- Saint Etienne - Words and Music by Saint Etienne (Heavenly Records) Rating: 8 (out of 10)
Saint Etienne, the conceptual U.K. pop trio featuring Sarah Cracknell on vocals, return after a sevenyear absence with songs about getting older. Addressing the issue of aging has never been a smart career move for those bands interested in getting to the top of the pop charts but Saint Etienne have always had a complex relationship with their material.
The band condense several eras of music culture into their tunes (such as '60s swinging London, '70s disco, '80s Brit pop to name just a few of the influences) literally creating an ongoing soundtrack of their lives.
On Words and Music by Saint Etienne they get even more introspective than usual presenting Proustian pop memories of a musical listening experience.
"Over the Border" opens the album with a teenage music fan reliving a specific time ("I just wanted to listen to Dexy's, New Order, anything on Postcard...") and drawing the listener into Saint Etienne's sound world. "I've Got Your Music," "Last Days of Disco" and "DJ" flesh out the narrative like musical short stories.
The Deluxe Edition includes a second disc of tracks remixed by different producers. Saint Etienne have always been about creating the perfect tight pop song but the remixes stretch things out to accentuate the club potential of the material.
You can dig as deep as you want into Saint Etienne's songs and there will always be something new to pick up on.
