Emperor Tomato Ketchup

Just not a fan of electronics.

#900. Weird repetitive French nonsense. 2/5: meh

As background music it's quite alright, but for normal listening I found it very annoying.

I’ve heard of Stereolab, I think. I believe they are an indie rock band from the 90s? Maybe started in the late 80s? I need a little rock and roll to fire me up going into today’s NCAA tournament because I got up too early. Uh-oh….Lots of keyboards and weird sounds start track 1, Metronomic Underground. My good buddy Wikipedia tells me they’re French, ugh, and avant-garde. Oh, Lord. This was a single off the album, too. This is their fourth album, so maybe this is either the experimental stage or the “Let’s see if we can write a commercial record” stage. I will say, the song is nonsense, but it’s got a groove. I’m slowly buying in. The song is very repetitive, but, again, it has a groove. I didn’t mind it, but there has to be more than this, or we’re in trouble. Track 2, Cybel’s Reverie, is a nice little pop song. It’s got strings in it that sound like they’re sampled, but there is probably just an effect used on it. Otherwise is a nice little indie pop song. Oh, here’s the breakdown with some organs and strings making things sound a bit ominous, though still poppy. This is a really nice song. I can see why it was the first of the two singles off the album. It has a bit of that freewheeling French pop sound to it from the 60s. Track 3 is another French 60s sounding pop song called Percolator and I love this song. Again, it sounds like this would be in a movie from the French New Wave in the 60s. But still a very fun pop song. The lyrics are sung in French, but that doesn’t bother me. It goes well with what the music is putting out there. I’m adding this to my single songs playlist. This song sounds to me like what the Doors would sound like if they weren’t a rock band, but were French and wanted to write pop songs. Track 5 is a really funky song called Spark Plug. It has funky guitar riffs with a great bass line under it. It’s a really fun song. After consulting my friend Wiki, it seems Steroelab used looped sounds to compose songs, which was different from their previous albums. So this was an experimental album. Track 7, The Noise of Carpet is the first true rock song on the album thus far. The lead singer, a woman, is singing in English, and the guitars sound like real guitars, nice and crunchy. I really like this song. It’s a bit refreshing after the old 60s Euro pop that led up to it. However, the song still has a pop sheen. The vocals are very poppy, as well. Pop, pop, pop, pop, pop/ Track 8, Tomorrow Is Already Here, starts out with a guitar riff and then an organ. This sounds almost bluesy. Unfortunately, the song doesn’t expand much past the opening riff and beats. It’s a slower song, and it sounds like the whole band is singing vocals. Now here comes a xylophone? This certainly brightens the song a bit, but not enough for me. Track 9, Emperor Tomato Ketchup, sounds like the song the Blue Brothers band would play over and over while Jake and Elwood Blues were being introduced, or maybe James Brown. It’s the same upbeat riff over and over. You keep waiting for it to go somewhere, and it doesn’t. There are a bunch of sounds flying around in the background, but it’s not registering. Finally, the vocals come in, in French, but the music stays the same. Very basic, uninteresting song for me. Track 10, Monstre Sacre, is a very interesting song. It’s very simple, but the chord changes add intrigue to it. It sounds like a song that could be in a movie as our hero is close to figuring out all the clues, and it is playing over a certain scene in his, or her, or their mind. The strings add a bit of creepiness to the song. I really enjoyed it. Track 11, Motoroller Scalatron, is a nice little pop song with sounds buzzing around it throughout. It’s nothing incredible, it has guitar, organ, drums, bass, and these random noises. All the songs have kind of the same elements to them. Track 12 is Slow Fast Hazel, and it’s really nice. It starts slow with beautiful strings and then builds up into this very dreamy guitar solo accented by an organ. Stereolab can do 60s pop very well. If it weren’t so easy to hear the loops or sounds, you might not know this was an album from 1996. Speaking of 1996, the album finished at #67 on the US Billboard sales chart. That’s pretty good, I’d think. Especially since it seems the singles didn’t chart at all here. They must have done something right, as I know I’ve heard about them for years and years. The album started off a little shaky, but once I kind of got the idea of what they were trying to do, I ended up enjoying it for the most part. Is this going in my rotation any time soon? No. I think one and done is it for now. If you like a bit of electronic sounds mixed with your pop music, or you like 60s European pop music, then I think you’d enjoy this. It’s old school done in a new style.

Just noise but some is bice

Haven’t listened much yet, but I wasn’t vibing with it from what I did. Il have to swing back at some point.

The horrible album title sounds like a bad Chinese to English translation of something you'd order from a Chinese condiment menu. I didn't find anything interesting here and the vocalist was kind of bland and pitchy.

while i'm a big fan of weird noises i found myself skipping tracks out of boredom. My mean review is this is a 90's take on 60's pop while one member of the band is desperately trying to make through all the presets on their casio keyboard

Very twee, but I kind of liked it? It was an easy album to put on and kind of ignore while I was working. Not a ringing endorsement, but that's how it goes sometimes.

Yeah, this album couldn't keep my attention. Very bland, once I had to stop it to take a call -- I just didn't restart it.

I didn’t even realize this was playing for most of the album.

