Stereolab - The First of the Microbe Hunters
(Elektra)
Stereolab is fun again!
Remember when listening to Stereolab made you want to wear berets, read Marx, and dance? Well
dust off your copies of the Manifesto, comrades! Because Stereolab's new "mini-album"
(seven songs, forty minutes; six new tracks, one hold over from the Dots and Loops period) is a
peppy, lively, zesty little snack. A nice departure from the minty, icey cool of Dots and
Loops and Cobra and Phases Group Play Voltage in the Milky Night.
Overall this release has more in common, vibe-wise, with Emperor Tomato Ketchup. "Outer
Bongolia," as the title implies, is one of the funkiest concoctions the 'Lab has brewed
up yet: over nine full minutes of bouncing bass, phat jazz organ, and psychedelic wah-wah guitar
layered into a delicious post-retro lasagna. Most importantly, though, its got a funny name.
"Barock-Plastik" has a grimey bass hook matched up with a syncopated organ thats ripe for the
sampling (though its title is not as funny as "Outer Bonglia").
However, The First of the Microbe Hunters is not a step backwards. "Nomus et Phusis" and
"I Feel the Air" are as smooth and polished as Stereolab's most recent releases, filled
with doo-be-doo vocals, jazzy syncopated rhythms, and blipping synths. But by removing these
newer elements from the production of those who inspired them (Mouse on Mars, various Chicago
post-dorks), Stereolab incorporates them without letting them take precedent over what
Stereolab does best: get their bizarre groove on.
The Groop has assumed many guises--Sergio Mendes kraut rock; retro-futurist jazz funk;
ultra-cool Continental disco--but they have always remained true to a simple pop formula. By
injecting their latest "now sound" with an invigorating bounce (more reminiscent of their live
performances than recorded output) the listener is able to connect directly to the groove,
making the songs more appealing and less distant. Stereolab is fun again!
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