Saint Etienne - International
A radiant final serenade, after 35 years of eclectic contributions to pop.
Saint Etienne - International
Rough Trade Exclusive Italia 90 LP (red, white and green pressing) + bonus CD.
Who
Saint Etienne are Bob, Pete and Sarah, childhood friends turned British pop legends, enduring figures of the nineties indie dance era. After three decades of releasing genre-splicing albums, largely characterised by the band's classic dance funk sound, the band turns their ineffable energy towards a final stylish hurrah, ending their reign of pop ear worms at the top of their game.
What
Drafting in a host of collaborators, International distils the band's fine-tuned eclecticism - a familiar dreamlike synth-pop, obscure TV samples and acid house. Diverting from its predecessors, International takes on a tougher edge, demonstrated on tracks like Take Me To The Pilot, a breakbeat-infused track produced with Orbital's Paul Hartnoll or the 90s trip-hop sensibility and playful pop exuberance of Confidence Man collab Brand New Me. As per all Saint Etienne projects, Sarah Cracknell’s velvety vocals embrace warmth, melancholy and nostalgia, specifically reflecting on the band's unified past on album track The Last Time: "Now I’m really glad we made the trip…30 odd years later…we’re not the dandy highwaymen you might expect to find.”
With
For fans of: Stereolab, Air, Morcheeba and Confidence Man.
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