Stereolab are an English-French avant-pop band formed in London in 1990. Led by the songwriting team of Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier, the group's music combines influences from krautrock, lounge and 1960s pop music, often incorporating a repetitive motorik beat with heavy use of vintage electronic keyboards and female vocals sung in English and French. Their lyrics have political and philosophical themes influenced by the Surrealist and Situationist movements. On stage, they play in a more feedback-driven and guitar-oriented style. The band also draw from funk, jazz and Brazilian music, and were one of the first artists to be dubbed "post-rock". They are regarded among the most innovative and influential groups of the 1990s.
Sean O'Hagan is an Irish singer, songwriter, and arranger who leads the avant-pop band The High Llamas, which he founded in 1992. He is also known for being one half of the songwriting duo in Microdisney and for his work with the English-French band Stereolab.
Mouse on Mars is an electronic music duo formed in 1993 by Jan St. Werner and Andi Toma. Their music is a blend of electronic genres including IDM, dub, krautrock, breakbeat, and ambient, featuring heavy use of organic analog synth and cross-frequency modulation. Their music also features live instrumentation including strings, horns, drums, bass and guitar.
Switched On is a compilation of Stereolab's first three releases, and was originally released in 1992. The album's name is in tribute to Switched-On Bach and other similar titles from the late 1960s to 1970s that feature Moog synthesizers as the primary instrument. Switched On was later licensed to Slumberland Records for a US release, and Rough Trade Germany, for that country, both in 1992.
Aluminum Tunes is a double album collection of EPs and rarities from Stereolab, released in 1998. It is the third compilation in a series of rarities collections following Switched On and Refried Ectoplasm, and was stickered with the subtitle "Switched On, Volume 3".
Lætitia Sadier is a French musician, best known as a founding member of the London-based avant-pop band Stereolab. In 1996, while Stereolab was still active, she formed the side project Monade. In 2009 — the same year Stereolab became inactive — she ended the Monade project and began to perform solo work under her own name; her current band is known as the Lætitia Sadier Source Ensemble. She has frequently performed guest vocals and collaborations with other artists.
Mars Audiac Quintet is the third studio album by English-French rock band Stereolab. It was released on 2 August 1994 and was issued by Duophonic Records and Elektra Records.
Captain Easychord is a July 2001 EP by Stereolab. It was released on CD and 12" vinyl one month prior to the album Sound-Dust. "Moodles" is included on the Japanese version of the Sound-Dust album as a bonus track. The album version of the title track has two musically distinct sections and lasts 5:33; the EP version comprises only the first section, fading out shortly before the transition to the second.
Instant 0 in the Universe is a 2003 EP by Stereolab. It was released as three 7" singles in a slipcase as well as on CD. This was the first release by the group after the death of longtime member Mary Hansen in December 2002. It was also the first release recorded at Stereolab's "Instant Zero" studio, north of Bordeaux in France.
ABC Music: The Radio 1 Sessions, released in October 2002, is a compilation by post-rock band Stereolab of BBC Radio 1 sessions recorded from July 1991 to August 2001. It includes appearances in John Peel and Mark Radcliffe's shows and it is a CD-only release.
Oscillons from the Anti-Sun, released in April 2005, is a three-CD, one-DVD box-set collection of Stereolab tracks culled from eight of the group's EPs and singles. It includes both released and unreleased tracks, which are not presented in chronological order. The DVD features promo videos and TV appearances.
The High Llamas are an Anglo-Irish avant-pop band formed in London circa 1991. They were founded by singer-songwriter Sean O'Hagan, formerly of Microdisney, with drummer Rob Allum and ex-Microdisney bassist Jon Fell. O'Hagan has led the group since its formation. Their music is often compared to the Beach Boys, a band he acknowledges as an influence, although more prominent influences were drawn from bossa nova and European film soundtracks.
Miss Modular is a 1997 EP by the post-rock band Stereolab, which served as the lead single from their fifth full-length studio album Dots and Loops. It was produced in collaboration with the group Mouse on Mars.
Cybele's Reverie is an EP by English-French rock band Stereolab, released on 19 February 1996 by Duophonic Records. Its title track serves as the lead single from their fourth studio album Emperor Tomato Ketchup. The four-track EP is the only one by Stereolab on which none of the songs are in English: the title track, "Brigitte", and "Young Lungs" are in French, and "Les Yper-Yper Sound" is an instrumental.
Serene Velocity is a compilation album by Stereolab, released in late 2006. It focuses on material released during the band's Elektra years.
The Free Design is a September 1999 EP by the group Stereolab which served as the lead single from their sixth full-length studio album, Cobra and Phases Group Play Voltage in the Milky Night. All four of its tracks were later re-released on the Oscillons from the Anti-Sun compilation.
Ping Pong is a 1994 EP by the English-French avant-pop band Stereolab. It served as the lead single from their third full-length album Mars Audiac Quintet. Three limited 7" runs were released in green, black, and pink colors. It was also released on CD and 10" vinyl.
Jenny Ondioline is a 1993 EP by the Anglo-French band Stereolab, which served as the lead single from the album Transient Random-Noise Bursts with Announcements. It was released on CD and 10" vinyl. Its tracks were later re-released on the Oscillons from the Anti-Sun compilation.
Transona Five are a Dallas, Texas-based American space rock or indie rock band that began playing together in 1995, and named after a song on the Mars Audiac Quintet album by Stereolab.
Flowchart was an American band from Philadelphia. The group originally consisted of Sean O'Neal, Craig Bottel, and Brodie Budd in 1994. Their first album, Multi-Personality Tabletop Vacation, was released in 1995 on Carrot Top Records, garnering negative reviews from critics who found their music to be too similar to the group Stereolab. They followed the album with several EPs that moved away from the Stereolab-styled sound.
