Saint Etienne's 1991 debut Foxbase Alpha is an album that perfectly summarises time and place (autumn 1991 to be specific), a cohesive record from start to finish taking from pop, the 1960s, wider British popular culture, the purity of the 7" single, house music and club culture, couple of cover versions that show the breadth of their influences (Neil Young and The Field Mice), samples from TV and radio and more besides. It concludes with a song named after Melody Maker photographer and drummer Joe Dilworth, a short piece of 60s influenced pop, fading in on a shimmer of synths, a ton of reverb on Sarah's voice and some lovelorn lyrics- 'Oh babe/ I know you've gone/ I won't be sad alone/ Cos the song you left me/ Has the sweetest refrain'. Piano and swelling synths drift on, then suddenly replaced by traffic noise and voices talking about the 90s, the decade ahead and finishing with the two word phrase- waffle cardigans. After the dreampop and feedback of the previous song, Like The Swallow, an intense trip that borrows from the spirit and sound of The Stone Roses backwards songs and AR Kane, it's a classic Saint Etienne nod and wink.
Joe Dilworth played/ plays drums in Stereolab, Th' Faith Healers and Cavern Of Anti- Matter. This song, Void Beat, was on Cavern Of Anti- Matter's 2016 album Void Beat/ Invocation Trex. Cavern Of Anti- Matter were formed by Dilworth and fellow former Stereolabber Tim Gane, based in Berlin and is very pleasant way to spend the best part of ten minutes, cosmische to the max.
I generally love Saint Etienne, and Foxbase Alpha (with Tales From Turnpike House) remain high points, but however much I try, their last album remains a tough listen for me. What did you think of it Adam?
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed Void Beat btw, very pleasant indeed for this sunny morning.
I really loved last yea's Saint Etienne album Nick, it really hit the spot, loved the woozy, haziness of the songs and the use of samples. Haven't listened to it for a while, need to rectify that.
ReplyDeleteOnly just yesterday I relistened to their latest and I absolutely love it. Its like a hazy dream.
DeleteHi Adam. Based on our community, it feels like the new album divided us. The Robster may be the biggest fan of all of us, and he didn’t care much for the new one. I’m in the camp of Nick and the Robster... a tough listen. Still love the early albums and singles and play them often.
ReplyDeleteI should add that just because the new one was sample driven like So Tough doesn't mean the two albums should be compared to each other. Critics and the media got real lazy on this point.
ReplyDeleteFor me the new album can be compared in relation to the more hazy-dreamy tracks on Foxbase Alpha. There's also a great sense of nostalgia in both albums.
DeleteI've been mulling over the similarities and differences between IBTTTY and the first 2 St Etienne albums since it came out.
ReplyDeleteI'm definitely in the 'like' category when it comes to IBTTTY, though I do enjoy it more as a single, continuous piece, rather than listening randomly to individual tracks, which is usually the case with their previous albums.
ReplyDeleteWeirdly enough, I didn't really feel the comparison with Foxbase Alpha and So Tough. If anything - and although aurally they're very different - listening to IBTTTY reminds me of The Sound Of Water.