Just finished listening through Sound Dust. I'd only heard this on Spotify before, and now my jaw is pretty much on the floor. My obi copy was perfectly pressed, and I think this may just edge out Dots and Loops (which I've loved since the time of its inititial release) as my favorite Stereolab album. The creativity is just astounding on this one. "Suggestion Diabolique" is probably the standout track for me.
Hi.Does the part number on the round sticker end with the letter C (For clear). If not it might be the sticker for the black vinyl which has no serial number.
Hello, it's definitely the clear vinyl edition I picked up : not only are all three records indeed clear, the package came with a scratch card, a poster and a download code. The whole works ! The only thing missing is the number. There's even a blank space for it ! I don't mind all that much, and understand mistakes can and do happen, what I found surprising was that the half a dozen copies of Margerine Eclipse my store had for sale were all missing this number. Their copies of Sound dust, however, all carried it.
Was the number on the round sticker on the front and the rectangular sticker on the back of the pvc cover D-UHF-D29RC or D-UHF-D29R?
Just opened my clear triple vinyl obi-strip versions of Sound Dust & Margerine Eclipse & was very happy to see that my copy of Sound Dust is number 1 of 500! Unfortunately, both record sleeves have seam splits - looks like ‘knifing’ from the vinyl sliding around in transit - which has also caused major splits to the outer plastic sleeves. I’ll contact Duophonic & request replacement sleeves/outer plastic sleeves once I’ve had a chance to play the records & see they’re ok. For the record, my records are also numbered on the round white stickers. No luck on the scratch cards again, but am very glad to have the entire set of reissued records on clear vinyl now!
I just got the new 2 CD release of Margerine Eclipse, appears I'm in the minority here as everyone is talking about the vinyl. I got into Stereolab in the mid to late 90s as I started expanding my normal traditional progressive rock interests to more indie post rock. I always regarded the Lab though as a prime example of a newer wave of next gen progressive rock, ie see also Tortoise for example. Anyway, back then I fell in love with Mars Audiac Quintet immediately, then got the earlier more Krautrock influenced stuff before tackling Emperor Tomato Ketchup and Dots and Loops etc. Margerine was the first "newly released" Lab album I really got into right away and I also finally had the chance to see them live in concert on that tour twice. Bittersweet because I never got the chance to see them with Mary live, but this album holds a special place because I finally saw them in the flesh doing many of these tunes in 2004, as well as it being a tribute/eulogy to Mary. So very cool to revisit this remaster, this album always had a nice cool laid back flow and vibe to it. Need to pick up Sound Dust now, been awhile since I've listened to that one. I so wanted to see this tour, but the closest show to me was 6 hours away and in a standing room venue, which I don't do anymore with my knees. Hoping they extend this tour into next year and return to the US and hit more cities in the Midwest.
I really like your post above. I came from a progressive background too and got into the groop late 90s. ME is awesome, especially the art rock pieces “Cosmic Country Noir” and “... sudden stars”
I was coming to groups like Stereolab from a primarily progressive/art rock background in the late 90s as well.
Thanks. Yep, those are stellar tracks. Adventurous and catchy at the same time. It was very cool seeing them live up close playing in a small club in Nashville, the angelic female french vocals combined with that retro percolating array of keyboard sounds. It had been awhile since I saw live music that unique and fresh sounding. Around the same time I was discovering Tortoise, High Llamas etc.
Just listened through the first LP of Margarine Eclipse. As with Sound Dust, this was my first time hearing it outside of Spotify, and again I was blown away. Side A in particular was right up my alley, continuing even further with Sound Dust's imaginative take on retro baroque pop. I have to say I love the dual mono mix, and wish more artists would pay this much attention to the creative possibilities of soundstaging. Side B was a little less engaging for me, seeming to return to their more rock-oriented sound of the MAQ and ETK era, but still quite good. Though Mary was certainly missed, they did a remarkable job of recording some of Laetitia's backing vocals to sound very Mary-like, and it seemed to me that she was using a sweeter, more Mary like tone even in some of her lead vocals. This may be the album best suited to the mastering style used throughout the reissue series. I found the first three albums, plus Cobra and Phases to have a somewhat harsh, borderline sibilant sound in places, but these last two, plus Dots and Loops, sound vivid without having quite the same edginess. It seems like a somewhat odd coincidence that the albums that resonate most with me on a musical level are also the ones that sound the best in these mew masterings (to my ears and on my system).
D-UHF-D29RC on both stickers, of course. The front one even states "limited edition clear vinyl". And, again, other than the missing number, everything was as it should be : 3 clear records, scratch card, poster, download notes.
i've seen a couple like that in the local shops. not sure what the deal is. perhaps just a printing error?
Yes. One of my copies is blank. Funny enough, one of my copies of D&L had END as the number. Not really a big deal, kinda funny actually.
Where did we land in terms of storage for these? Leave them in the PVC sleeves because theres too much (Inners, the record sleeve itself) between the PVC and the records to prevent fogging?
I took them out, which was partly because a couple of them were a bit tight to slide the covers in and out with ease. Specifically TRNBWA and TGPCAPITMN.
I was wondering this myself, I initially pulled them all out for fear of fogging (like those evil pink Hendrix & Miles Davis ones) but I kept sniffing them and they were not nearly as smelly as the aforementioned Satanic PVC, record destroyers. Plus the fact I was having trouble locating big enough crystal clear outers, made me tempt fate and put them back in. Will see how they go, the temperatures getting into the high 20's here now (celsius).
No--I should have been more clear about referring only to this year's reissues. So I meant Transient, Mars, and ETK (plus Cobra). And I should emphasize that none of them were terrible or anything, though I could hear the hints of sibilance (or at least overemphasized, if not necessarily distorted, sibilants) that many reported on the more ballad-y tracks on Transient and Mars (like "Etoiles Electroniques"). I don't remember if it was that obvious anywhere on ETK, but I found it to have a similar overall sound, with a kind of edgy upper mid emphasis throughout. I would be interested to have heard what, say, Krieg Wunderlich from Mofi would have done with those albums--I suspect we would have gotten a more smooth, liquid approach that I might have preferred, though perhaps others prefer this more in-your-face sound. With Cobra, I think the recording itself sounded a bit more murky than the others, but also had aspects of that tonal edginess. This is all based solely on recollections of my initial listening impressions, as I haven't done direct comparisons or anything like that. So all these impressions are very open to further revision after further listening. On the other hand, Dots and Loops, Sound Dust, and Margerine Eclipse didn't have quite the same edgy quality to my ears. I suspect it's a similar approach used for the EQ, but maybe with more synergy with the original recording (but who knows--maybe they were given a different treatment to match their arguably more baroque pop musical leanings). While I wouldn't call any of these albums particularly warm or smooth sounding, the elaborate sonic effects on these three seem to really shine on these masterings without seeming harsh. I'm curious as to whether others feel similarly or differently!
