After absorbing the visionary Bob Marley, Jimmy Cliff, Toots and the Maytals, et. al, in the early 70s, and becoming enslaved by all-things Jamaican, we quickly became enamored with Jamaican dub music and one of its early progenitors, Lee “Scratch” Perry.  Whether you’re in the camp that considers him a genius or that which thinks he’s a genuine whack-o, no one can deny his place as one of the pioneering producers (Marley, Junior Marvin, Augustus Pablo, etc., etc.) and songwriters (Perry co-wrote Police and Thieves, amongst a thousand examples)  of reggae music.  The 76-year old Perry has had major ups and hellish downs over the years, but is now back in the mix with The Orb, modern electronic music out of Europe.

The latest album from The Orb, The Observer in the star house, features eleven new tracks, including lead tracks, Hold Me Upsetter and Golden Clouds, and is due for release this August 28th on The End Records.

Recorded in Berlin, the album features Dr. Alex Paterson and long-time Orb member Thomas Fehlmann, who have crafted entrancing, spare backdrops for Perry’s idiosyncratic ramblings and divinations.

According to Paterson:  “The album’s inception can be traced back to 2004 when Dr Paterson played a DJ and toaster set with Lee in Mexico. I had an amazing time being that close to the great man.  I played a dub set, Earl 16 was Greg Dread’s toaster, Mad Professor had his ladies, then there was the legendary Lee Scratch Perry; he’s a genius who expresses the future within the present times of anguish, hope and unity.”

Fehlman, who has been at the forefront of Germany’s electronic music scene, recalls, “I met Lee for the first time during this session and it was pretty touching to see how an unexpected connection and inspirational exchange could so awaken our creative juices. Alex and I had never made so much new music on the spot before. It was soon pretty clear that we wouldn’t get far with the four backing tracks we pre-produced for the session. Lee was so overwhelmingly creative that it took an afternoon for those to be finished. From then on we were forced to come up with new beats on the spot, to keep him in the flow.  He was constantly active, referring to the tunes we were working on and hitting on bits of wood or stone to create percussion patterns, so we ended up using field recordings of him banging on bits and pieces.”

To get a feel for the innovative and seductive collaboration, check out the colorful (it’s Scratch–what would you expect?) official videos for the lead tracks below. Long live Scratch Perry and pass The Orb.

You can pre-order the album in various formats at http://www.theorb.com