A middling sort of electronic-influenced rock album. The opening track is too long and doesn’t do much for me, and while it does improve after that (if for no other reason than the rest of the songs are shorter), even then it’s all just okay rather than notably good. Another one for the ‘decent background music but not one I’d ever think to put on’ category. Actively listening to it, I found it pretty unengaging. A real standout track or two might just have tipped it into 3-star territory, but without that I can’t give it any more than 2.

Bored

Would give 2.5

Not terrible but not something I would listen to

Pas mon style du tout, dommage que ça fasse parti du peu d'album Avec du français dans la sélection...

up peu chelou les petit.e.s potes

Ein überambitioniertes, aber oft sperriges Album. Der Mix aus Experimental‑Pop, Post‑Rock und Krautrock‑Einflüssen erzeugt zwar eine eigenwillige, hypnotische Atmosphäre, wirkt jedoch stellenweise überladen und wenig zugänglich.

Just not a fan of techno. Didn't hate as much as the Kraftwerk earlier but it's also gettin a 2

I don’t know? This was really mixed listen for me. There were some parts I liked, but they popped up sporadically throughout. The rest all kind of melted in together to me. A 2.5 would feel good to me, but 3 feels too high.

Reminds me of my early 2000’s trips to St Bart’s. French techno / electronic music is good for one or two and then grows very old very quickly for me.

i'm not a stereolab guy and that's alright by me 2/5

pretty cool album but not necessarily my cup of tea. talented musicians but it didn't speak to me lead singer does have a Imogen heap kind of voice which I do enjoy

Had a weird Japanese 70's MMW feel to it. The repetition and length made it a hard listen tho. I couldn't get thru it.

Tired while listening and the album felt out of place. Could be higher on a better day

Quite a few rather annoying repetitive songs mixed with some that are rather enjoyable and chilled. The Noise of Carpet is definitely the standout song here, overall a bit meh though. 2.5/5

Pretty repetitive and boring.

I just couldn’t stand it

Didn’t connect with this too much. Interesting sound for the time. Feels like an early (or late) version of other music I’ve heard. Would give 2.5 if I could.

Surprisingly pleasant singing to tunes that I can only describe as alternative synth-pop with guitars. Often too repetitive and boring or simply too French for my taste, but not bad. Still, this is an album for the background and not something you actively listen to. 2.5/5

It all sounded the same after a while. Album was too long, especially for krautrock.

A bit too long/bland

This was boring, totally mid, too long, and British.

why, why, why, why, why was this on list???? too long, too repetitive, too boring

It's great and very wonderful music but just not to my taste. At all. I'm not their market.

Another one I gave away.

Ugh! I could listen to most of it, but it was not enjoyable.

I'm not sure what I was supposed to get from this. I'll wager they are some producers favorite band though. In fact I'll bet they are huge in electronica circles. It's a no for me though.

Background music that wants to be in the foreground

It seems like they intentionally have metronomic sound, and I did like that to some degree at first. However, listening to the same 10-second loop for 2-4 minutes at a time over a 2 disc album was tough. I think maybe a song of theirs is worth listening to, but for sure, not the album.

Just alright, nothing every strikes you as remarkable 2.5*

It's funny how you can know you like a lot of the things a particular group likes but not really like their take on it. I wanted to like Stereolab in the 90s for the shared reference points and the peer pressure from people cooler than me, who were never done telling you how amazing they were. But they've just always sounded a bit joyless and dull to me.

Another band I was never cool enough to get. Never saw what the allure was. Had a hard time getting through this one.

I guess es ist vibey aber gerade echt nicht so der vibe i'm sorry

First song was pretty interesting, enjoyed the long jam. Then, meh... Then, annoying...

Didn't really vibe with this one, although some songs were better than others. 2.5/5

Writing this review two weeks after listening to this album on the list, I'm baffled how I even got through this album in the first place. I appreciate the existence of the album on the list; however, even though it has so many experimental parts to it, the album suffers from a repetitive sound. Her voice does not do much to add to this, even if I can applaud her for singing in both French and English. Interesting genre, but not for me.

The title of the album is pretty cool and the music is pretty alright, but definitely not absolutely great, so it was fine having it in the background. I do understand that they were experimenting things in the late 90s, but it's a bit meh nowadays.

This probably would have been a really great 45 minute album. But at 99 minutes, it's just too much. Too much of the same. I got really tired of listening to the drum tracks.

not bad, but not really good

not my personal favorite

Original but not my taste to be honest.

French? Check. Electronic? Check. Repetitive? Check. I hate it…but it is weirder than most albums like it, so it probably ought to get a bonus point for being more interesting than most looped electronic music. 2/5

Sorry but

Nah

Very long, very French, and kinda boring. Nothing crazy and songs kinda get repetitive. Not the worst by any means, just whatever and middle of the road. Standout songs: The Noise of Carpet and the title track.

Not my style... But I get it... I suppose

Hey, Stereolab. I meant to listen to an EP from these guys a year or so ago, but never got around to it because I was too occupied with this list. I've always admired the band's name, though I know virtually nothing about Stereolab beyond them supposedly being an electronic act. I'm keen to crack this album open. They only have one shot on this list to win me over, so hopefully this is the one to seal the deal. Huh. There are some good points to this album and a respectable level of variety, though I'm alienated by the general sound. The overpolished sheen and droning electronic sounds really do not do this album any favours, and the gimmicky French vocals make this album come across as much tackier than what I had hoped for. Still, it's a serviceable listen with some decent cuts. It also did an admirable job of holding my attention for it's near hour-long runtime. "Cybele's Reverie" is pretty cool. The singing and general style of the song reminds me a little bit of shibuya-kei, which is one of my very favourite music genres. The instrumental is pretty good. I always love me some strings. The French vocals aren't entirely to my liking, but they're good for what they are. I like the acoustic guitar and intricate electric sounds on "Spark Plug". The seamless transition into the bridges is pretty neat, too. "Tomorrow Is Already Here" has a nice, warm sound. The acousitic guitars go a long way in carrying the song, though the vocals are among the best on the album. Book time. A lot of influences. Well-produced. That's it, really. Wikipedia reveals that this album has a solid critic backing and charted modestly. It is pretty distinctive, so I can stick my neck out for this album on those grounds. I cosign this inclusion.

Meh. 2

This is just weird music, not bad, but weird. Not really for me, plus most songs are in French. Favorite Song(s): Les Yper-Sound

Tyckte det här var ganska tråkigt och ointressant. Med ett par undantag är det också rätt icke-melodiöst och med en sång som är frustrerande tillbakahållen och oförlöst. Inte min kopp te.

I did not love this. It was underwhelming and forgettable. Nothing much stood out to me. Occasionally something in a song would pique my interest, but it would fade pretty quickly after that. This wasn't terrible or unlistenable, just boring and probably something that doesn't need to be on this list.

It's okay, but not memorable in any way

Um disco que tem duas parcelas de contribuição nitidamente divididas: o Krautrock influenciado pelo Neu, que é a parte mais instigante, com órgãos, sintetizadores e guitarras bacanas; e o lado de inspiração pop kitsch com suas melodias e vocais infantilizados, que são sua metade mais fraca. No fim das contas um disco razoável.

If ambivalence had a sound

Not bad, but quite repetitive. Ends up becoming background music

This did not grab me, and I don't think I like Stereolab much.

It sounds nice I just couldn't get into it

Refusing to believe anyone thinks this album earned a 5. It’s obnoxious.

This was weird. And not fun weird, just not up my alley at all. I don’t like 90s electronic music with the repetitive beats, and I couldn’t understand the French lyrics. As far as French electronic goes, I think I’ll stick to just daft punk.

At least is was something new and unique

nah

Got quite excited about this. I’d heard of Stereolab back in the day but never listened to their music. So another opportunity created by this list to listen to something I’d forgotten about. Huge disappointment though. Boring and repetitive. 2/5 14/10/25

This didn’t do it for me. I wanted to appreciate the kind-of-freaky take on French pop and marrying it with krautrock, and all the various synth sounds, but I ended up finding it tedious instead of interesting. I understand this came out about 30 years ago, but I don’t enjoy it when an album tries to surprise me and bores me instead. A matter of taste, I suppose.

Not bad, just not for me.

Another album with seemingly one long, forgettable song.

Pretty uninspiring, and got progressively less interesting as it wore on.

Mukavaa hybridiä perinteisen ja elektronisen musiikin kanssa. Onko tuo ranskaa jota välillä lauletaan. Lo-fi tunnelmia ja kivoja saundeja.

not really my type of style, but appreciated the instruments

Not my favorite.

French electro-pop

I didn't enjoy this very much. It was super repetitive and a lot of noise. I am sure someone, somewhere thought it was creative, but not me.

It's listed as experimental pop and post-rock. A French/English band. I find the beats cool, but it's a little too repetitive for my taste.

Most of the songs revolve around a single-measure loop, repeated for 5 minutes straight. I absolutely hate that kind of repetition. A couple of the songs escape that mold and manage to be kinda fun.

While Emperor Tomato Ketchup has every ingredient to be the coolest piece of music ever (an English-French collaboration band, a title directly stolen from a very obscure and NSFW Japanese film, a Kraftwerk inspired looping composition of the songs) it bores so very quickly.

This is my 100th album reviewed and I was so excited that I got the Emperor Tomato Ketchup album! If you believed this, you obviously haven’t heard this record. In truth, this isn’t as awful as some of the Britpop albums that have been included. But like those albums, this is another record of no consequence from a group I’ve never heard of. There’s a couple of songs on here that aren’t bad. The Noise of Carpet I kind of liked. And there were a few others which weren’t half bad. Some of the sonic elements are interesting. But most of this is repetitive and the singer’s voice is very weak to me. In short, it shouldn’t be included.

This record is clearly a product of the 90s. It's bit indy, a bit electronic-y, a bit wishy, a bit washy, but nothing to capture my interest. Plus the singing is especially weak. 2/5

Not for me. The vocals really annoyed me and took away any possible satisfaction

*1996. Per Wiki - Anglo-French avant-pop band formed in London in 1990. *Chill and mellow, with some weird instruments/sounds going on. *Liked this is small doses, but got a little annoying pretty quickly. RATING - 6/10

The only thing that saved this album from a one-star rating was “The Noise of the Carpet,” which was actually a solid track. It had structure, energy, and gave me something to latch onto. Unfortunately, that was the exception, not the rule. Everything else sounded like a wall of noise with little payoff. The songs meander without purpose, and the occasional lyrics are either in French or delivered in such garbled English that they might as well be meaningless. Instead of feeling experimental or forward-thinking, most of it just felt irritating and empty. I can see how some listeners might label this “artsy” or “avant-garde,” but for me it came across as indulgent and messy. One good track does not carry an entire album, and the rest was a chore to sit through.

overly repititive AND french lyrics? Thats a double whammy. Some of it is fun, but man, some of these songs could be half the length.

I mean id rather listen to this than join the us army

It's kinda like when someone posts a series of three selfies on instagram that look almost identical. On the first one, nice! On the second two... I know they looked different to the poster, but I couldn't care less. Pick one and commit. Like this album... pick a few songs, we don't need this many of the same thing. Keep a few in the vault.

Eh. Good for background music but that’s about all I got from this one. Struggling to see the significance.

Starts like a bad Air album and ended like a bad Mogwai album. Didn't seem much substance to it...

Fine background music.

★★½

Not really for me

This was a bit of a strange one. It's a bit like French house music in terms of the song structures. What I mean by that is that it's quite repetitive at times. But it's actually a bit indie rock but also a bit electronic? It's different, I'll give it that! I'm sorry that there's not much else I can really say. This is one you'd have to listen to yourself to decide if it's your thing or not. If I had to pick some standouts, the title track is a pretty catchy indie foot tapper and the opener 'Metronomic Underground' is the biggest example of the house music I mentioned. It really is like a metronome and it will be stuck in my head for a long time I should think. I can imagine this is one I'm probably missing the genius of. I didn't hate it, but I'm not sure if I really enjoyed it either. By the end of it though I'd pretty much had my fill of Stereolab and was glad it was finished. I actually found reading about the origin of the album title more fascinating than the album itself. (Okay that's a slight exaggeration but it's somewhat interesting). It honestly wouldn't surprise me if I came back to this in five years time and loved it, but then again it wouldn't surprise me if I didn't. What an utterly useless review.

The songs that has less synth in them are good. While I don't understand French I still enjoyed the singing and music. Most of the songs have synth sounds that I don't enjoy though so the album as a whole isn't for me.

This album has an oddly 60's sound for being recorded in 1995. Kinda cool but not really something I would come back to.

2/5.

I have liked a few Stereolab singles over the years but have never listened to a whole album before. Generally underwhelmed and found it quite faux in its retro posings and that its slipped far too easily into background music.

Thought I was going to love this but ended up being pretty disappointed. Just didn’t work for me. Mostly just goofy stuff without memorable melodies. 2.5/5

songs were formed from multiple loops of a variety of instruments… an album full of this and after the first song, it became tedious. this one was not for me.

Offensibly inoffensive

Meh. Very confusing this is on the list.

Some nice moments but overall I didn't really care for this. For every part that I enjoyed there was something that I didn't like in equal measure. This band have a unique sound combining elements of music that I generally like, lo-fi, C86 and electronica but it never really comes together. I wouldn't judge everything they've done on this album and I would be inclined to see if I enjoy any of their other albums more than this one. I'm glad this music exists though and I can imagine it's given a lot of people hours of pleasure over the years but it's not one I'll be reaching for again.

When this album was at its best was when I barely noticed it was there. At its worst I was starting to consider skipping because I was bored. Standouts The Noise Of Carpet 2/5

Was excited when I saw the poster and when it was made. Must say I was a bit disappointed. The record could either have gone in two directions: heavy and cool 90s electro, or nerdy synth - a bit like Air. Unfortunately it went the latter. First song felt promising, but the songs turned out to be mostly boring and monotonous. It also felt quite badly produced. Didn’t like the singer very much either, quite boring performance. Overall it fell flat sadly, no good song to count home here for me.

I didn’t have enough time with this one but also didn’t feel need to give it more time. There were a few bright spots but largely forgettable. 2/5

Goofy

Tres bof

I would never turn this on but I left in on while mowing the lawn. Interesting sound.

Live the album Title, but this record was not for me. While pop music is not my favorite genre, I do enjoy it, but the poppy elements didn't work for me here. Several of the songs had some catchy hooks, but then they were repeated long enough that I got tired of them. The lyrics were similarly uninspiring. There was also a dissonant element to the tunes, which seemed to conflict with rest of the music in a way that didn't work for me and I live dissonant music. Maybe I'm just not into post-rock?

Some interesting production every once in a while but a lot of talk of 'society' without much detail, just repeating shit over and over. 4/10

Me gustan la musica de fondo pero no es un disco que escucharia seguido e incluso diría que en mi vida lo escucharía como máximo 2 o 3 veces más, pero no llega a ser mi estilo en estos momentos. Me parece muy repertitivo aunque la primera canción me encantó el beat y de algunas canciones también, no es para mi.

