Search - St Etienne :: So Tough

So tough

Erica Anderson | Minneapolis, MN | 05/29/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It is rare for me to find a pop band that doesn't come off as cheesy or redundant. Most pop music I find to be simply awful. 95% pop music today is geared more towards the younger generation and has a short term life span. One of the few rare pop bands that I do enjoy immensely is the British group Saint Etienne. I discovered them when I bought "Tiger Bay" through my then record club several years ago. The music was incredibly catchy and had a good beat. From then on, I began buying more of Saint Etienne's music. One of my favorite Saint Etienne albums is the '93 album "So Tough". I still haven't heard the group's first album "Foxbase Alpha" so I can't compare this album to that album. The production may not be flawless (and over time would improve on the band's predecessors) but the music is still good nevertheless. I am particularly fond of "Mario's Cafe", "Avenue", "Hobart Paving" (one of my personal favorite SE songs of all time), and "Join Our Club". What I like about Saint Etienne so much is that their brand of pop music isn't dumbed down for the masses like today's pop music is. It is very catchy yet doesn't bore me with the same tiresome lyrics that I hear in today's pop music. This is what pop music SHOULD sound like."

No Foxbase Beta here?This is So Tough!

Daniel J. Hamlow | Narita, Japan | 04/24/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After the good but uneven Foxbase Alpha, Sarah Cracknell and crew came up with an album that's So Tough. Their alterna-dance sound, inspired by early Pet Shop Boys but with a twist of Etienne added, is more coherent and innovative. Songs that are alternately cheery but with sober and sad ones done with Sarah Cracknell's dreamy sugary vocals prevent this from being Foxbase Beta. Oh yes, between the songs are samples of old British movies and random bits of dialogue from who knows. What really gets me cranked is that they didn't list which movies they took them from-I would've gone looking for them. My favourite one is "Memo to Pricey," where a girl asks, "You think a girl should go to bed with a fellow if she doesn't love him." To which the guy responds. "No. Unless it's me."Anyway, enough of that. "Mario's Café" has a smooth, refreshingly mellow portrait of the title café and the customers in it. A violin-like synthesizer plays with the lyrics: "When we meet for a while /Tuesday morning 10 AM" It seems like a laid back place.After that is "Railway Jam", which begins with a British movie sample, then continues as an instrumental, with echoing sounds of a train going down a tunnel. The rest of it reminds me of a train slowly making its way in daylight, with scenes from the countryside. The rhythmic drum machine is punctuated occasionally by guitar.In "Calico," Q-Tee raps babyishly with Sarah singing "Calico" in her haunting Lulu-like voice. A bass underlines the constant drum machine.The haunting and sadly introspective "Avenue" puts Sarah's vocal talents to good use and its 7:35 length doesn't seem noticeable. I get the feeling she's riding on a slow train, looking out the window, then letting her mind wander to the sad past, longing for a Maurice. Inbetween verses, she sings "Oo-oo-ooh/young heart."After another dialogue 40's movie sample, "You're In A Bad Way" explodes in a bubbly burst of refreshing pop. Sarah tells of a guy who's down because a bad day-burnt toast, bills in the mail, dull TV, rain. Her prescription: "Just dial my number/I've got some plans for you/You're in a bad way/and I can help you through/You're in a bad way/ every day is just the same/Just dial my number/or call my name."Then comes the best song, the very slow and tearjerking "Hobart Paving" which always puts me in a reflective funk every time I hear it, especially the keyboard solo in the middle. It's a combination conversation between a separated couple and on the man's new woman. On herself, she says: "Rain falls/like Elvis tears./Oh no/no sugar tonight. /Out on the high street/dim all the lights and/Cry coloured tears again." The title seems to be a train platform, as she says, "Hobart paving, don't you think that's it's time?/The ticket's in my hand, the train pulls down the line." If anyone needs evidence of Saint Etienne's talent or Sarah Cracknell's voice, look no further than this song."Leafhound" sounds like a song from Foxbase Alpha that could've helped that album, with its soft jangling guitar accompanying the drum machine. Another introspective driving down the highway song.A familiar burst of hard rock guitar, a sample of Rush's "The Spirit Of Radio," cuts in with the upbeat techno-dance number "Conchita Martinez." The only lyrics are "Conchita, I know/ I know it should have been." Not to worry, she won Wimbledon the year after.The dreamy, lazy "No Rainbows For Me" deserves the spoken outro sample: "Yes, well, that one didn't sound too furious." "You think my heart's a toy/ like a little boy /You pick it up/and play with it/and break it when you're through."The morgue in the dreamy soundscape "Junk The Morgue" is the polluted planet Earth and Sarah calls for us to leave the planet for somewhere else: "You can look at the stars/look at the ocean/The answer's somewhere/here's what i reckon /Close your eyes/kiss the future/junk the morgue."The joyful techno of "Join The Club" ends the album and with this album, I'd be glad to. Radio should play more of this kind of stuff."

Hard to find, but worth finding!

R. Riis | NY | 01/09/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Among St. Etienne's best CDs is this hard-to-find gem from 1993. Chock full of melodic, atmospheric soundscapes, cool vocals, and charming (and sometimes surprising) instrumental colorings. In between tracks there are short audion clips and record samples that make this CD sort of a pop music collage, with a little bit of techno impressionism ("Avenue"), some girl-group sounds ("You're in a Bad Way"), some melacholy acoustic guitar-driven balladry (the best track, "Hobart Paving"). Track listing : Mario's Cafe, Railway Jam, Date with Spelman, Calico, Avenue, You're in a Bad Way, Memo to Pricey, Hobart Paving, Leafhound, Clock Milk, Conchita Martinez, No Rainbows for Me, Here Come Clown Feet, Junk the Morgue, Chicken Soup, Join Our Club."