- Title: USA: ST ETIENNE LAUNCH A NEW ALBUM CALLED "GOOD HUMOUR"
- Date: 26th May 1998
- Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (MAY 26 1998) (REUTERS) CRACKNELL SAYING, "THE DYNAMICS HAVE CHANGED IN THE BAND SINCE "TIGER BAY" IN THAT WE WRITE EVERYTHING TOGETHER NOW BUT I THINK THAT'S BECAUSE BOB AND PETE HAVE KNOWN EACH OTHER SINCE THEY WERE KIDS AND THEY'VE WORKED TOGETHER FOR LONGER THAN I'VE WORKED WITH THEM. THE BAND STARTED BEFORE I JOINED. THEY HAD TWO SING
- Embargoed: 10th June 1998 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
- Country: USA
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA1HVBTTSR0XYXFEQMPDIRGRAKH
- Story Text: It may be four years since the release of their last album but St Etienne have to stifle a laugh when they hear their latest offering, "Good Humour", called their "comeback".
As far as trio Sarah Cracknell, Bob Stanley and Pete Wigg are concerned, they've never been away.
The band who formed in 1990 and who were saying "pop is cool" when indie angst was the rage, have moved away from their traditional club base with this album.
For the first time, the band has stepped away from sampling and computer-generated music and recorded an album with live instruments and musicians.
Only one single, "Sylvie", has any evidence of sampling.
According to Cracknell, the change came because the band felt they had gone as far as they could with their previous style of work.
It was also an attempt to keep them all interested after each of the trio had gone into other projects.
In the interim, Cracknell recorded a solo album and the boys started their own record label, Emidisc.
But their primary commitment was still to St Etienne.
"I think we'd missed working together closely on one specific thing," Cracknell said from her home in North London.
"We're all quite loyal to each other and we're all very loyal to St Etienne.I think with all three of us it's our priority.So it's nice to be back really." The band started when childhood friends Wigg and Stanley formed a pop act and named themselves after a French football team.
They released two singles before Sarah joined.
Their first album "Foxbase Alpha" was nominated for Britain's prestigious Mercury Music Prize.It didn't win but it placed St Etienne at the forefront of British pop music.
1992 saw the release of "Join Our Club" and spawned their first real hit single "Do You Believe in Love".
"Avenue" and "So Tough" followed, as did a period of collaborating with everyone from the Charlatans to Kylie Minogue.
The band played their first full tour in 1994 -- with Oasis as support.
Then came the album "Tiger Bay" which blended progressive techno with Burt Bacharach-type ballads.
1995 was the year for the Europop smash hit "He's on the Phone".The following year, St Etienne went into sabbatical mode.While none of the members were idle, the break did lead to their new album being hailed as their "comeback".
Apart from recharging their batteries, the time away from the band led to a different form of writing.
The "absence" also led to a legion of St Etienne clones emerging to stake their claim on the scene.
From Dubstar to Cardigans and Peach, a swathe of acts were indebted to St Etienne for making pop cool.
But Cracknell likes to think the imitators shared the same influences and didn't set out to follow their mould.
She will concede to opening a few doors, however.
"We were being played on Radio 1 and we'd get on Top of the Pops because we weren't afraid to do pop music and be out- and-out pop," she said.
"We were going 'pop music is cool, there's nothing wrong with it', instead of being alternative and indie or whatever.
So I do think we opened the doors to some extent." "Good Humour" was released earlier this month.The band is due to set off on tour to promote it. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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