Elektronische Musik, ziemlich langweilig

Taas erikoisempaa musiikkia, nyt vaan tylsempää. Kokeellista rokkia, joka ei sit kummiskaan ole niin erikoista tai hyvää. Vähän mitään sanomatonta. Parhaat: Monstre Sacre, Slow Fast Hazel

2/5. A pretty chill collection of well-produced upbeat tracks, with some repeated vocals here and there, or a full song. The instrumentals imply a more electronic pop or even hip hop base. It leans more towards pop and although the beats do get your attention, it's not always enjoyable. Some songs can be a little much they are not unique enough to not blend into the other tracks. Overall, I don't think it's a repeated listen for me. More than a 1 for the instrumentals alone. Best Song: Cybele's Reverie, The Noise of Carpet, Metronomic Underground

Rock, I guess? Some electronic/jazz/groove leanings

Not my bag, but I guess it’s fine…

Sounds like ChatGPT‘s retarded French great great grandfather made this

2,4/5

I kind of like it? Maybe? But I really don’t get it.

Inoffensive but uninteresting background music. If they weren’t French no one would have ever cared about them.

ThI first couple of tracks were ok, but it’s a bit bland/samey later. Could have done with some pruning.

Listened to this on a long drive- not once did I start tapping my foot or feel it. Guess I’m just not cool enough.

I definitely listen to Stereolab and to this album in the past, but today it struck me all wrong. The lack of melodies and the combo French and English was agitating.

Pretty bad.

If I woke up tomorrow and this album didn't exist, I don't think much would change. It's not that it isn't good music, but it's entirely forgettable. Doesn't add much to the music scene for me

Fine, I guess.

The Good: … The Bad: tomato ketchup? The Ugly: in both ears… I don’t know if it is the app, but I all of a sudden have had 3 french based musicians in a row… what is up with that? Did I like it? Did I hate it?

Just not my jam, I'm afraid. I tried to get into it and give it a fair shake, but I honestly prefer other albums on this list.

Drones a bit too much without actually creating a good soundscape. The synth sounds don't fill up the empty space left by the disinterested vocals. There's just too little going on here while at the same time being hard to swallow by being dense with drunk sounding weirdness. Lyrics are about urbanism but the writer was more concerned with using complicated words than actually capturing any feelings or making profound remarks or making it sound good.

Not for me

Not really for me.

Not really into it but funny title

The music is mind numbingly monotonous but I guess that’s the point?

Not bad in the background. Where it’s pleasant enough. Bit too repetitive for my tastes to be front and centre, to point maybe a little boring. But overall yeah I can go with it, not much more really 2 Star

Not really for me but interesting

Background music.

Finalmente un po' di elettronica, purtroppo un album un po' sciapo.

Two albums in a row that my first thought was about video game soundtracks. Honestly most of these songs sound like the Sims 2 soundtrack. I have no strong feelings on this album except that I think this would have been better as an instrumental and maybe the second half of the album is better than the first. But if you asked me to hum a single track from this or you'd kill me if I can't, please just give me a shovel. I gave it multiple listens and it didn't stick with me and I found myself reaching for the skip button as a lot of songs here seem to really unwind and spin out rather than just end. Not offensively bad, just boring. Highlights: Monster Sacre

The way that they incorporate various contemporary elements was interesting for the first half of the first song, but got really old really quickly.

Album 737 of 1001 Stereolab - Emperor Tomato Ketchup (1996) Rating : 2 / 5 Blend experimental pop, post-rock, and electronica. They can finish experimenting and get back to me when they figure it out.

Love you mom! You’re favorite album is here

I have now listened to this before I die. And I’ll never listen to it again.

A bit crappy.

Groupe inconnu. Les morceaux sont longs, et très répétitifs. Je les trouve peu intéressants. L'écoute n'est pas désagréable, mais aucun morceau ne m'a accroché. Je ne l'écouterais pas une seconde fois. =>2/5

Schwache zwei Sterne, sehr langweilig und für mich klingt es so, als würde die Sängerin absichtlich schief singen

# 439 : I can listen to it, but it's not real good. It was a chore to listen to and so repetitive, but maybe that's the genre? Maybe I'm just old but I have never really been able to get into electronic music. Honourable Mention : The Noise of Carpet

4 more songs after this one, and then I can move on. I didn't really need to hear this album before I die. But at least it's not Eminem?

What an interesting album lol This was a word band but it was kinda interesting, but it just felt like someone found a MOOG machine and like made an album lol not terrible not great mid.

It is tedious

excellent album, just not my taste

May have been put off on the first track, will give it more time and review again.

Not annoying, but I just couldn’t get into it and it seemed kind of repetitive.

Electronica overlayed with French-fairy lyrics. Most of it is happening at the same pace — and it relies too much on the notion of melody as rhythm. It’s danceable, but it’s hard to take it seriously musically. A lot of noodling around for effect. 2

No recuerdo qué disco había escuchado de Stereolab pero sí que me había gustado. Pero curiosamente este no me encantó. Eso de estar repitiendo ruiditos y sonidos extraños me exaspera. No creo que sea un mal album pero no fui fan y no lo volveré a escuchar.

