blood Red Sky’, namely ‘Synthetic Sweetness’ and ‘Broken Glass’.
‘Blood Red Sky’ the track was recorded, along with the rest of the album, in an abandoned gymnasium in a small Norwegian town and works its way smartly around multiple genres as if it was still home to treadmills, dumbbells, exercise bikes and a boxing ring.
First up is vocalist Natalie Sandtorv (aka Neon Ion) with what I can best describe as a sci-fi R&B opening, followed by a sultry, laid back jazz section that might be taken from a Sunday afternoon open mic session somewhere on Sunset Boulevard.
Then the two merge but before you know it the song rocks dramatically up-tempo, the beat intensifies and the dancing shoes are on.
Then it jams out as a pitched battle between sax and synthesiser keys and is finally counted out, just as it was counted in, by a brief vocal outro from Natalie.
‘Blood Red Sky’ itself is unpredictable enough and there is more of it across the album which embraces alt rock, indie, jazz, R&B, and orchestral arrangements in a recipe you won’t find on the average dinner plate. Check out ‘First Swim’ for a monumental prog jam that would have done justice to ELP.
Orbits is Lars Horntveth (Jaga Jazzist – Electric and Acoustic Guitar, Pedal Steel Guitar, Clavinet, Synthesisers,Tenor Saxophone and Vibraphone); producer Erlend Mokkelbost (Percussion, Electric and Acoustic Guitar) and Natalie Sandtorv (Vocals, Percussion) and is a combination of the trio’s styles and influences.
‘Blood Red Sky’ was released on 29th August by Jazzlandrec. A release concert is taking place at Nasjonal Jazzscene in Oslo as this is written, on 30th August.
Find them on:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/orbits_band/
