Alex Paterson (also known as Dr Alex Paterson, born Duncan Alexander Robert Paterson; 15 October 1959 in

Battersea Battersea is a large district in south London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and extends along the south bank of the River Thames. It includes the Battersea Park. History Batter ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

musician and co-founder of

ambient house Ambient house is a downtempo subgenre of house music that first emerged in the late 1980s, combining elements of acid house and ambient music. The genre developed in chill-out rooms and specialist clubs as part of the UK's dance music scene. It w ...

group

The Orb The Orb are an English electronic music group founded in 1988 by Alex Paterson and Jimmy Cauty. Known for their psychedelic sound, the Orb developed a cult following among clubbers "coming down" from drug-induced highs. Their influential 19 ...

, in which he has worked since its inception.

Life and work

Paterson attended

Kingham Hill School Kingham Hill School is a Christian co-educational independent day and boarding school for children aged 11–18, located near the village of Kingham in Oxfordshire. It was founded by local landowner Charles Young in 1886, with buildings desi ...

in Oxfordshire between 1970 and 1979, at the same time as

Killing Joke Killing Joke are an English rock music, rock band from Notting Hill, London, England, formed in 1979 by Jaz Coleman (vocals, keyboards), Paul Ferguson (drums), Geordie Walker (guitar) and Youth (musician), Youth (bass). Their first album, ''Ki ...

bassist Martin "Youth" Glover. Paterson was a

roadie The road crew (or roadies) are the technicians or support personnel who travel with a band on tour, usually in sleeper buses, and handle every part of the concert productions except actually performing the music with the musicians. This catc ...

for Killing Joke in the 1980s and later worked in the A&R department of

E.G. Records E.G. Records was a British artist management company and independent record label, mostly active during the 1970s and 1980s. The initials stood for its founders, David Enthoven and John Gaydon. The pair signed on as managers of King Crimson in ...

, to whom the band were signed. New York radio stations were a force driving his musical direction, especially the Chuck Chill-Out shows on 98.7 KISS FM. In the late 1970s Paterson sang for the band 'Bloodsport' while also DJing at Killing Joke gigs. In 1989, Youth and Alex Paterson started the

WAU! Mr. Modo WAU/Mr. Modo Records was a record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such ...

label. Their early releases of a selection of

industrial techno Industrial techno is a subgenre of techno and industrial dance music that originated in the 1990s. Characteristically, it incorporates influences from the bleak, noisy sound and aesthetics of early industrial music acts, particularly Cabaret Volt ...

dubs and heavy sound system dubs from artists such as Napthali, Manasseh,

Bim Sherman , children = Chantelle Vincent, Rasiah Vincent Jarret Lloyd Vincent (12 February 1950 – 17 November 2000), better known by one of his stage aliases Bim Sherman (others include Jarrett Tomlinson, Jarrett Vincent, Lloyd Vincent, J. L. ...

and

Jah Warrior Jah Warrior is a United Kingdom roots reggae/ dub production team, record label, sound system, and musical group centred on Steve Mosco. Overview Mosco first got interested in reggae as a teenager in Manchester. He started attending sound s ...

are long deleted and fetch high sums in private sales. In 1990, Paterson's collaborations with his fellow Orb co-founder

Jimmy Cauty James Francis Cauty (born 19 December 1956), also known as Rockman Rock, is an English artist and musician, best known as one-half of the duo The KLF, co-founder of The Orb and as the man who burnt £1 million. He is married to artist and mu ...

ended, following Paterson's concerns about The Orb being perceived as a side-project of

The KLF The KLF (also known as the Justified Ancients of Mu Mu, the JAMs, the Timelords and other names) are a British electronic band formed in London in 1987. Bill Drummond (alias King Boy D) and Jimmy Cauty (alias Rockman Rock) began by releasing ...

. Paterson retained The Orb name. More recently, Cauty and Paterson collaborated again, as Transit Kings. Paterson was also involved in FFWD, a collaboration with

Kris Weston Kristian "Kris" Weston (a.k.a. Thrash) (born 1972) is a British electronic musician, record producer and remixer best known for his work as a member of The Orb. Around the beginning of his career, he worked with Andrew Weatherall on remixes of ...

Robert Fripp Robert Fripp (born 16 May 1946) is a British musician, songwriter, record producer, and author, best known as the guitarist, founder and longest-lasting member of the progressive rock band King Crimson. He has worked extensively as a session ...

, and

Thomas Fehlmann Thomas Fehlmann (born 1957) is a Swiss composer/producer who lives in Berlin, Germany, and has been active in electronic music since the 1980s. He is currently active on the Kompakt record label based in Germany. Fehlmann is an on-and-off member ...

, and SCREEN alongside music producer Gaudi. In 2021 Paterson started his own record label, Orbscure Recordings.

References

Sources

External links

Alex Paterson discusses his vinyl collection on BBC radio
* 1959 births Living people The Orb members English electronic musicians Paterson, Alex Road crew People from Battersea People educated at Kingham Hill School Record collectors {{UK-electronic-musician-stub