Switched On Volumes 1-5

レア音源シリーズ『Switched On』の超豪華8枚組ボックスセット『Switched On Volumes 1-5』がリリース!!

ステレオラブが、レア音源をコンパイルした人気シリーズ『Switched On』のシリーズ全5作をまとめた超豪華8枚組CDボックスセット『Switched On Volumes 1-5』をリリース。本作には1992年の『Switched On』、1995年の『Refried Ectoplasm (Switched On Volume 2)』、1998年の『Aluminum Tunes [Switched On Volume 3]』、そして再結成を経て発表された2021年の『Electrically Possessed [Switched On Volume 4]』、2022年の『Pulse Of The Early Brain [Switched On Volume 5]』、計94曲もの楽曲が収録されている。音源はすべて、メンバーのティム・ゲインの監修の元、ベルリンのBo at Calyxにてオリジナル・テープからリマスタリングされたものとなっている。8枚のディスクそれぞれがスリーブケースに収められ、12ページのブックレットとアルバム・ジャケット・デザインのステッカー (120x120mm) 5枚とともに、箔押しが施された特別仕様のボックスに収納される。
ボックスセットのリリースに合わせて、『Switched On』シリーズの入門編として、各タイトルから3曲ずつをセレクトしたスペシャルプライス盤『Little Pieces Of Stereolab [A Switched On Sampler]』も同時リリース。
こちらのサンプラーは解説書付きの国内流通仕様盤もリリースされ、ステレオラブの魅力を知りたい音楽ファンにはうってつけの作品となっている。

A Stereolab completists dream come true, Switched On, Vols. 1-5 rounds up all of the bands singles and rarities collections and traces the evolution from their earliest drone-pop to the sophisticated experimental sounds they purveyed in the late 2000s. Switched On gathers songs from the groups busy 1991, with "Super-Electric" and "Au Grand Jour," reaffirming that their essential sound -- Motorik lock-grooves, bubbling analog synths, fuzzed-out guitars, and angelic vocals -- arrived fully formed. "Doubt" and "Brittle" are among their most vibrant pop songs, while the eight-minute "Contact" is a warm-up for the epics they soon mastered. Refried Ectoplasm: Switched On, Vol. 2 serves as a reminder that Stereolabs key songs from the early 90s, such as "Lo Boob Oscillator," "French Disko," and "John Cage Bubblegum," didnt just appear on their albums. Aluminum Tunes: Switched On Vol.3 gives the innovative, jazz and electronic-infused sounds of Emperor Tomato Ketchup and Dots and Loops a more whimsical twist with Wagon Christs remix of "Metronomic Underground" and a swinging cover of Antonio Carlos Jobims "One Note Samba" with Herbie Mann. It also includes 1995s essential Music for the Amorphous Body Center EP, a work composed for an installation by visual artist Charles Long that foreshadows the intricate experiments that soon appeared on Stereolabs albums. Spanning releases from 1999 to 2008, Electrically Possessed: Switched On, Vol. 4 covers nearly half of the bands career, but captures the flavor of its era just as completely as the series other volumes. Songs from the mini-album First of the Microbe Hunters, like the serenely spacey pop of "I Feel the Air (Of Another Planet)" and the strutting jazz-funk of "Barock-Plastic," provide a playful contrast to 1999s heady Cobra and Phases Group Play Voltage in the Milky Night. Stereolab takes a similarly light-hearted approach on limited-edition tour singles such as 2008s blissed-out "Lexotisme Interieur" and 1999s "Calimero," a collaboration with Brigitte Fontaine that is one of their clearest homages to French pop a la Serge Gainsbourg. Among the other highlights are the bustling "B.U.A.," another piece commissioned by Long, and the previously unreleased "Solar Throw-Away (Original Version)," a tart, brassy ballad. Though the works that Stereolab gathered on Pulse of the Early Brain: Switched On, Vol. 5 somehow fell through the cracks of their previous collections, they include some of the bands most sought-after music. Chief among them is September 1992s Low Fi EP, the first release to feature beloved vocalist/keyboardist Mary Hansen and longtime drummer Andy Ramsay. Both make their mark on the blissfully loud and transporting rock of "Laisser-Faire" as Laetitia Sadier and Hansens vocal interplay and fuzzed-out keyboards and guitars crest and crash over Ramsays bashed kit. The 1997 Nurse with Wound collaboration Simple Headphone Mind is another rare gem that transforms the single "The Long Hair of Death" into euphoric, psychedelic motorik. Since Stereolab released so much music, each Switched On collection is essential listening for fans; taken together on Switched On, Vols. 1-5, they make a fascinating, rewarding alternate history of the bands career. ~ Heather Phares