Gig review: Orbital, Glasgow Academy

There was bell-ringing and hymn-singing emanating from the Academy stage on Easter Saturday, plus a thankful congregation raising their hands in praise at the resurrection of one of the UK’s most beloved dance duos, and rejoicing at the ritual donning of those customised glasses with the mini-headlights attached to each side.

Although the Hartnoll brothers still play around with Orbital’s rather cerebral image as purveyors of what they used to call “intelligent techno”, they preside over a happy party, creating a warm comfort blanket of sound for much of their current set. Twenty years on from the days when they dominated the summer festival circuit, the need to deliver anthem after anthem has been replaced by a more organic lead-in – it was a full half-hour before they significantly upped the tempo with a drum’n’bass break, yet no-one wanted for a lack of crescendo.

They remain fond of their hypnotic vocal samples, either lifted from or mimicking sacred music in order to create a devotional rave atmosphere but they have also become playful in their middle age, mixing in an instantly recognisable Belinda Carlisle hook to their live staple Halcyon and breaking out an unexpected sample of The Carpenters’ Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft.

The familiar peeling refrain of Chime, reserved for the encore, will always be a tough act to follow, but earlier in their set, the title track of new album Wonky generated enough hectic euphoria to suggest that this second coming is not all about nostalgia.