They were founded in 1990 by songwriters Tim Gane (guitar, keyboards), formerly of the band McCarthy, and Laetitia Sadier (sometimes credited as Seaya Sadier; vocals, keyboards, trombone, guitar), who is from France and sings in both English and French.
Over the years, Gane and Sadier have enlisted a large number of other musicians to accompany them on stage and on record. The initial line-up featured Martin Kean, formerly of The Chills, on bass, and Joe Dilworth (from their Too Pure label-mates Th’ Faith Healers) on drums, with Russell Yates (of Moose) and Mick Conroy (ex-Modern English) also appearing at early live shows. In 1993 they recruited Andy Ramsay (drums), who has remained in the group line-up ever since, and Mary Hansen (vocals, guitar, keyboards, percussion). Hansen’s distinctive backing vocals became an important aspect of the Stereolab sound, and she remained a regular feature of the line-up until her death in a cycling accident on December 9, 2002. Multi-instrumentalist Sean O’Hagan of The High Llamas has also been a frequent contributor, particularly with string, brass and keyboard arrangements to the band’s studio albums. John McEntire (Tortoise) has also contributed keyboard, electronic effects and studio help over the years. Other members have come and (in some cases) gone over the years, including Duncan Brown, Dave Pajo (from Tortoise), Richard Harrison and Simon Johns (all bass); Gina Morris (vocals); and Katharine Gifford and Morgane Lhote (both on keyboards).
Early Stereolab material displayed a heavy influence of krautrock sounds, particularly Neu! and Faust, characteristically relying on droning, repetitive guitar or keyboard riffs, with or without vocals. Early heavy use of distorted Farfisa combo-organ sounds were also reminiscent of early recordings by The Modern Lovers. As the band developed, they incorporated new instrumentation, and an increasingly complex sense of rhythm and structure, frequently making use of irregular time signatures as well as unorthodox chord progressions and melodic intervals. The band has often made copious use of female backing vocal lines.
Lyrically, Stereolab’s music is quirky (song titles evoke memories of 1950s science fiction stories, and are often borrowed directly from old films and records of the period, but have nothing to do with the song’s content), but highly politically and philosophically charged, sometimes with a decidedly Surrealist or Situationist bent. (Sadier notes the libertarian Marxist theoretician Cornelius Castoriadis as a particular inspiration.) Sadier’s lyrics, in both French and English, often read like highly condensed sociological texts, standing in deliberate and distinct counterpoint to the lush hedonic pop sound of the band. A prime example would be “Ping Pong” from Mars Audiac Quintet, which is an explicit restating of Marxist theory concerning the relationship between economic cycles and war cycles.
Stereolab earned a minor place in the Britpop movement, with their sound proving influential to bands like Blur: occasional keyboard-driven b-sides and singer Damon Albarn’s love of retro keyboards showed the influence, and in recognition Laetitia Sadier was invited to provide vocals on “To The End” from Parklife.
Despite the band’s fan base and critical acclaim, Stereolab has not achieved high levels of financial or popular success. On June 7, 2004, suits at the Warner Music label (to whom the band was signed in the U.S.) announced they were dropping Stereolab in response to the poor sales (40,000 to that date) of Margerine Eclipse. This was part of an ongoing effort by Warner to cut costs; The Breeders and Third Eye Blind were also dropped from the label for this reason. Laetitia Sadier is now also a member of Monade, which is essentially expressive of her own singular musical goals.
Emperor Tomato Ketchup
Stereolab Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
La sortie, je la vois, elle est là, on est peu
Bien trop peu, au travers, murs épais je peux le faire
Faire tomber, les écrans, du trompage, du trompage
S'accrochant au vide, à de la fumée, les balles sont crevées, tout recommencer
Que voudra-t-on voir, le rideau lever, le silence est d'or, je ne suis pas d'accord
Ne pas faire d'effort, et beaucoup bailler, pouvoir s'élever, et vous saluer
The lyrics of Stereolab's song Emperor Tomato Ketchup are not straightforward, and their meaning is open to interpretation. In this song, the singer describes a maze-like environment where they see a way out, but there are obstacles in the way. The lyrics suggest that the singer is struggling to break free from some type of deception or control that has been imposed on them. The line "Faire tomber, les écrans, du trompage, du trompage" translates to "to make the screens fall, from deception, from deception."
The following lines could be interpreted as the singer becoming aware of their limited perspective, and they become disillusioned with the idea of success or achieving something of great value. Instead, they suggest that the silence and stillness they find in their current state are preferable. The line "Le silence est d'or, je ne suis pas d'accord" translates to "The silence is golden, I don't agree."
Overall, Emperor Tomato Ketchup's lyrics express a sense of confusion, disillusionment, and possibly rebellion against the prevailing order. The lyrics, combined with the song's lush soundscapes and hypnotic rhythm, create a surrealistic atmosphere that encourages the listener to interpret the meaning in their way.
Line by Line Meaning
Les allées, les venues, labyrinthe, mais qu'y vois je?
Navigating through a complex and confusing world, but what do I see?
La sortie, je la vois, elle est là, on est peu
I see the exit, it's there, but we are few in number.
Bien trop peu, au travers, murs épais je peux le faire
There are far too few of us, but I can break through these thick walls.
Faire tomber, les écrans, du trompage, du trompage
I will bring down the screens that deceive and manipulate us.
S'accrochant au vide, à de la fumée, les balles sont crevées, tout recommencer
Holding onto emptiness and smoke, our efforts have failed and we must start over.
Que voudra-t-on voir, le rideau lever, le silence est d'or, je ne suis pas d'accord
What do they want us to see, as the curtain rises and silence reigns? I do not agree.
Ne pas faire d'effort, et beaucoup bailler, pouvoir s'élever, et vous saluer
Some may not make any effort and just passively yawn, but I will rise up and greet you.
On n'est pas pigeon, peut-être bien des cons, la réalité, de l'autre façon
We're not pigeons, perhaps just fools, but reality can be viewed in another way.
Lyrics © DOMINO PUBLISHING COMPANY
Written by: Laetitia Sadier, Timothy John Gane
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind