Stereolab are a UK-based band whose style, mixing 1950s–1960s pop and loung… Read Full Bio ↴Stereolab are a UK-based band whose style, mixing 1950s–1960s pop and lounge music with the “motorik” beat of krautrock, was one of the first to which the term “post-rock” was applied. People frequently refer to their style as being "avant-pop." They are noted for the use of vintage keyboard instruments like Moog synthesizers and Vox and Farfisa organs. Stereolab is also notable for founding their own record label, Duophonic Records, with a grant from UK charity The Prince’s Trust. The band is often referred to as “The Groop” by their fans (and in the title of their song “The Groop Play Chord X” on the album Space Age Batchelor Pad Music).

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.

Strobo Acceleration
Stereolab Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Ou est la liberte de la femme
A l'abris dans ses appartements

Porquoi vouloir proteger nos dames
Cacher leurs corps en s'en excusant
Portant c'est bon
La liberte
Au plus profond

De la sensation

Ou est la liberte de la femme
A l'abris dans ses appartements

Ou est la liberte de la femme
Un soupire d'homme ne jette pas de flamme
Est-elle si febrile que meme les mots
La font s'eclater en mille morceaux?

Expression libre
Au cou robuste
L'esprit ou vibre
Ce qu il why'ade plus juste

Ou est la liberte de la femme
Un regard d'homme ne jette pas de lame

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Stereolab's song "Strobo Acceleration" talk about the liberation of women and address the societal norms that dictate how women should be treated and how their bodies should be viewed. The opening lines "Ou est la liberte de la femme/A l'abris dans ses appartements" translate to "Where is the freedom of women/In the shelter of their apartments." This suggests that women are not truly free as they are confined to their homes for their protection. The next few lines "Porquoi vouloir proteger nos dames/Cacher leurs corps en s'en excusant" which mean "Why protect our ladies/Hiding their bodies in apologies" highlight the fact that society has normalized hiding women's bodies under the pretext of protection.

However, the following lines seem to counter this notion, stating that true freedom lies in embracing one's sensations and letting them guide your own sense of liberation. "La liberte/Au plus profond/De la sensation" meaning "Freedom/At the deepest level/Of sensation." The repetition of the opening line, "Ou est la liberte de la femme" further emphasizes the search for real liberation.

The final lines, "Un soupire d'homme ne jette pas de flamme/Un regard d'homme ne jette pas de lame" meaning "A sigh from a man does not throw flames/A gaze from a man does not throw a blade," could be interpreted as a commentary on toxic masculinities and how men's actions do not and should not determine a woman's freedom or liberation.

Line by Line Meaning

Ou est la liberte de la femme
Where is the freedom of women?

A l'abris dans ses appartements
Hidden away in their apartments

Porquoi vouloir proteger nos dames
Why protect our ladies?

Cacher leurs corps en s'en excusant
Hiding their bodies and apologizing

Portant c'est bon
But it's good

La liberte
Freedom

Au plus profond
At the deepest level

De la sensation
Of sensation

Un soupire d'homme ne jette pas de flamme
Does a man's sigh not ignite flames?

Est-elle si febrile que meme les mots
Is she so fragile that even words

La font s'eclater en mille morceaux?
Make her shatter into a thousand pieces?