As one of the most relevant indie acts of today, Stereolab deserves a larger fan base. Yet the group (or \u201cgroop,\u201d as fans call it) has been around for 15 years and has issued music each year, making it tough to find a starting point for an incoming fan.<\/p>\n
Covering the entire Stereolab catalog with Elektra from 1993 to 2004, Serene Velocity<\/i> isn\u2019t Stereolab\u2019s first \u201cbest of\u201d record. But it is the perfect record for a new discoverer of this great British act.<\/p>\n
Stereolab is a difficult act to get the hang of and newcomers will likely find the albums too weird because of the experimental nature. Fortunately, every cut on Serene Velocity<\/i> is accessible, at least according to Stereolab\u2019s standards, and the chronological arrangement shows the group\u2019s progression from a modest guitar-driven straightforward sound to the current psychedelic quirkiness. <\/p>\n
Cuts like \u201cJenny Ondioline,\u201d \u201cCrest\u201d and \u201cFrench Disko\u201d show the less complicated and more raw-edged sound of early Stereolab. The crisp guitars and tighter tunes show little hint of the psychedelic \u201960s bubble-pop sound that later became a trademark style.<\/p>\n
The first signs of the group\u2019s sixties psychedelic sound is heard on \u201cPing Pong\u201d and \u201cWow And Flutter,\u201d both from Mars Audiac Quintet<\/i>, and the music, going further into the record, becomes more fluid and experimental. \u201cCybele\u2019s Reverie,\u201d \u201cPercolator\u201d and the maniacally monotonous eight-minute long \u201cMetronomic Underground\u201d from the acclaimed Emperor Tomato Ketchup<\/i> show Stereolab\u2019s fully formed airy signature sound that it would retain from that point on.<\/p>\n
Stereolab\u2019s awkwardly complex tunes are full of layers, which become more apparent as the disc progresses. On the recent material, as the music gets richer the production does too, which adds an element of danceability to the band as heard on cuts like \u201cInfinity Girl,\u201d \u201cDouble Rocker\u201d and the most electronic Stereolab track of all, \u201cVonal Declosion.\u201d Even on the very simple \u201c\u2026Sudden Stars,\u201d the last track, the complex drum arrangements give a foot-tapping quality to this otherwise lesser dance number. <\/p>\n
Throughout the record, irrespective of the group\u2019s changing styles and varying musical sensibilities, the voice that identifies Stereolab remains uninfluenced. Laetitia Sadier\u2019s peculiarly complacent vocals always remain the focal point of each song. Even the sleek music production has left Sadier\u2019s vocals completely untouched. To an extent, the credit to Stereolab\u2019s organic sound goes to Sadier\u2019s odd singing that is all natural and not forced. <\/p>\n
Though it is hard to condense the best of Stereolab\u2019s vast catalog to one disc, Serene Velocity<\/i> is as comprehensive as a single best-of disc can get. This record offers nothing special for a Stereolab fan, as it contains no new songs, but there is plenty for someone who always wanted to try this band and was always afraid to do so. They should be warned, though, that the disc represents some of the most mind-blowing indie music ever. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40,"featured_media":28577,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"artist":[7858],"rating":[5646],"class_list":["post-40051","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-stereolab","rating-rating-a"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/40051","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/40"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40051"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/40051\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28577"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40051"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=40051"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=40051"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}