U.f.orb The Orb

Chillout albums were all the rage during the early 2000s, but despite the attention, no one had made a record quite like Funki Porcini's Fast Asleep since the glory days of ambient techno, when the Orb's "A Huge Ever-Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules From the Centre of the Ultraworld" merged Tangerine Dream, the Mad Professor, and Larry Heard into a collage of pastoral bliss. Fast Asleep, though obviously functional in a variety of contexts, wasn't designed to soundtrack trips back from the clubs or lazy nights at home with friends, and as such, it neatly side-steps the conscious hipness that usually compromises chillout records. James Braddell, a downbeat veteran stretching back more than a decade, crafted Fast Asleep to move in and out of its framework, with lengthy transitions introducing - or deconstructing - virtually every production…

Though no electronic act bested the Orb at creating a satisfying fusion of ambient music and dub, Sub Dub came the closest with its blend of studio production and live instrumentation. The quartet, which includes bassist John Ward, programmer Raz Mesinai, vocalist Ursula Ward, and Grant Stewart on tenor sax, debuted in 1994 with the Babylon Unite EP on TKI. After one more EP, Dawa Zangpo, Sub Dub released their debut album in 1996 on Instinct. Recalling the more dubbed-out moments of the Orb's U.F.Orb, Sub Dub's debut was a solid album. Though several tracks indulge the group's penchant for a bit of aimless wandering, the results are so pleasant that minor transgressions can easily be forgiven.

Lounge music is a type of easy listening music popular in the 1950s and 1960s. It may be meant to evoke in the listeners the feeling of being in a place, usually with a tranquil theme, such as a jungle, an island paradise or outer space. The range of lounge music encompasses beautiful music-influenced instrumentals, modern electronica (with chillout, and downtempo influences), while remaining thematically focused on its retro-space-age cultural elements.