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.
Three-Dee Melodie
Stereolab Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The cavity filled up with forgetfullness
Beyond there's no retribution only war
Her society overtly
The meaning of existence
Can't be supplied by religion or ideologies
Left to all our creativity we must find
The sense or non-sense that will emerge on a precipice
Is only the impact of the creative activity
The lyrics of Stereolab's song "Three-Dee Melodie" explore the idea of facing the unknown and how we, as individuals, must find meaning in life on our own, without relying on religion or ideologies. The opening line, "hideous on the edge of a precipice," creates a sense of danger and urgency. The "cavity filled up with forgetfulness" suggests a void or emptiness that we must fill with our own experiences and understanding of the world around us.
The lines "the meaning of existence / can't be supplied by religion or ideologies" convey the importance of individual thought and exploration in finding the true purpose of our existence. This search for meaning is described as a creative act, one that allows us to understand the world in a way that is personal and unique to us. The final lines, "the sense or non-sense that will emerge on a precipice / is only the impact of the creative activity" suggest that while the answers we find may not always make sense to others, they are still significant to our own lives and the impact we have on the world around us.
Line by Line Meaning
Hideous on the edge of a precipice
Feeling repulsive and terrifying while being on the brink of a dangerous situation
The cavity filled up with forgetfulness
A blank space in the mind where memories have faded away
Beyond there's no retribution only war
There is no punishment or reward, just constant conflict
Her society overtly
Her community is openly and noticeably present
The meaning of existence
The purpose or significance of one's existence
Can't be supplied by religion or ideologies
Religious or ideological beliefs do not fully provide the answer to the meaning of existence
Left to all our creativity we must find
We have to use our own creativity to discover the meaning of existence
The real significance that wouldn't be mystified
The true meaning of existence that is not shrouded in mystery or confusion
The sense or nonsense that will emerge on a precipice
The logical or illogical conclusions that may arise when facing a perilous situation
Is only the impact of the creative activity
The result is only due to the creative process
Lyrics © DOMINO PUBLISHING COMPANY, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: LAETITIA SADIER, TIMOTHY JOHN GANE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind