Saint Etienne call it a day

Saint Etienne have announced that their next album to be released later in the year will be their last. It will mark the end of a run spanning 35 years. 

They somehow passed me by in their early 90s heyday, I didn't discover them until "He's On The Phone" in 1995 and never knowingly heard another of their tunes until I saw their greatest hits on offer around the turn of the century which I bought on the strength of "He's On The Phone".

I do however remember Sarah Cracknell's brief solo career in 1996 and given that and the fact their greatest hits went up to 1995 I assumed at the time that was the year they called it a day. Already having a fondness for the early 90s I saw 1995 as a great time to bow out and they'd be frozen in time and always fondly remembered. Little did I know they hadn't split up and would be around for another 25 years.

As the years went on though they took on another significance. I live in London and have lived here longer than I've lived anywhere else, but I don't come from here originally. The thought of moving to London never appeared on my radar when I was younger, but once people started flocking there after university my head started to turn. 

With a few St Etienne albums now in my collection I realised just how London centric their music was. It painted a picture of a place I wanted to experience myself. The day I handed my notice in at work because I'd secured a job in London I was listening to Saint Etienne in my car. I didn't choose that CD on purpose, but it did seem symbolic.

When I moved to London I was in my 20s and still going to clubs full of other 20 somethings. I would describe my music of choice as electronic music and would consider Saint Etienne as part of that description. However, you wouldn't hear their music at the Ministry of Sound and the likes. In fact when I first went to see them in concert I was surprised at just how old the audience were.

Perhaps this is a factor in why they're calling it a day. Their audience hasn't really grown or dwindled over the years, it's stayed consistent. Their fan base isn't getting any younger and their legacy probably isn't going to pass through generations.

Nothing stays the same forever. Eventually my days of going to the Ministry of Sound or seeking out the latest tunes fizzled out. It was replaced by a growing interest in music history which is the main reason why I started this blog. It would appear this is where Bob Stanley's interests lie too.

By the time the "Home Counties" album had come out, Pete and Sarah had done the unthinkable. They'd moved out of London, Pete moved to Brighton and Sarah moved to the Oxfordshire countryside. Some time later Bob moved to Leeds. 

It seems a bit strange that I'm living in London but Saint Etienne aren't. But then who knows, I may have moved out of London myself by the time I get to their age. What I do know is the aspirations I have now differ from the aspirations I had when I first moved here.

At the same time my perception of Saint Etienne has changed over the years. By the time their "Words & Music" album came out in 2012 I was well and truly settled in London, the band members were probably still living in London and it felt like a moment to celebrate London I guess.

Since then I can't say I've been overly impressed by their more recent material and as much as I enjoy their older music it does have its limitations. I've also never bought any of these deluxe editions and limited edition boxsets etc. they seem to be constantly bringing out, I'm happy to make do with the normal albums.

Fair play to them though. They've carved out a moderately successful career spanning 35 years with by their own admission limited music talent and have a loyal fan base, many of whom are willing to part with vast sums of money to fund an ever growing Saint Etienne collection. Nothing lasts forever though.

UK Number 40s: Saint Etienne - Soft Like Me (2003)

 

Saint Etienne became the 2nd act to peak at number 40 with 2 different singles after this record made number 40. The first act to achieve this was Queensryche in 1995. The other Saint Etienne record to make number 40 was "Avenue" in 1992. 

Saint Etienne got off to a pretty strong start in the 21st century from a Top 40 perspective when they reached the Top 10 for the first time with their Paul Van Dyk collaboration "Tell Me Why (The Riddle)". It was back to the lower reaches after that though.

This was their penultimate Top 40 hit to date and the only Top 40 hit from their "Finisterre" album. I've also seen from fans discussion on the internet that quite a few of them don't think this record was their finest moment.

Sarah Cracknell just sings the chorus on this record, the verses are rapped by Wildflower.

UK Number 40s: Saint Etienne - Avenue (1992)

 

Saint Etienne are one of those groups I would describe as too obscure to be a household name but too popular to be obscure. Their chart record more or less reflects this description. They've had 15 Top 40 hits across a 14 year period, but the only Top 10 they've managed was as featured artist on a Paul Van Dyk record.

