Customer Reviews

Smash the System: Singles and More

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I personally think "Smash the System" is far better than "Too Young to Die". I thought I bought "Too Young to Die" just a year after its release and when the price was skyhigh. Compared to "Smash the System", it really wasn't worth the money I shelled out for it. "Smash the System" on the other hand was well worth the price. This current compilation of the band's singles is a two cd set since there are so many songs this excellent indie pop band has churned out. The only way to put together a current comp without missing a single song was to make this comp a 2-cd set. All of my favorite songs are found on this cd like "Pale Movie" and "The Bad Photographer". Of course there are songs that I haven't heard yet from the band like "Filthy", "4:35 In the Morning" and "Shad Thames". This compilation of Saint Etienne's singles couldn't get any more thorough than it is. One of the best compilations of singles I have heard in years. Not one song on this 2 cd set I didn't like.

_Smash the System_ is great collection of earlier (pre-_Sound of Water_ as far as I can tell) Saint Etienne. It's less of an attempt at a definitive collection, ala the more recent anthology _Travel Edition_, and more of a nicely eclectic sampling of the group's prodigious output. If you've heard some SE that you have, of course, loved and want to get a sense of their wider catalog, this a good place to start. The two disks also serve as great party disks or fodder for brilliant pop mixes in their own right. It also shows that SE are no one consistant thing/genre except great pop music. Sometimes they are more dancey, sometimes more trip-hop, at others neo-classical Phil Spectorish pop. It's the sort of group that can make you think of Massive Attack, Sterolab, B.A.D., and Papas Fritas at the same time, while still being their own wonderfully incomparable thing.
It's hard to judge the title phrase "singles and more" as, at least according to the liner notes, all of the songs were previously albumn tracks, though at least some of these albumns were Japan only releases and almost all of them are a challenge to find in the U.S. (I suspect there's some story here about SE having had bad early experiences with U.S. distributors. _So Tough_ came out on WB but more recent releases have been on Subpop. Maybe it has something to do with that shampoo comercial.) So far as I can tell, many of the singles are not appreciably different from the albumn tracks that I already had from _So Tough_ and _Good Humour_. Still, these are fabulous songs. I had lost my copy of _Fox Base Alpha_ and so was greatful to have those great indie-pop classics back, and my girlfriend especially liked the section of dance-mix tracks that we hadn't heard before.
SE fans (at least those who are willing to shell out for the imports) may not be especially well served by this collection, as they will have many of the tracks already. Still, it's not a bad price for a two-disk set, especially as an import. So, if you want to widen your exposure to SE or introduce someone else to them, this is a fine way to do it.

I admit that I'm not one of those St. Etienne fans that owns every album, EP, or single (Money Constraints Don't Allow Me). In fact I only have "Smash the System" and a B-sides compliation "Interludes." I only got into St. Etienne after suffering from a case of menal distress caused by low-grade, poor quality, air-polluting music marketed by profit-driven music magazines, record labels, and dumb rock critics. After having accumulated a sizeable collection of all the Bowiesque Brit-pop acts, American Grunge, Post-grunge, and French 60s OOh-la-la, yeh-yeh pop, and campy crooners, I thought I hit a dead end, and would eventually have to satifsy my appetite for good music with radio junk like Kylie Minogue (actually, she's alright) until the "next big sound" came around, if it ever would happen.

When I bought "Smash the System" I thought I was taking a gamble, because I usually preferred music that followed a "one way street" towards one type of sound and not be influenced by too many types of musical styles. On my first listen, "Smash the System" just floored me. The music influences are from all over the place but St. Etienne puts it all together so cleverly and stylishly that it would be hard to accuse St. Etienne of being recyclers with no innovative ideas of their own. Through an amalgam of musical styles, St. Etienne crafts songs that rises above the labels of their influences and creates something new and refreshing. Also, this is not another "girly" kind of sound. St. Etienne would probably appeal to people who like a clean sound that includes mastery of melody making, oderly song-structure, rhythms, harmony, and effortless-pop sung by a lovely and endearing songbird Sarah McCracknell.

They have a great versatiliy. They can make some of the fullest, prettiest and most direct and clear pop ballads like "Jack Lemmon" or "Spring." If you like cheap-upbeat-techno, they can do that also with an air of irony in "Join our Club." More introspective with an emphasis on soundscapes are plentiful. It's probably the only album that I can listen at any point of the day, waking up, driving, studying legal cases, and chilling out. Any person giving this album less than 5 stars to any St. Etienne album are just spolied fans who were weened on their earlier St. Etienne albums and have not tuned into Radio-trash in quite a long time. Although, St. Etienne makes radio friendly music, it would be insulting to throw St. Etienne songs in a large pool of radio-mediocrity. So, maybe it's better that they remain "undergound" even though their sound is far from being underground.

"Smash the System" is a far superior Saint Etienne compilation compared to "Too Young to Die". The material is more current although there are plenty of the band's earlier songs. The only beef I have with this 2 cd set is that they didn't include "I Was Born On Christmas Day" like "Too Young to Die", otherwise the songs that I love are found on "Smash the System". I guess at the time "Too Young to Die" was released, that was the band's current material. This new compilation is far more thorough than "Too Young to Die" which is why I like it even more. Old faves like "Pale Movie" and "Who Do You Think You Are" are included to new faves such as "Shad Thames" which I find myself playing on a regular basis. This new compilation is an excellent showcase to the world of what Saint Etienne is about and how catchy and infectious their music is. Saint Etienne is one of the best pop bands out there that has gone relatively under the radar in America. They are also one of my all-time favorite bands ever. "Smash the System" was well worth the money.

Saint Etienne are such an amazing band, I've never understood why they aren't well-known in the U.S. This collection is an excellent introduction, although there are some tracks that are sorely missed here, such as "Star," "Former Lover," "Stormtrooper in Drag," and, especially, "I Was Born on Christmas Day." I first heard them when WBAI in NYC played their gorgeous version of "Stranger in Paradise." I've never been able to get a hold of that track (wish it were included here), and they are so prolific, it's sometimes hard to keep up! I was glad to finally hear "Paper," which is truly lovely. This collection really needs another cd in order to include tracks from "Sound of Water," their best album yet. Like an earlier reviewer, I think that their first album is their weakest - this band actually gets better as it goes along. OK - just to be nit-picky, I wish that they'd left off "52 Pilot," "Madeleine," "Goodnight Jack," "Join Our Club" and "Angel," and had instead included the above mentioned songs, along with the "Casino Classics" version of "He's On the Phone," "In the City," "Zipcode," and "Lonesome." But, all in all, this a must have album for anyone with a love for gorgeous melodies and exceptional lyrics! And Sarah Cracknell's voice!!!

The original unused cover art for the album would have complemented, or even explained the title alot better. It shows a young girl spraying a mist of pepper spray into the face of a club-yielding bobby. And that is the perfect metaphor for what Saint Etienne has done to pop music all these years.

The following passage is for fans only:

As usual, the album includes an excellent liner note honoring the Etiennes as the band that makes you sound smarter just for mentioning them.

And for those you who are not fortunate enough to have found their "misadventures of SE," the upbeat 60's-ish tracks "Jack Lemmon" and "Saturday" will give you a taste of what you've been missing.

Let's all hope the Etiennes will be around for another decade!

St. Etienne's newest collected works is titled "Smash the System", and incongruous title for a group usually associated with sunny, dance ready pop. St. Etienne, however, has always added up to be more than the sum of it's parts. The system that St.E has aimed to smash is the genre-obsessed, next big thingism of popular music. Pop music has not sounded this stylish, high concept, and (dare I say it?) experimental since the rise of Blondie.

St.E's music spans an array of genres and pieces them together in a big expansive musical puzzle. The focus of the group is the photogenic Sarah Cracknell who croons in a winsome soprano. For newcomers to the group: You get highlights from the four best Etienne albums. For longtime fans: You get unreleased early
British EP material and generous parts of two Japan only releases. This is pop music that comes subversively close to high art.

I've been a fan of Saint Etienne since the age of 14 - over 12 years now. Sarah Cracknell was my first (and only) teenage crush after seeing her perform on Top of the Pops around Christmas time 1993. Not only did I find her amazingly attractive, she also had a great voice. That was the first time I had heard of the band and I have collected a lot of their stuff since then.

This compilation is missing a few great tunes which have been replaced with other great tunes. Listening to Sarah singing Hobart Paving and Mario's cafe in her unique way is a treat. Hers is the only voice in pop that makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. Along with Pulp and the Arctic Monkeys, Saint Etienne have encapsulated English life in a way that few others have managed.

Bob and Pete's clever production is superbly balanced by Sarah's gorgeous vocals. Top-quality music always stands the test of time and Saint Etienne's longevity is testament to this. This album covers their music up to 1999 and they have continued to craft superb music since then.

A career-spanning compilation of the best of a great and sorely underrated band. Everyone will quibble about a track or two that might missing, but two packed disks at a great price leave little to argue about. Every St. Etienne album is represented here, even the remix and soundtrack albums and the limited edition live CD. A splendid summary.

If you are a Saint Etienne fan, than this is for you. This 2 disc set is so well put together. I love the packaging as well - it's very complete, including all of their best tracks. It's not very easy to find in local music stores it seems, so here would be the place to order it.