Today Joy Orbison releases his new single ‘2M3 2U’, a catchy and futuristic sounding track that follows previous tracks ‘pinky ring’ and ‘red velve7’ and sees Joy O continue his journey towards the dancefloor.
“I see this one as a bit of a UK take on hyperpop,” says Joy. “But with a bit of bass weight. the vocal part could be a sample of some garbled message of love in Bladerunner or the Fifth Element, and the main riffs had me thinking about the DJ Narrows records we’d play at youth club parties. Interesting top lines seem to be a bit absent in my world these days and I’ve definitely been influenced by contemporary drum & bass and their endless search for the catchiest wobble.”
After another summer of standout performances at the likes of Sonar, Glastonbury Festival, Houghton and All Points East, 2022 also saw Joy Orbison release his take on Jorja Smith’s ‘Rose Rouge’, as well as another collaboration with Overmono. Their joint single ‘Blind Date’ was a “mesmerising dance track” (The Times) that saw both Joy and Overmono rule the dance floor together. Dominating the UK’s dance music scene alone or collaboratively, who knows what 2023 will bring? Like the movies that it references, perhaps ‘2M3 2U’ is a glimpse of the future.
Praise for Joy Orbison – still slipping vol. 1
“Rarely is electronic music so utterly human as on Still Slipping” – Pitchfork
“One of the greatest producers in UK dance music.” – Resident Advisor
“If there was going to be one mixtape we all needed to hear in 2021, it would probably be Joy Orbison’s debut, Still Slipping Vol.1, an aural assimilation of the best of British bass culture.”
– Loud & Quiet
“A Joy Orbison full-length, whether you call it a mixtape or an album, has to be among the most hotly-anticipated ideas in UK dance music writ large.” – Resident Advisor
“Already sounding like one of the albums of the year” – Mixmag
“The second you just change the language to mixtape, a woman’s voice deadpans at the end of sparko, “nobody cares”. It’s a droll bit of irony for a record crafted with such care. still slipping is anything but thrown together – in fact, it’s hard to imagine a more holistically conceived set of tracks. This is a body of work that definitely deserves to be taken seriously.” – CRACK Magazine
“One of the most quietly moving dance music records of the year” – Pitchfork
“To diehard UK clubgoers, a full-length project is something people didn’t necessarily expect or need to hear from Joy Orbison. This is the man behind ‘Ellipsis’, ‘GR Etiquette’ and ‘Hyph Mngo’, for god’s sake. By ignoring all rules and blending UK garage, UK funky, house and dubstep, his impact upon dancefloors is already written. No, with still slipping Vol. 1, O’Grady is letting us know: this is something new.” – The Quietus
“A long-awaited, essential debut” – DJ Mag
“His boldest and most intimate productions to date” – Wire Magazine
About Joy Orbison
In August 2021, Peter O’Grady aka Joy Orbison released his long-awaited debut longform project still slipping vol.1, the latest creative milestone from an artist who’s been shaping and redefining dance music since his teens. To say the record was highly anticipated would be an understatement: so influential have been his releases over the last decade that it’s hard to believe that still slipping was his first full length record. Released to huge acclaim still slipping vol. 1 is widely regarded as one of the best electronic records in recent years, winning Album of the Year at the 2021 DJ Mag Awards while his music featured in a host of end of year Best Of lists including Pitchfork, Crack, The Quietus, Resident Advisor, Clash and more.
First coming to prominence in 2009 with his debut single ‘Hyph Mngo‘ – a track that became a bonafide phenomenon and changed the dance music underground forever – the London musician, DJ and producer is undoubtedly one of the most renowned, respected and influential electronic artists of his generation. Whether through his own game-changing releases such as ‘Ellipsis‘, ‘GR Etiquette‘, ‘Big Room Tech House DJ Tool-TIP!‘ or the Slipping EP, collaborations with the likes of Mansur Brown, Overmono and cutting edge Japanese clothing label Cav Empt, a run of genre-defining releases on his Hinge Finger label, a BBC Radio 1 residency, Grand Theft Auto radio station or live appearances that span the most credible underground nights to festival headline slots around the world, the name Joy Orbison has been a constant byword for understated, uncompromising quality.
2022 has become another defining year for Joy Orbison. March’s ‘pinky ring‘ saw Joy Orbison release one of his most dancefloor-focused tracks in recent times while a second collaboration with Overmono, ‘Blind Date‘ has become one of the year’s biggest anthems, alongside his acclaimed remix of Jorja Smith’s ‘Rose Rouge‘. Meanwhile, November’s ‘2M3/2U’ is set to round off a marquee year with one of his finest ever solo releases.
