Orbital|Leftfield
Dreamland, Margate, Kent
14th September 2024
The final gig of the Dreamland Summer Series brought together two heavyweights of electronic music as Orbital and Leftfield shared a double headlining bill. Following in the footsteps of Suede and The Manic Street Preachers who also doubled up in July, Orbital and Leftfield lit up the Scenic Stage in spectacular style as Dreamland capped off its biggest, and arguably best, Summer Series to date.
Beneath the arches of the Scenic Railway, the countries oldest wooden roller coaster, in the shadow of the Big D and beside the carousels, waltzers and various other heritage rides, electro legends Orbital and Leftfield packed out the arena with a five thousand-strong crowd. The Last Dance, as it was billed, was a euphoric event that was universally enjoyed by all who were lucky enough to be there. From the teenagers with Tesco tats to the old raving grans adorned with their own neon lights and gloves, everyone it seemed was there to party.
Ahead of the headline acts, DJs Gerardo Delgado and Quinn Whalley (Aka Paranoid London) and then Luke Vibert entertained the gathering crowd as the sunset slowly over the Thanet coast. The air was thick with exotic tobaccos and the occasional whiff of fish and chips from the Sea Shanty stall as PL whipped up the audience with a heady, very well-received early evening mix.
Luke Vibert, battling a cold, and at times technical hiccups, did his best to keep the momentum going as he sipped on his Red Bull, stroked his beard with increasing regularity and flipped the bird on more than one occasion throughout his improvised slot.
Barely half an hour after the DJ sets had concluded it was time to welcome Orbital to the stage. Returning to The Scenic Stage after six years, Kent brothers Phil and Paul Hartnoll, took no time at all in getting into their stride and channelling their relentless energy into an audience more than happy to soak up every beat and bleep.
The weather was well behaved as dusk fell on the rejuvenated South-East town of Margate and Orbital played out a crowd pleasing ten song set. The mix was littered with virtual guests including Stephen Hawking, Jason Williamson, Greta Thunberg and even The Spice Girls.
Orbital opened up with Deeper and built on that vibe with the existential – Where Is It Going? before The Scenic Stage projection screen was lit largely with one-half of Sleaford Mods; the inimitable Jason Williamson. As he angrily shouted out – “People talk about the right way to live, Shut up you don’t know what ya on about, You voted for em, look at ya!” – the bass kicked in the beat dropped to ramp up the energy.
A quite extraordinary Satan followed as the lights strobed in time with the opening fury of the repeated track title and the stage, and all before it, turned deep red. Orbital played out fan-favourites – Impact, Remind and Halcyon + On + On; the latter of which included Belinda Carlisle’s Heaven Is a Place On Earth and Bon Jovi’s You Give Love a Bad Name spliced in expertly.
A shoeless Phil Hartnoll donned a blonde wig as he and his brother, both wearing their obligatory double torch headsets, set about reworking The Spice Girls Wannabe. The cheeky aside of Spicy made way for the blissful 1991 classic – Belfast. The operatic opening cut through the air with unnerving majesty. Even after 30 years the power of this game-changing electronic masterpiece never fails to resonate. “One more” said Paul, before Orbital closed out their set with another staple – Chime.
The stage was cleared and then re-laid before Leftfield arrived. Nine light pods were positioned in front of and around three mobile stages, with the drum kit in the middle of keys, synths and congas. The inspired set from Orbital was going to take some topping, but top it Leftfield did as they brought their A game and more to Margate.
Founding member Neil Barnes, Sebastian ‘Bid’ Beresford, Adam Wren and MC Cheshire Cat delivered a superb ten-track set that played out triumphantly across the packed arena. The light show was spectacular, especially towards the end where Melt left everyone in awe of its jaw dropping hypnotic beauty. A nine-minute epic version of Release The Pressure, and pumped up Black Flute reminded us, if a reminder were needed, of just what a seminal debut album Leftism was when it was released back in 1995.
The power and intensity of Leftfield’s music was incredible. To see an electronic band enhance the best of their back catalogue with a scintillating live performance was remarkable. Sebastian Beresford on drums played out of his skin from beginning to end as he delivered the outstanding individual performance of the evening.
Leftfield ensured that the crowd were thoroughly entertained throughout with inspired versions of Inspection (Check One), a hard and heavy Afrika Shox and a raver’s delight – Accumulator. A truly memorable evening concluded in a very fitting style with the mild and mellow Melt heading up the ever building beats of Song Of Life before the utterly brilliant Phat Planet blew everyone away. It might be 25 years old but it sounded as fresh and vital now as when it was released.
Leftfield thanked the crowd – “What a night, what a crowd, thank you, thank you so much”…and what a night it was. EDM at its inspired, live best.
~
You can find Orbital online here: They’re also on
Facebook and X, as x.com/orbitalband
You can find Leftfield online here: They’re also on
Facebook and X, as x.com/leftfield
All words by Andrew Lockwood. More writing by Andrew Lockwood can be found at his author’s archive.
All photos by Aaron Thompson. AMP Photography
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