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.
Nought More Terrific Than Man
Stereolab Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Reality is, dual, walking with good and evil
Two poles guiding his step
Two poles guiding his step
Good is the one that can weave all together
Our passions impulsion's into city laws,
Evil sets in when man thinks he is sole judge,
Only him can be right, no one else be just
Two poles guiding his step
The lyrics to Stereolab's song, "Nought More Terrific Than Man," highlight the complexity of human nature and the duality that exists within us. The writer acknowledges humanity's incredible intelligence and creativity with the line "His wisdom, his art surpassed all expectancies, and yet," but then points out the reality that accompanies this gift - that humans are both capable of good and evil. The two poles that guide our steps represent these conflicting forces within us.
The lyrics go on to describe how good can be harnessed to create order and justice in society. Our passions can be channeled into laws that benefit everyone. However, the danger arises when we become overly confident in our own judgment, blocking out the opinions and needs of others. This is when evil sets in, as we become "sole judge" and exclude the possibility of others' perspectives being valid.
Overall, the lyrics of "Nought More Terrific Than Man" urge listeners to be aware of the complexities of human nature and to strive for balance between our dual natures. We should remain open to the perspectives and needs of others to avoid the pitfalls of arrogance and self-righteousness.
Line by Line Meaning
His wisdom, his art surpassed all expectancies, and yet
Despite exceeding expectations with his intellect and creativity, there is still duality in his reality
Reality is, dual, walking with good and evil
The truth is that two opposing forces, good and evil, shape existence
Two poles guiding his step
The existence of opposing forces, of good and evil, always informs his decisions
Good is the one that can weave all together
In order to create harmony, good must find a way to unite all elements of human experience
Our passions impulsion's into city laws,
We can turn our individual desires and drives into laws that serve the greater good
Evil sets in when man thinks he is sole judge,
When someone believes they are the only true authority, it's easy for evil to take root
Only him can be right, no one else be just
Believing only one person can be right leads to a lack of justice for others
Two poles guiding his step
The good and evil forces continue to drive his actions, always present and always influential
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: GANE, TIMOTHY JOHN / SADIER, LAETITIA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind