SAINT ETIENNE Vinyl & CDs

Review: Legendary British outfit Saint Etienne returned with their 12th studio album late last year, and now it lands on vinyl via Heavenly Recordings. A much-awaited follow-up to 2021's I've Been Trying To Tell You, this ambient collection offers a gentle, immersive experience designed to ease the noise of daily life. It was produced with Augustin Bousfield and blends songs, spoken word and rain-soaked textures into a seamless dreamscape, all recorded between Saltaire in the north and Hove down on the south coast. It captures the fragile space between waking and sleep with highlights like 'Half Light' and 'Preflyte'. As such, The Night is best experienced on headphones and is ideal for late hours, reflection and introspection.

Review: Saint Etienne's latest release envelops listeners in a serene, ambient soundscape that gently guides the mind into a state of calm. The track 'Half Light' exemplifies this approach, with its ethereal melodies and soothing rhythms creating a tranquil atmosphere and the album - the their 11th since 1991's debut Fox Base Alpha - continues this theme, offering a cohesive journey through layered tranquillity. A testament to the band's ability to craft immersive experiences that resonate deeply with the listener.

Review: So Tough was Saint Etienne's second album, and it properly broke the band into the wider public consciousness thanks to their canny blend of house music, Balearic and melancholic indie. To date it remains the highest charting of their albums, helped no doubt by Sarah Cracknell becoming a permanent member of the band, the free-spirited nature of independent music in the early 90s and the success of the single 'Youre In A Bad Way'. Some 30 years on from its original release, So Tough is getting the luxury reissue treatment in the form of a triple-vinyl pressing, a 7" and a 28-page booklet - surely essential for any of the band's devoted fanbase.

Review: If elements of Saint Etienne's wonderfully nostalgic and evocative tenth album, I've Been Trying To Tell You, seem familiar, it's because the band deliberately chose to make use of sounds and samples previously utilised during their 1997-2001 halcyon period. Given that the album arrives 30 years after their acclaimed debut, Foxbase Alpha, it's a smart move. If you love the band's particularly whimsical, atmospheric sound - and who doesn't - you'll immediately feel right at home. Sitting somewhere between dream pop and Balearica with occasional nods to house and more experimental electronic sounds, it's a gorgeously loved-up affair with memorable vocal numbers (where Sarah Cracknell's singing sounds as magical as ever) being joined by equally as inspired instrumentals.

Review: Second time around for Saint Etienne's 2012 album "Words and Music by Saint Etienne", a typically breezy, summery and ear-pleasing affair in which Bob Stanley, Pete Wiggs and Sarah Cracknell delivered a suitably glossy, up-beat take on synth-pop that arguably owes more to the Pet Shop Boys and their own early works than some of their more celebrated albums. Highlights are plentiful, from sunny opener "I've Got Your Music" and the string-laden swell of "The Last Days of Disco", to the largely acapella "Record Doctor", baggy and Balearic "Twenty Five Years" and the attractively jangling "Haunted Jukebox". Pop perfection tailor made for sunny days and lazy afternoons: don't sleep!