REVIEW: Saint Etienne Good Humor (Sub Pop/Creation)
- Patrick Carmosino
Jon Savage's inspiring liner notes of Saint Etienne's 1991 debut Fox Base Alpha ended with the coda "Stay busy, out of phase, in love." The threesome have been just that since. Good Humor may be their first proper full-length since 1994, but between Bob Stanley and Pete Wiggs introducing the likes of Denim and Kenickie to the world via their Emidisc label and Sarah Cracknell putting the Kylie Minogue's of the world to shame with the shameless import-only solo effort Lipslide plus repackages, remixes yada yada, it's been a non stop chaotic cabaret!
Good Humor shows Saint Etienne in a darker humor, actually. Well not that dark, but compared to the 60's pop meets Euro-disco sounds that graced Fox Base Alpha and 1993's So Tough , Good Humor moves towards soul pop sleekness (hinted by their last, "Tiger Bay") and dry production that comes across as an impossibly refreshing wake-up call. Sounding more like a band than ever (with the help of Swedish musicians led by Cardigans producer Tore Johansson), the album has a definite 'in-the-studio' feel to it rather than a 'Bob-and-Pete-in-the-bedsit' one. It is a quality foreign to the Saint Etienne catalog up 'til now. The band though, pull it off in fine fashion with great melodies, smart arrangements (electric piano galore! horn sections! wah wah guitar!), their usual northern kitchen sink drama feel without the kitchen sink soundbites. All this and Johansson's dry, slightly compressed techniques that have given the Cardie's records that cozy, winter morning feel, add up to essentially the Saint's version of Rubber Soul .
Out of phase...yes indeed...Saint Etienne's take on soul, club and pop music does not herald back to an era long gone as much as it hits heights that very few top 40 records of the day hit. A string of tracks here, "Split Screen", "Lose That Girl" and "Erica America" virtually...um...*rock* in their "Drive My Car" and "You Won't See Me"-esque groove (ah! the Rubber Soul references!). To see the difference (with no apparent drop in quality mind you) between the 'old' Etienne and 'new' Etienne, compare these tracks to "You're In A Bad Way" ("So Tough") and you'll see an extreme variation on a theme. "Erica America" is an absolute highlight, unravelling out of a slinky beat into a gorgeous, world-is-all-yours type reverie... something to get you out of bed and into the club! Also note the galloping on "The Bad Photographer" for further new, interesting things in St.E's sound. On "Goodnight Jack", the Saints reach back for some of their unpredictability; with spacious horns, Shaft-style flutes and a chorus sporting a heavy, slow breakbeat and synth wash that lurks back to a rave anthem about to take off into dawn. Alas, Wiggs', Stanley's and Cracknell's disco passions are still very much alive too in the LP's first single "Sylvie", which like "Lose That Girl", focuses on relationship forebodings and the like. DRAMA QUEENS ALIVE!
There are many other nice little surprises in here for both long time followers of Saint Etienne and people looking for alternatives to the alternatives. Certainly Creation snapping them off of sister label (Heavenly in the UK) hints at the slightly crestfallen 'indie' giant looking to expand its music palette further (in the perfect form of old friends). Sub Pop merely continue presenting a sound that, like its compadres Up! and K, looks forever forward, far away from the Northwest grunge ethic.
In love?...Well, after four years Good Humor sounds like the work of people in such a state!
