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May 23, 2019 Web Exclusive By Dom Gourlay

If there’s one band deserving of some long overdue recognition for their contribution to shaping music it must be Stereolab. An enigma of sorts whose record collections always appeared to be better than yours or mine, their music somehow managed to outlast grunge, Britpop, and any other populist driven fad thrown at us over the past three decades, yet sound fresh and exciting in the process.

So this year’s timely live return from 2009’s decade long hiatus has prompted the band’s entire back catalogue to be given the repackage and reissue treatment throughout the year. If debut album Peng! announced their intentions amidst a sea of floppy fringes and flannel shirts, 1993’s follow-up Transient Random-Noise Bursts With Announcements felt like it had arrived from another planet altogether.

Recorded in May of that year then released three months later, its 10 pieces fully illustrate why Stereolab were viewed as an anomaly by music commentators and connoisseurs alike, yet ultimately becoming one of the most influential bands of their generation (and one of the most collectable too). Transient Random-Noise Bursts With Announcements documents an era that’s looked back on as one of the band’s most productive.

While founder members Lætitia Sadier and Tim Gane were busy carving out their own experimental paths, the addition of Mary Hansen, Sean O’Hagan, and Duncan Brown to the band’s ranks paved the way for much of what followed after.

This reissue also features 13 bonus tracks ranging from early demos of songs that would go onto become some of the best known in the band’s canon as well as the full Jenny Ondioline EP, including cult classic “French Disco.” All of which makes it an essential collection for any Stereolab completist, of which we suspect there are a few. (www.stereolab.ochre.store)

Author rating: 8/10