This was an extremely odd listen, and I'm not entirely sure I "got" the album. There were moments where I couldn't wait for songs to end because they droned on endlessly without going anywhere or doing anything, then there were moments in others that really stood out as almost excellent. More bad than good in my opinion, but I wonder what a second listen is needed to more appreciate the musical direction. Top tracks: Olv 26, Monstre Sacre, Motoroller Scalatron

Below average

Not a fan. I know Sterolab is a popular band, just doesn't appeal to me.

Meh

2.5

Don't get it.

Weird, Animal Collective-like repetitive style. Not feeling it today

Well, I didn’t hate it, but didn’t really care for it either, not even considering the language barrier. Won’t be giving it another listen…just not my thing. Two stars.

Not impressed. Sterile and superficial with lyrics in French. Nothing really interesting.

Fluffy enough that you’ll often forget that you’re listening to music, interesting enough that you’ll be drawn back into it here and there. Just not often enough.

Promising in parts I can see why some people would dig it but never quite gets there for me.

Strangely, this album grew on me as I listened to it (having thought initially I couldn't bear to hear the whole thing). Maybe listening is like tasting? You need to try a new flavour several times before the get to like it?

Repetitive electronic music. Do not like at all.

Fransk elsktronisk/pop. Flytande, svevande, litt lite substans

Not really for me but I see why people like it

Yeah, nice enough but a bit meh? I like the edge that Flaming Lips put on this sort of thing.

I feel like I've heard the band name "Stereolab" around but I don't think I've ever listened to them. Seems like it's kind of jammy maybe? Pretty repetitive first tune. Kinda seems like all of their songs are just super repetitive. Can't say I love it. Yeah I don't really like this at all, it's all pretty boring. Is it not in English for some reason? It's pretty inoffensive in the background, 3 feels too high and 2 feels too low.

Enjoyed the tech/punk fusion. But each song became more annoying.

Very of its time. Wouldn’t listen to it again

I’ve never really enjoyed electronic music that much, so it gets repetitive.

It's cool to hear a different sound coming out of the late 90's, this album was decent. It started off pretty good but fizzled out a bit by the end. I liked the overall vibe, the mix of French lyrics, and the layered effects of the loops but I don't think I'd revisit. It was a fun little listen (standard edition not expanded). Some points off for the very lame cover art so 2.30.

Ok...I was into this to start. Chill melodic sounds from what could be a group of musicians working in a music laboratory. By the end it was a little tiresome. Reminds me of a softer Melodies Eco-chamber which I really do like and were certainly heavily influenced by Stereolab. Certainly don't need an expanded edition so based on just the original release, pretty good. May have to check out the Japanese film. Album (original release) comes in at 2.4.

Never heard of Stereolab but I dug their vibe. ETK was a OK listen with a couple of decent songs. Nothing special but definitely worth a listen. I appreciate being exposed to something new from the 90's in lieu of much of the older stuff on the list. Title of the album makes me curious about the Japanese experimental film. Not sure if it is worth digging up. 2.47 stars

Funky fun and at times a bit uninteresting. Thought the music was going in one direction, build to a crescendo, and then it kinda just fell flat or went back to the same old. Had fun at times with the elements they had scattered in the background moving around, but yeah - bit bored.

It was okay

it was ok. didnt rick my world

Very Muzak. Entirely too long.

Electric music without any point or substance. It was an OK listen, but I have nothing positive or negative to say. It was just on in the background and nothing grabbed my attention. French music and language just doesn’t work for me. Favourite song: Metronomiuc underground. Least favourite: Nothing was terrible, but nothing stood out. Album artwork: Very cool cover

Overall I didn't enjoy it too much, but it had its moments, and I feel like they could grow on me.

This is #day104 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and... yes, this one is experimental and all that, and I can see how it might have been fun to create. But, it didn’t quite hold my attention beyond the first listen. The repetition started to wear on me, and I found myself checking the tracklist to see how much longer I had to go. While I appreciate the creativity behind it, it didn't leave a lasting impression. This is a 2 out of 5. Looking forward to #day105.

Greit, men kjedelig

Not for me

Very repetitive. Just ok.

Erm, what was this?

bit weird for me

Daddies not Heinz.

I hate to keep putting meta commentary as my reviews, but frankly I'm just basically done with this sort of album being on the list. I'm in the home stretch at this point and I'm really eager to finish strong with some really good stuff. More middling British garbage isn't going to do it.

I liked the french.

I enjoyed the French songs and the existentialist and anti-establishment tones in a couple other ones.

Ik vind dit album lastig te beoordelen. Af en toe neigt het een beetje naar een soort triphop, een soort Portishead, maar blijft het net wat te lichtvoetig allemaal. De opname is bij een aantal nummer ook wat plat en dat helpt niet. Halverwege zit een wat 'normaler' nummer ('The Noise of Carpet'), met een gitaartje erin en dat geluid vind ik eigenlijk net wat beter bij deze band passen. Te experimenteel voor pop, te pop voor experimenteel. Zo'n middenweg kan heel lekker uitvallen waardoor het voor iedereen lekker toegankelijk is, maar ik denk dat deze net tussen de wal en het schip beland. Ik lees in de reviews iemand zeggen dat ze geen muziek maar 'soundscapes and feelings' maken, maar juist daarvoor vind ik het dus allemaal net te karig, te dun. Hoge 2.