For those who are familiar with Saint Etienne they would likely be familiar with their Top 40 debut "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" and their debut album "Foxbase Alpha". However "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" only made number 39 and "Foxbase Alpha" had no further Top 40 hits on it.

They fared better with their non-album double a-side "Join Our Club/People Get Real" which made number 21. Then came this their 3rd Top 40 hit which was the lead single from their upcoming album "So Tough".

Given the low charting positions of Saint Etienne singles, this is by no means one of their obscure records. You are just as likely to know this as you would their next single "You're In A Bad Way" which made number 12 the following year. 

This single is notably more mellow than your average Saint Etienne hit. Maybe the record buying public weren't ready for it yet. It could also be the reason why their next mellow single "Hobart Paving" was released as a double a-side with the more upbeat "Who Do You Think You Are?".

The Top 40 career of Saint Etienne is seemingly over but the group carry on. It's members do lots of other things apart from Saint Etienne though, particularly Bob Stanley who's arguably better known as a music critic than a Saint Etienne member these days.

Saint Etienne @ Heaven

Several years ago I learnt that Saint Etienne had done a gig in London where they played their debut album Foxbase Alpha in full. Unfortunately the gig had already happened when I found out about it.

This year marks 25 years since its release so I had been hoping they would do another gig in London where they play the album in full. Upon returning from holiday earlier this year I found they had announced a date at Heaven, but this had already sold out. Fortunately they added another date which I bought tickets for.

Being a Tuesday, it was too early in the week to drink vast amounts of alcohol, so I decided to arrive early instead of preloading on beer at home (those who buy beer at these venues will know why this is necessary). It seemed the music being played before and in between sets was part of the experience, with all tunes except for one being from 1990-1992 therefore taking us back to the Foxbase Alpha era. Going off memory, from when I arrived to when the support act began, the tunes played where "Ain't Too Proud To Beg" - TLC, "Toms Diner" - DNA, "My Lovin" - En Vogue, "Anthem" - N-Joi, "What Can You Do For Me" - Utah Saints, "What Do I Have To Do" - Kylie Minogue, "Chime" - Orbital and "LFO" - LFO.

The support act where a female trio called Stealing Sheep. Its true to say they are rather different to anything I've heard before. All dressed in identical outfits and stood in line at the front consisting of a synth player, electronic drummer and the other member rotating between the guitar and bass, they all shared vocal duties.

After the support act, the tunes I remember being played where "I Love Your Smile" - Shanice, "Set Adrift On Memory Bliss" - PM Dawn, "Confide In Me" - Kylie Minogue, "House of Love" - East 17, "Winter in July" - Bomb The Bass, "So Hard" - Pet Shop Boys and "Devotion" - Nomad.

Then onto the main piece, the band arrived on stage to the album intro along with one time collaborator Debsy Wykes doing backing vocals and playing various instruments throughout the night including the recorder.

During "Wilson" (the "would you like some sweets willy?" one), Sarah picked up a tub of Haribo and offered sweets to the audience, I was one of the lucky ones to get a sweet! Then during "Stoned To Say The Least" which is an instrumental track, Sarah and Debsy sat at a table and had a drink and game of cards.

Next up was "Nothing Can Stop Us Now", the first track Sarah sang for the band and she missed her cue to start singing, taking until the chorus to find her place, the beauty of live music I guess.

Once the album finished they took a 10 minute break, the music during this was in the background now and someone behind me kept shouting "Come On!" every 10 seconds during the break which was rather annoying.

Back on the stage they did "Join Our Club" followed by "Who Do You Think You Are", the song Debsy originally contributed vocals to. Then Q-Tee came on stage to perform "Filthy" which was the double A side to "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" that she did the vocals for. Then they did "Your In A Bad Way" before saying goodnight.

Of course there was an encore, and they appeared back on stage minus Pete and Bob to do an acoustic version of "Hobart Paving" which was very good. They rounded off the night with "Kiss and Make Up" which was a non album track from the Foxbase Alpha era. The ironic thing to me was that Sarah began and ended the gig singing songs she wasn't the original vocalist on.

All in all a top night and definitely worth the wait. On the way out they were giving out what looked to be goody bags, on closer inspection they were simply carrier bags with the bands logos on it. Still its a souvenir from a memorable night.