Set The Controls...

Producer Youth talks to Prog about his new reboot of The Orb David Gilmour's 2010 collaboration album Metallic Spheres into Metallic Spheres In Colour and the mouthwatering prospect of the project being performed live, super-hi-tech, which would be the most amazing gig I could ever witness".

- Julian Marszalek

Tremix of their 2010 album Metallic Spheres, can be traced back to the activities of Scottish systems here's an undeniable synchronicity at play knowing that The Orb and David Gilmour's Metallic Spheres In Colour, the administrator Gary McKinnon, who in 2002 was accused by the US government of "committing the biggest military hack of all time". In his defence, McKinnon pleaded harmless motives by claiming he was looking for information on UFOs. With McKinnon facing extradition, decades in jail and a potential $2m fine, Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour stepped up to the fundraising plate with the release of Chicago - Change The World, a cover of Graham Nash's 1971 single Chicago, which in turn was later remixed by The Orb and producer Martin 'Youth' Glover with the full participation of David Gilmour, to become Metallic Spheres. Now it's been given a whole new lease of life.

"It's a remix of a remix of a cover!" Youth says with a laugh, as he ponders the long road from the Nash cover to Metallic Spheres In Colour.

David Gilmour instigated the original 2010 album after he and Youth -best-known as the bassist with pioneering post-punk band Killing Joke - had been working on another project.

"David suggested this Gary McKinnon remix," Youth recalls, "and I just developed that into, 'Well, let's do some extra guitars,' and then you're in the same room working together.

You take it from there, really. I thought that was more interesting than just doing a straightforward remix." This wasn't the first time Youth had worked on such a project with an artist of such a huge global stature.