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.
The Ecstatic Static
Stereolab Lyrics
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Digging the tranches in which to bury hearts
The dim and cold climate of awareness
Where the reptiles thrive and people are made to walk the streets
This heat, the purpose, in my heart, generates,
Infinite, energy there's nothing to worry,
Share the immensity
He went round switching the people's heart's off,
Promising to deal with reality
We bought it,
Because everything seemed more bearable than immensity
In "The Ecstatic Static" by Stereolab, the lyrics describe a world in which individuals are becoming more and more disconnected from each other, with the "pimp" extinguishing the flame of emotions and passions in the hearts of the people. Instead, people are forced to walk the streets in a dim and cold climate of awareness where reptiles thrive. This environment is described as one where people are burying their hearts, no longer able to feel the heat or purpose that used to drive them forward.
Despite this bleak outlook, the chorus of the song offers a glimmer of hope. The heat and purpose that still remain in the singer's heart generate infinite energy, offering a way out of the dim and cold climate. The immensity of the situation is shared by all, and it is only through recognizing and acknowledging this that individuals can begin to push back against the forces that seek to extinguish their emotions and passions.
Overall, the song serves as a warning against the dangers of becoming too disconnected and apathetic in a world that seeks to suppress individuality and creativity. Through the use of vivid imagery and a haunting melody, Stereolab reminds us of the importance of maintaining our own sense of purpose and passion in a world that often seeks to stamp it out.
Line by Line Meaning
The pimp's going round extinguishing the flame
He went round switching the people's heart's off,
Digging the tranches in which to bury hearts
Promising to deal with reality
The dim and cold climate of awareness
Where the reptiles thrive and people are made to walk the streets
This heat, the purpose, in my heart, generates,
Infinite, energy there's nothing to worry,
Share the immensity
Because everything seemed more bearable than immensity
Lyrics © DOMINO PUBLISHING COMPANY
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