How times fly: Orbital back for Big Chill

Orbital will reunite at next year's Big Chill, the festival has revealed. The historic announcement comes one 200th of a millennium, one 20th of a century, half a decade - OK, just five years - after the electronic duo broke up.

"It's not an exercise in nostalgia," Phil Hartnoll emphasised in a statement. After all, that would be like being nostalgic for 2004 - a faraway time when Amy Winehouse and Franz Ferdinand had new albums, when Labour was in power, when American election results were festooned across our newspapers ...

"The time just seems right. Everything just seemed to fall into place. I've played at the Big Chill before, I DJed there and had a really good time - it's an amazing festival. The timing is also good: 20 years of being together."

The Hartnoll brothers will revisit hits like Chime and The Box, harking back - they hope - not just to their formation in 1989, but also to an "era-defining" appearance at Glastonbury in 2004.

"We've got 15 years of active service, making song," Hartnoll said. "If you boil that down to a 90-minute festival set you should get something thoroughly exciting from beginning to end."

While the Big Chill has often reached out to ravers, it also emphasises poetry, comedy and literature among its charms. The 2008 lineup included Leonard Cohen, the Mighty Boosh, Thievery Corporation and Roots Manuva. But that's not why Orbital signed up to play. "I've been badgering them for years," music programmer Guy Morley admitted. Perhaps he also promised them a slot doing standup.

The 2009 festival takes place on August 7-9 at Eastnor Castle in Herefordshire. Tickets go on sale Monday December 1.


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