Audio CD review:
Saint Etienne - Sound of Water

Saint Etienne - Sound of Water

Band: Saint Etienne Title: Sound of Water Rating: Release Date: 06 June, 2000 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Late Morning 2: Heart Failed (In The Back Of A Taxi) 3: Sycamore 4: Don't Back Down 5: Just A Little Overcome 6: Boy Is Crying 7: Aspects Of Lambert 8: Downey, CA 9: How We Used To Live 10: The Place At Dawn

Editoral Review The artistic achievement in Sound of Water has been diminished somewhat by competent musicians such as Broadcast and Mono having picked up the gauntlet Saint Etienne first threw down in 1988, and having taken the sounds to new places. Saint Etienne's delicate, perfectly crafted blend of '60s pop and of-the-moment electronica has been replicated by so many other acts over the years that the band is threatened with losing its musical brand. Trends are fleeting by definition, and Saint Etienne, in the precarious position of being an inadvertent trendsetter, would have served their audience better with a little reinvention (the Cardigans made this transition magically with 1998's Gran Turismo). Rather, they stick to their overly precious formula, mixing cheap-sounding drum loops, Sarah Cracknell's snazzy-cool vocals, drawn-out melody, and subtle instrumentation (flute, harpsichord, bongos) with butterfly-fluttering techno. As lovely as it all is, by the end of the album, the ear is desperate to hear something more assertive--it's as unsatisfying as eating cotton candy all day when you long for lasagna. In all, the abundance of emotionless na na na's and la la la's result in no no no's. --Beth Massa .. You can see a complete list of all Saint Etienne discography, or go back to the Saint Etienne tabs