Didn't love it, some catchy sections here and there but overall I thought it was pretty boring.

Another weird album. I heard from Stereolab the first time when they were on the soundtrack of 'One Day' and I like 'Lo Boob Oscilator', but the album of today was kinda hard to listen to.

not memorable

Not really my thing. Did'nt really enjoy this.

Yes yes yes, no no no, i think this is nice then i think about dishwater.

5 for Album title alone - then -3 because most of this sucked

A little whacky and kinda electronic for 1996 but nothing stood out

Turhanpäivästä hiema joo Alnumi pyörii ihan lk joo menee ykkösradarista läpi

Interesting but it did not impress me too much.

This was really just there. Not bad but nothing to full hook me or commit me. could i write poetry to it? n

With the first song I was like, yeah this is catchy, this is my kind of music. The next few songs weren't quite as catchy and by the second half of the album I honestly just wanted them to shut up. It kind of reminded me of Django Django but, unlike Django Django, I didn't like album. What is it I don't like about French music? I wish I knew. Listens: 2 Fave Track: Metronomic Underground Rating: 2

A pretty good album, but I doubt that I will listen to the band again

Just a little weird but had a fun little groove to it too. 2.5

I goes for better here. It was a little boring I thought

songs start OK but soon become very repetitive

Day205 - you can keep your beeps and boops

Somewhat interesting but a bit repetitive

Meh.

lift music

I'll give it 2 stars for creativity and being interesting. It won't got any more because it starts to get really repetitive and annoying at times.

The production sounds so thin and the vocals do nothing for me.

I guess even among Stereolab’s fans, this album isn’t regarded very highly. This was a pretty boring listening experience, and this was on account of the repetitive and dragging nature of most of the tracks. The vocalist also sounds like she phoned it in.

I"m tired of listening to poor-to-mediocre albums, which seem to have no justification for being on this list of allegedly 'essential' albums. The curators taste is questionable, to say the least. This 'music' seems pointless to me - unless you're high and dancing. I'm sober and want something I can actually listen to.

Interesting, but not something I'd listen to ever again. While I usually enjoy when electronic music is mixed together with rock, I found the elements implemented on this album mostly annoying. Sometimes my interest would be piqued until I heard the same static noise again. I do appreciate their effort to experiment, but this kind of music just doesn't appeal to me. 2.5 stars

So monotonous, but not ignorably monotonous. It gets into my head and makes me want to kill.

This was not good. There were some decent elements, but then they found a way to repeat them until they were annoying. 2/5

First 15 seconds: trippy! I don't know any French 😵‍💫 It was alright. It was good background music.

This album was a bit of a slog. There were a few things working against it for me. For one it was quite reliant on electronic music, which as everyone knows, is not my favorite. Second, I do not love foreign music tbh. I am not afraid of foreign films at all because there are often subtitles, but foreign music doesn't have subtitles and I will not be translating it for myself. I'm not saying that it is below music in English, but I connect with music mostly lyrically, and if I can't understand the lyrics then it likely just isn't for me. I could see how this would make me appear intellectually lazy with regards to music, but it is what it is. The songs that were in English did nothing for me either.

Some funky sounds, but a bit out there for my taste.

Als ik het eerste nummer hoor, ben ik snel geïnteresseerd. Dit kan wel eens wat worden. Een beetje vaag en repeterend, maar best relaxed. Bij nummer 2 wordt dat gevoel iets minder. Het gaat wat meer richting saai. Terwijl er best wat gebeurt. Hoe langer ik het album luister, hoe meer het naar een tweede richting verschuift. Niet, relaxed, niet saai, maar vooral neurotisch. Er ligt soms ook maar een dunne lijn tussen die begrippen. Ik besluit het later nog eens op te zetten. Die tweede keer overtuigt me. Het werkt me vooral op mijn zenuwen. Dit scoort voor mij 2+ sterren. Ik 'like' het eerste nummer. Dat is voldoende om over te houden in de playlist van dit album.

Not really impressed, tbh

Too much beeping and fuzzing

Not for me.

Started off nicely, catchy beat, nice vocals, but then every song was almost exactly the same and you just wish for it to stop. I don't know what's so good about this album to have it on any list of "best" anything, but here we are. I expected nothing and I'm still disappointed.

Besides two songs which had a few kinda cool parts - The Noise of Carpet and Emperor Tomato Ketchup - I just cannot get myself to care for this type of music in any. way. at. all.

Pleasant enough, but boring. By the time I was half way through I'd heard enough. Will try to finish it off later.

Not for me

A couple of decent grooves in there but very repetitive and protracted.

Boring. I get it, but not for me.

This one was a huge miss for me

Like most electronic music, I find this to be background music. Not terrible, but forgettable.

