Archive for the ‘Stereolab’ Category
Stereolab Phoenix Concert Review
Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy!
Excuse the histrionics and the cheap nod to Ginsburg, please. Perhaps I shouldn’t have been so excited about seeing a band which has over the years dropped the qualifier from its label “experimental pop.” Chemical Chords is a good album but compared with one of my favourites, Dots and Loops, or the monstre sacre Emperor Tomato Ketchup, it just doesn’t hold up. One song moves to another swimmingly, there are bouncy songs and there are melodic stretches which remind that Laetitia Sadier and Tim Gane are extraordinary songwriters, “Silver Sands” is especially beautiful, but nothing strikes out unexpectedly; it’s like having dinner with familiar friends: warm but excusably boring sometimes.
When they took the stage, however, I forgot all my impressions and volleyed into Stereolab’s performance. “Percolator” was the first song; I had expected it to be included in their set, and they played it beautifully, with the bass wrapped tightly around the tearing synths. For about an hour and a half, the band whipped out unexpected numbers like “Le Boob Oscilator” and expected ones like “French Disco,” and “Ping-Pong,” the last of which I am sure you have heard, was the recent favourite song of John McCain’s daughter (alternately known as spawn of the soft-spoken tyrant), on the campaign blog trail.
The highlight was the last song before the encore, possibly my favourite by the band, “Cybele’s Reverie,” during which a man in the audience (near me) went loco and began head-butting others around him. Without a string quartet to outfit them, Stereolab nevertheless pulled off a stunning performance of the piece. With one of their (male) synth players singing the late Mary Hansen’s parts, the band managed to communicate childhood nostalgia despite that the majority of the audience did not speak French—Lataetia tested us. After the encore, Tim Gane (the guitarist) threw his set-list into the audience and I had an OMG moment when I caught it. Written on the back of a fragment of cardboard from a beer box, it is now the coolest thing tacked to my wall.
The parts I appreciated from the concert were the noisier, drone-leaden, segments, the longer, older songs where the guitarist sat on a single chord for four minutes or something. Though they left out some lovely numbers like “Metronomic Underground” and “Les Ypers Sound,” with a catalogue as large as theirs one can expect that. It was a great show; whatever was lacking in The Groop’s performance was probably covered by one of the two openers: Monade, featuring Laeticia Sadier (Stereolab’s primary singer), which reminded one of the main act in its many shades, and Le Loupe, an American pop band with a breadth of sounds. In the end, I left the Phoenix with a satisfied sigh.
Week In Review – August 25-31
Another week has passed and it’s the last day of August…shit where has my summer gone. Week 5 out Week 10 until I should be cleared to play sports again…
School starts on Wednesday and look for the website to go into some sort of limbo, I’m terrible at time managing. Without further ado here are the week’s posts and whatever else is going on around the blogosphere.
Welcome our 3 new writers, Matt, Coko and Lu.
Stereolab – Chemical Chords by Matt- put this on my list of albums to check out
The Virgins – Coko questions their band name, from band pictures it looks like more of truthful confession
Endeverater – Kiss or Kill by Lu
Reviews:
Broadfield Marchers – The Invitable Continuing
London Zoo by The Bug – I gave it a 5/5 (am I giving out too many?), it is really is worthy of its critical acclaim
The Faint – Fasciinatiion – What’s with the I’s?
Island’s Arm Way
Mothlite – The Flax of Reverie – hopefully we can get an interview going Jess 
The Sleeping Years – We’re Becoming Islands One by One
Other:
Cutting Edge Music Fest Pt. 2
Hamlet 2 Review and Mini-Playlist – save your $$
Tropic Thunder Playlist and Review – Hilarious but offensive movie. I’m shameless when it comes to these playlists.
Joe reviews The Final Riot tour with headliners, Paramore.
The Microsoft Zune is Gangsta – Screw The Ipod – srsly
Ghalib reviews the Woodhands and Lioness show he saw last weekend.
News around the internet:
F Yeah Fest guys got beat up by Radiohead security with the cops watching. They recorded security beating up a patron excessively and security ran and beat them up for it.
The man behind AntiQuiet (or one of the writers) had his house stormed by FBI and he was formerly charged for posting tracks of Chinese Democracy. Chinese Democracy is the long awaited Guns n’ Roses album that has cost a reported 10 million or so. He faces a LONG prison sentence, releasing copyrighted work before it’s formerly released is really the problem. He did have it coming, especially living in the states. Slash isn’t rooting for him.
Some good discussion at the Elbo.ws forum. Way to hold us bloggers to standards Under the Dog.
Pitchfork ended the hype of Bloc Party’s Intimacy with a predicted 5.0-something score.
Stereolab – Chemical Chords
I was starting to think that this summer was going to be a complete washout. After a never ending winter, a non-existent spring and constant rain in between, it didn’t look like we were going to get any time in the sun. So imagine my surprise when late in the season Stereolab releases an album that delivers on the promise of a summer we never quite had.
Bubbling over with tightly constructed, lounge pop soundscapes, “Chemical Chords” brings summer to you in vivid Technicolor.
They kick things off with the jangley feel good “Neon Beanbag”. Replete with bright horns, lush strings, Motown high-hat and chugging bass line, Stereolab seems determined to brighten the skies right from start. The rest of the menu follows suit by oozing good vibes.
I find it hard to really categorize this album. The track “Self Portrait with Electric Brain”, feels like early Motown. While “Silver Sands” & “Chemical Chords” seem to pull inspiration from Brian Wilson and his Pet Sounds. French pop, Hollywood soundtracks, Electro rhythms all permeate the album. Yet it doesn’t suffer from schizophrenia for a second. They some how fold all these various styles together and make them their own. The album is beautiful, cohesive piece.
Singer Laetitia Sadier’s voice is reminiscent of a Velvet Underground era Nico, without the heroin-induced aloofness. She sings in both French and English though I often wasn’t sure which was which. Her sometimes odd phrasing made it sound as though she were singing in a language all her own. To be honest, I didn’t really mind that. As much as I value really solid lyrics and loath really bad ones, I found myself indifferent here. It just didn’t seem to matter. Her voice becomes another instrument in the band. You might not know the exact notes being played but it sure sounds good. Her monotone delivery plays nice counter point to the otherwise lush orchestral sounds.
As happy and bubbly as things are, when it comes right down to it the album isn’t amazing. There’s nothing here that will floor you or change your perspectives on life. Don’t get me wrong though, it is a really good album. Fun, witty, playful and full of inventive hooks and pretty melodies. It gives you that summer time feeling even in the middle of a rainstorm. Stereolab is able to be inventive and sound fresh even when riffing on themes we’ve heard before. I’d recommend it as a pleasant way to spend 48 minutes. You may even be compelled to make a sandcastle or two.
Neon Beanbag by Stereolab
Self Portrait with "Electric Brain " by Stereolab
