Celebrated techno duo ORKA have made a triumphant return with their latest single, 'Bird,' serving as the lead track from their highly anticipated 6th studio album.
ORKA, comprising Francine Perry from London and Jens L. Thomsen from the Faroe Islands, first crossed paths in London's vibrant club scene over a decade ago. Since then, they have become one of Europe's most revered underground techno acts with both artists having an impressive array of accolades to their names, with Francine being Mute Studios' Head Engineer and a co-founder of the Omnii Collective, and Jens boasting an extensive discography with credits on nearly a hundred releases.
Inspired by the Hardcore Continuum and UK sound system culture, ORKA blends elements of minimal techno, progressive electro, and ambient music to create their uniquely diverse and captivating sound, creating music that stands out for its sonic ingenuity and fearless exploration of various stylistic influences.
With their latest release, 'Bird', drawing inspiration from their industrial studio surroundings in South London and avian field recordings that didn't make the final cut, the track takes on a 'disjointed avant-garde take on Gqom.' Resulting in a thrilling sonic landscape that blisters through bass and techno references with complex and percussive elements, the final touches on the track were finesse by long-time collaborators Will and Si from LV, resulting in an unrelenting auditory experience perfect for both live shows and club settings.
'Bird' is just a glimpse of the immersive auditory and sensory experience that awaits listeners on ORKA's forthcoming LP. Talking on the release of 'Bird' the duo said;
"We started working on this track in Francine’s studio deep in an industrial part of Peckham. We wanted to gather some gritty samples to use as percussive sounds from the building sites around the studio, but strangely all we managed to get was samples of birds. The recordings were of no use but the name stuck: ‘Bird’. We continued to work on the tune which was turning into a disjointed avant-garde take on Gqom which we were listening to a lot at the time.
We then called up long-time collaborators Will and Si from LV (Hyperdub, Keysound, Brownswood) who helped solidify the beat and synth lines. We couldn’t get enough of the track at this point but felt that it needed the drive that we add to our songs when we play them live.
Soon after we were doing ORKA shows with Yann Tiersen, Quinquis, Kári Sverrisson and Ólavur Jákupsson joining us on stage. We had a few days off between shows and decided to record live overdubs with ORKA’s original self-built instruments at Yann and Quinquis’ studio. The result is a complex track that oscillates between throbbing Bass Music and disjointed avant-garde."
Comments