Playing through
Ilana Kronick
|
Stereolab: Doing right by themselves
|
Stereolab are par for the course despite their recent tragic handicap
Tim Gane can't say for sure how often he and his 13-year-old band have dutifully travelled from coast to coast. Eight, nine, maybe ten times - at least that if you include the double tour, twice 'round for one album, successfully executed on many occasions. And with words like "normally" and "always" prefacing all things road-related, we are reminded of how seasoned a band Stereolab is, though Gane's exuberance conveys an attitude that's anything but jaded. He's keen but breezy, a combination that comes by way of knowing himself as an artist, and recognizing that for Stereolab, the creative parameters have long been established.
"We don't want to be eclectic just to appeal to a changing faddy sound. That's been the detriment of many, many a great band in history. You wonder why they stopped writing great songs and that's because they lost confidence on stylistic levels," says Gane.
"Me, I like content and obviously there's an interplay of melody and rhythm which I come always back to. It makes better music than if I were to artificially guess what people might like by putting the latest trend on the record."
Liking Stereolab not only requires having an ear for its distinctly expansive, explorative sound, it also entails never tiring of it. And talk about integrity - the band's recordings are so cohesive that, to the untrained ear, they're nearly interchangeable. Safe, perhaps. But something with this level of consistency means one thing: If one album's good, they all are. To wit, 12
odd recordings and not a dud among 'em. "I think that there's a certain quality level that we never drop below. What differs for us is purely stylistic. It's got to be interesting. Of course, I love the idea of making music - and that's half of why you do it, to see the music form, to see it transform itself. I like to keep the spontaneity in place. We don't tidy up our records," he says.
"Then again, if you want to be a famous pop band, that's not the way to make records. But it's what makes our music more interesting than that of the average band."
No one has ever argued against Stereolab's conceptual colours. They are, undeniably, one of alternative rock's smartest, most vibrant and tasteful collectives. But if such a definitive characterization has allowed the band, on an album-to-album basis, to slide into laziness, a recent shake-up - the tragic death of singer Mary Hansen in December 2002 - has forced Stereolab into a major artistic, theoretical and even existential upheaval. While on their latest outing, Margerine Eclipse, their main goal was to realize the pre-written tunes in their intended form, when playing live it's been another story altogether.
"We've been changing the orientation of things, making it a different experience. You know, it's not the same band... We've tried to build up the texture, the timbre of the music, so that there are more levels... We have seven players on stage, we have French horns, cornets, harpsichords, electronics and sequencers to co-ordinate the music more instrumentally," explains Gane.
"You want to do right by the people that come to see you and you want to do right by yourselves, but you have to use the tragic circumstances to try to think of something new and different to do. Of course, I think we were heading in that direction anyway."
Stereolab and ClearLake
At Club Soda, April 11
| Stereolab explodes in a safe setting but implodes in live venues... |
|
My CD shelf is full of Stereolab stuff, needless to say that I'm a big fan of theirs but you just can't make me go to one of their live shows. In a studio setting these guys knock it out of the park with solid beats and subtle arrangements here and there but having seen them live on at least 2 occasions I can tell you that they just can't broadcast what you find trapped in the CD.
Listen to them. Buy their CD. Just don't go see them live. You WILL regret it.
|
|
Pedro Eggers
|
{2 votes}
|
|
|
Stereolab are not only in the forefront of the music scene, they have invented a genre of their own and in the process influenced many artists (many are mainstream, btw). Credit has to be given to a band that as creative, and non commercial as Stereolab are. A band doesn't stick around for 12 years out of luck. They have something special and it shows in their impressive musical catalogue. Keep moving forward Stereolab!
|
|
Jose Cisneros
|
{1 vote}
|
|
|
I haven't heard this band's music but after reading this article they must be doing something right...13 yrs together as a band....credit is due. I feel that their dedication, their unique style has brought them a long way. They are smart not to use the latest trends in their music...that is how alot of bands come and go so quickly. This band has smarts and touring across the country with so many gigs is terrific. They have stamina, appeal and are hard working. They bring their music into their own. The direction they are headed is full steam ahead. Great work!
|
|
Jennifer Berardini
|
{15 votes}
|
|
|
An interesting band, but not an interesting band LIVE. I quite like Stereolab. I was first turned onto them by College Music Journal - the song was 'The Free Design'. I really liked the song and started to listen to more of them - my brother's a big fan so I swiped his CDs to take a gander.
Unfortunately, their music doesn't translate very well into a live forum. To put it mldly: they're awful live. And the tragedy that befell the band when Mary died does not help, as she was just about the only factor that translated well onto stage.
I doubt that Tim Gane WANTS to 'top the charts' or play arenas - but frankly, you won't catch me at a Stereolab show any time soon either...unless, of course, you want to give ME free tickets. I'd definitely go if I had free tickets. (hint-wink-nudge to Hour...)
|
|
Ben Kalman
|
{18 votes}
|
|
|
I heard Stereolab's latest disc and I have to say that it's not good. After 13 years in the music industry I expected something better than their latest disc. Stereolab will continue playing small clubs for the rest of their careers because musically they will never get to the top of the charts. At least they're making a living off playing music, which is one of the coolest jobs in the world, but I would not be caught dead watching this band play live.
I would not want to watch Stereolab play live even if I got free tickets.
|
|
Carmela Sicurella
|
{3 votes}
|
|
|
I only really like one of Stereolab's songs. I am not the kind of person who loves a band's every song just because the band is cool. I think that Stereolab is coll and I respect what they are doing with their music but I only really like one of their songs and that is not enough for me to go to see them or buy their CD.
|
|
Rachel Shanholtzer
|
{6 votes}
|
|
|
