Agitprop Alterna

After recording the groups first record, Modern Meta Physic, all by himself, Peel Dream Magazines Joe Stevens looked to others such as multi-instrumentalist Kelly Winrich and vocalist Jo-Anne Hyun to help with the quest of making the band sound as much like early-period Stereolab as humanly possible. The songs here have uniformly light and chugging rhythms, warm layers of vintage organs, ringing guitars, and looping vocal harmonies and could all have slotted in on side two of Peng! with no difficulties. Some of the tracks capture the up-tempo side of Stereolab perfectly, like Emotional Devotion Creator, which comes complete with a driving motorik beat and an organ sound Jon Lord would appreciate. Others nail the breezy, stuck-in-a-dream sound the group did so well. Its My Body and Permanent Moral Crisis are fine examples. There are a few stray moments of shoegaze that pop up here and there, and the record is a nice mix of space age instrumentation, sweetly sung tunes, and gently hooky melodies. Its clear that Stevens is adept at making a superb-sounding record, and his love of Stereolab comes through loud and clear. ~ Tim Sendra