Electronic synth music in French and English, well done but boring and repetitive

Not bad but totally overstated

Let me paint you a picture: I sit down at my desk to begin work for the day and put this album on. I got 10 seconds into the first song before I had to switch to some music I actually like, so that I could mentally prepare to what I was about to listen to. To be fair, the first song gave a bad first impression. The rest of the album wasn't TERRIBLE, but definitely bland. The random French was kinda cool though, I guess.

This album fluctuated between basic indie and elevator music. Could not get into it.

I don’t get these albums. These artsy fartsy nonsense collection of songs? How is this better or on par to say Born in the USA or Abbey Road? I genuinely believe whoever decided to put this album in this list was high. There are some good moments on it, but they are literally fleeting moments. But then again what are we excepting from an album called Emperor Tomato Ketchup!

I might rather listen to squirting bottles of ketchup.

Not sure what to think, so 2 stars

Didn’t like this at all. Not in a great mood so I’m giving a 2. I hardly ever give 2s.

Not for me -

Every bit as “artsy” and non-commercial as the album title would suggest. But after a fun start, it mostly became repetitive and unenjoyable.

It's long, French, repetitive and has a wide variety of beeps and boops.

For the first time since I started this process I had a co-listener, namely my wife. I personally thought the album was very hit-and-miss - I enjoyed a couple of tracks, found a couple of tracks awful, and the rest were quite mundane. My wife's forthright review is "shit, the foxes fuckign outside our window made more pleasant noises". No longer wondering why I married her, are you?

Sounds like all the rest of the Stereolab material.

nisam ovo mogla do kraja odslusat

meh

Very mixed on this one. It has some interesting ideas and a nice sound palette. However many of the tracks can get repetative or dull quite easily, maybe I'm not in the right mood for it? Maybe it's just not for me? But either way I don't feel like it's an essential album.

Great instrumentals but the vocals ruin it for me. Not a fan of the french lyrics. Would love an instrumental version.

I think a big problem for me when a lot of these albums is that they just don’t leave an impact. And they’re supposed to be influential so that’s why i have a hard time with them. I just don’t see what this brought to music?

not really my thing. Seemed very repetitive.

Kind of on the fence on this one. On the one hand, it wasn’t awful. On the other, I just didn’t like it.

Wel ok wel beetje raar

hysterisch

Apparently I listened to this whole album, and the only thing I remember about it is the first track. I'm not even drunk.

I had to skip some song due to annoyance.

Not for me.

Pretty out there stuff!

Like a more boring air supply 2 stars.

very mid 5/10

Interesting to listen to but I'm just not a fan of their vocal stylings.

This album didn’t really click with me. I appreciate the songwriting and execution, but it’s just a medium that doesn’t resonate with me. Can’t give it a one star because, for its genre, it’s well done. It’s just not a genre I care for.

Trying way too hard to be zany and avant garde

Special Moth’s Mom’s Thoughts - “I didn’t like it” Was gonna give it a 6 but docking a point for that. - 5/10

Bit of a yawner. Chill out techno.

Just okay, for me. Got a little more interesting as it went on, but I didn't enjoy my time with it.

ok

2 average per track. Very hard to get through.

fr*nch also kind of annoying

Not a fan of everything including the title and album art are "borrowed". They seem to take the uniqueness that other people have made, and put a small twist to take credit due to their bigger audience.

What if we just put a bunch of soundboard buttons onto an album and sang quietly in the background? Stereolab answers this question with disappointing certainty. Give me something I can sink my teeth into.

Tepid. Not awful.

This is kind of a mix of indie rock and electronica, sung mostly in French. As background music it is fine, but this isn't something I would be in a rush to listen to again. It all just kind of ran together. No real stand out track to speak of. Not sure what this influenced or why this is on this list. Favourite songs: Metronomic Underground Least favourite songs: Percolator, Slow Fast Hazel 2/5

English-French rock band. C'est bizarre. Y'a pire, mais y'a définitivement mieux.

pass

Boff

I suppose this album is good at what it does, which mostly consists nonsensical electro-gibberish. There were even moments when I found myself nodding along. And for that alone, I give it two nods of the head out of five, and not a single nod more.

Boring, generic

French avant-garde. Too avant-garde for me though.

La voix de la chanteuse ne me revient pas – même si ça s’améliore un peu en français. Je n’aime pas vraiment le genre construit sur la répétition et la variation. Les synthétiseurs sonnent datés.

Nah

Weird

Didn’t really do anything for me soz

Not a genre I typically listen to.

Kinda boring after a while. I dig the vibe but hearing it as a whole album is a bit much.

Spotify says they have "hypnotic rhythms and mesmerizing vocals". Well, I don't think that way. I find the whole performance, especially the no-harmony vocals, a bit annoying even.

Not really into this

Boring

Forgettable melange of pop-funerary sorrow.

Very weird experimental art pop album with some electronic elements mixed in. Most of the songs are extremely simple and repetitive by design which leaves an almost hypnotic impression on the listener. The vocals are also often repeated in French and English and act as another instrument moreso than anything else. It was definitely an interesting album. I can’t say I enjoyed it a lot but there were some moments where I can see some (albeit very few) people would enjoy. It was just a bit too obscure for me.

Not for me