More than two years after their second split, the British dance duo have put aside their differences to go on tour again and release new material

More than two years since announcing their second split, in October 2014, Orbital have once again settled their differences and announced a reunion – along with a series of festival tour dates and new music.

The British dance duo, brothers Paul and Phil Hartnoll, will break their silence with three outdoor events confirmed so far for this summer. They headline Forbidden Fruit in Dublin, Standon Calling in Hertfordshire and the Bluedot festival at Jodrell Bank radio telescope near Manchester. There’s new music, too, with a new single Kinetic, available to listen to below.

At the time of their last split, Paul Hartnoll said: “Orbital had stopped working properly. We had a great four years since getting back together in 2008, but it was time to move on.”

Orbital’s 2017 reunion is, according to a statement, more than the re-forming of a musical partnership. It is: “The end of a little-known, unhappy standoff between two brothers, an estrangement that lovers of Orbital’s euphoric music might find surprising.”

The statement says the relationship between Paul and Phil “has often been tempestuous. Worse than musical differences, they’ve been through the personal clashes and resentments that only brothers can really understand.”

“I didn’t speak to Phil for five years after we split in 2012,” explains Paul. “It was horrible. It’s like a black stain on your heart.”

The statement adds that Paul was haunted by a childhood photograph of the Hartnoll family on holiday on the Isle of Wight. This was a constant reminder of the separation from his brother. “You feel terrible,” he says, “and you want to fix it.”

During their split, Paul worked on his own album 8:58 and the Clarke:Hartnoll album 2square with Vince Clarke, as well as film and TV soundtracks, including American Ultra and Peaky Blinders. Phil, who says he did not want to split up in the first place, spent his time DJing internationally.

Realising there was something lacking in his career, Paul approached his brother and promised to change his controlling nature.

“I tried to turn Phil into me, and that drove us both mad,” he admits. “Now it’s just, be yourself. Be you. So far, it’s working brilliantly. It’s really good to be talking and working together again.”

“Orbital is too big a thing for us to leave behind,” adds Paul. “I always wanted us to be the Status Quo of techno – I’m Francis Rossi, by the way – because I always admired their staying power and their total, tough, motorik thing. If those two guys made their peace, so can we.



“We’ve a tempestuous relationship, not because we don’t love the music, but because we do. Sometimes it’s been impossible to carry on. But we’ve sorted it out now. And this time, we’re going to keep it.”

The duo previously split in 2004, releasing the Blue Album as what many believed was their final statement. They returned in 2009 for a series of 20th-anniversary shows, and recorded a further album, Wonky, in 2012.