Search - St Etienne :: Continental

Etienne Gonna Die

Anon. | Brooklyn, NY United States | 03/16/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As a diehard Saint Etienne fan I bought this Japanese import CD thinking it would be, as Mr Simon Brayley claims, merely an `odds-and-sods' collection which I needed to purchase primarily for the tracks (seven out of thirteen) that I did not already possess in various other guises (EPs and compilations). What surprised me about the collection is how seamless it is. Indeed, alongside their first _Foxbase Alpha_ it is their most beautifully constructed album. (Compare this to both the UK and US versions of _Tiger Bay_ which, for all its good tracks, is structurally random and diffuse. I suspected, at the time, that it was the result of a rift between the boys and Sarah. The subsequent - and, thankfully, brief - split up of the band seemed to validate this impression.) The brilliant sequencing of tracks on _Continental_ breathes new life into previously released material. For example, the instrumental "Winter Melody" (which is titled "Sometimes in Winter" on _Casino Classics_) is preceded here by the ballad "Sometimes in Winter" and the combination of songs brings added depth to each track. In particular, the mood of - how to put it? - defiant melancholy that was already latent in the instrumental is here brought to the fore by the way it comes to extend the fierce sadness on display in the track that precedes it. In other words, the latter (and its refrain "Sometimes in winter/Love can go astray") comes to reverberate in the former. We retain the memory of Sarah's plaintive vocal as "Winter Melody" loses itself in the snowstorm. One more example: "The Process," which was originally contained on one of the "He's on the Phone" eps surrounded by (even swamped under) two other overly wistful tracks is given new life by being sandwiched between the giddy "Public Information Film" and the euro-fun of "He's on the Phone." The poignancy of the track is more affecting for being so exposed. Finally, let me add that their cover of Gary Numan's "Stormtrooper in Drag" is even better than their cover of Right Said Fred's "I'm Too Sexy." This CD is right up there with the very best of Saint Etienne, which is to say _Foxbase Alpha_ (esp. "London Belongs to Me"), _Good Humor_ (Japanese Import Version for including "Afraid to Go Home," "Zipcode" and "Hill Street Connection" from the "Sylvie" ep), _Casino Classics_ , and the ep for "You're In A Bad Way" (esp. "Archway People" and "Duke Duvet"). I might add that this CD also contains a lyric sheet, although - truth be told - most of the songs work better for retaining a certain elusiveness (the lyrics to "Burnt Out Car" are obviously meant to be heard as fragments of emotion, of inarticulable longing; very little or nothing is added to them by seeing the words printed on a piece of paper)."

Sometimes blonde anthologies do have more fun

moses the man | Pittsburgh, PA., USA | 02/14/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I was excited to find this import, and I purchased it basically for one track: "Stormtrooper in Drag." This ear-opener was the only worthwhile cover on the misguided Gary Numan tribute, "Random" (Numan deserved much better than the lackluster by-the-numbers imitations assembled there); but I didn't think it existed on a Saint Etienne album. So when I saw "Stormtrooper in Drag" on the tracklist of "Continental" I got it right away. This song is addictive, a high-octane energy blast. Saint Etienne takes Numan's Most Psychotic Song Ever (was he watching Visconti's "The Damned" on a bad trip?) to the club floor and dances all over it in stiletto heels. How pleased I was to also discover that the rest of "Continental" (a Japanese anthology of Saint Etienne's non-album tracks) is pretty great, ranking with "Good Humor" and "Sound of Water" as one of their best. What's appealing about "Continental" is its eclectic tour of electronica styles. "Shad Thames" is an Enofied near-instrumental, "Down By the Sea" ventures into Roni Size drum'n-bass territory, and "Angel" tries on Portishead's atmospherics, replete with simulated scratchy vinyl-lp noises. But through it all, Saint Etienne remains true to its own carefully crafted, slightly ethereal sound on the catchy tracks "Burnt Out Car," "Sometimes in Winter," "Lonesome," and the lump-in-the-throat-inducing "He's On the Phone." That last number has a big, driving chorus that may surprise listeners who wanted to write off Sarah Cracknell as queen of the la-la-la's. But I've always appreciated her earthy, as well as her airy, side. She's like the neighborhood librarian who gets sexy and wild when she goes out to a club. She's so innately tasteful that she can allow her musicians to deflate her own breathy romantic "pose" with all kinds of weird electronic gadget-sounds, and that's always been a big part of her charm, for me. There is a refreshing lack of vanity to Saint Etienne that undercuts the plastic excesses of pop music and club life, even as the band makes itself at home in both areas. Sometimes blonde anthologies do have more fun!

"

Great, one of their best

Jeffrey J. Lyons | Pembroke, NH United States | 09/29/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a fine CD from Saint Etienne, one of the most underrated, artistic and expressive pop groups out there. This album, which came out only in Japan in 1997, shows the impressive versatilty of this band. Sarah's voice doesn't get much better than this. Even when she hums on "Shad Thames," it's sexy. The two-part "Down by the Sea" and "The Sea" is a hypnotic merger of simple lyrics and ethereal musical arrangements...a masterpiece in its own way. "Lonesome" is the kind of song that when you hear it, you simply cannot understand why it wasn't a hit. It has a kind of pop emotion. And they cover a lesser known Gary Numan song, "Stormtrooper in Drag." Get out your dancing shoes for that one. Even the one minute long "Public Information Film" has a certain pleasantry about it. This includes "He's On the Phone," which is a fairly well-known song among the band's fans. I know the price may be a little steep for a CD but if you need to eat macaroni and cheese for a week to buy it...you should. This is HIGHLY recommended listening."