Customer Reviews

Stereo Total

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

 

 

This album is a compilation of Stereo Total's first two albums which are not available in the US. I have no idea why somebody decided to have a compilation. The order of the songs on the compilation is a little bit funny, too - but one shouldn't complain about such a great CD, right?

Stereo Total are from Berlin, Germany. Their music is a mix of German trash pop, French chanson, American rock'n'roll and whatever else you want to mention. This album contains cover versions of songs by Serge Gainsbourgh and Salt'n'Peppa - from that you can guess how crazy the result must be. I remember I saw Stereo Total live in Boston. People were confused about the European sounding stuff (does anybody know Harpo's "Moviestar" in the US?) and they were freaking out when they did "Get Down Tonight". Everybody had smiles on their faces. And if you buy this album, you'll have a smile on your face, too.

This is a collection of MOST of the songs from the first two albums--Oh Ah, and Monokini--and is great if you're on a budget, but you do miss out on some of the best songs, so keep an eye out for a good price on the imports. Still you can't go wrong, this is great stuff.

When I first heard this CD I was in this "hip" clothing/shoe store in San Francisco. Everyone in the place was commenting on how fabulous the sounds were...and they are. It's definitely a "feel good" CD in German/French/Japanese.

This really has one of those... foreign pop feels. You'll know what I'm talking about if you've ever listened to the Sugarcubes (or Björk), Cibo Matto, or Pizzicato Five. Cute stuff though, really gets those toes tapping. It's really best that you know at least snippets one or more of the following, however: French, Japanese, or German. They really have the language thing down. It's quite obvious that they're not Japanese... the accent is really strong. I would say they're German... but they pronounce French fairly well.

Buy it if you've got the dough to spare.

This CD is a slightly reorganized version of their 1995 debut for Bungalow Records, OH AH. It's more or less the same album, just missing one or two songs and adding one or two others. Since it was all recorded around the same time, I'm treating this as if it was effectively their first album, which it effectively is. And my advice to you is that if you're going to be a Stereo Total completist, which I ultimately plan to be myself, then you're probably best starting off with this album, because otherwise it's going to sound pretty dismal in comparison.

To explain, the first album I bought from Stereo Total was their 1999 record MY MELODY, and by that point the band's sound was much more together, and they've only improved from that point onward. (In particular, I recommend their 2001 release MUSIQUE AUTOMATIQUE if you really want to wow the crowd at your next party.) It was only at this point that I went backwards and picked up Stereo Total, which I found on the used CD shelf, and to call it a step backwards is giving it far too much praise. The band's jaunty, overly hip mix of electro pop, French pop, German pop and several other types of pop is in very much nascent form on this record, and while their attitude is more or less the same, they're much more of a sloppy rock band at this point, with messy lo-fi production that doesn't add to the songs, but rather takes away from their sense of fun a bit. You can hear the beginnings of their Serge Gainsbourg theft on "Moviestar" and their inchings towards effective Europop on "Ach Ach Liebling", but it's all a pale shadow of what they'd achieve with their very next album.

My guess is that if this was the first Stereo Total album I'd ever owned, I'd probably love it and think back on the songs fondly as harbingers of what was to come, rather than strange misshapen mistakes that were later corrected. Unfortunately, that's how I did hear it, and my opinion stands. Fortunately, even at Stereo Total's worst, they're still a terrific, charming band. So I do recommend you pick this up. Just don't listen to any later albums beforehand, or it'll spoil it for you.

While on a first listen, the unusual sounds from this album may put you off, the songs are still basically pop songs with catchy hooks and a traditional structure. I heard "Schön von hinten" on the radio and it was very catchy, leading me to buy the album.

They sing in English, German, Italian, French, and Japanese, with some songs originals and some adapted cover versions. Their "Get Down Tonight" is a cover of the KC & the Sunshine Band song which sounds better than the original, with much more frenetic energy, and "Je Suis Venu Te Dire Que Je M'En Vais" is a cover of the classic Gainsbourg song. However, many of the songs are only mediocre, such as "Ach Ach Liebling," a cover of the Francoise Hardy song "Oh Oh Cheri." Overall, the album seems less polished than their later album "My Melody."

My husband brought this CD home in a stack of the free promos he got at his store. I fell in love with Schon von Hinten and immediately put the cd in my car where it stayed for a couple of months. I listened over and over but never got tired. I was so excited about the find that I sent an e-mail to the band. In their best attempts at English they wrote me back and were very kind.

When they came to L.A. they sent us a flier. We went to Hollywood and saw them at a small club. As soon as they started their set, the club became alive. No one could stay in their seats. It was electric. Prior to their set the place was dead so we introduced ourselves. They were sincere, friendly and genuine people.

Anyone who's been to an L.A. or Hollywood venue knows that it's a tough crowd but Stereo Total won 'em over. They were clapping, yelling, singing along and demanding an encore.

This music is just plain fun. Hey, I can't understand half of what they say but it doesn't seem to matter with these guys. They use fun sounds like typewriters, party favors, coffee perculating and hula-type music. The riffs and melodies sound like they're from 50's beach movies. Some of the songs are reminiscent of the Beatles or Elvis. Others have a Devo feel. LA, CA, USA has a punky X type sound to it. The disco tunes (Push it and Get Down Tonight) are sung with a thick French accent that adds enough peculiarily and deviation from the norm to make it seem like you've heard it for the first time. The tracks alternate between German, French, Japanese and English and as I listen, I wish I knew all four languages so I could sing along.

Hi, my name is Kristin. I love this album!! I don't know much about music, but they make me dance and sing along! I get happy when I listen to Ushiro Sugata ga kilei. Hi Ali!!

Look, these folks don't know how to play their instruments, but that doesn't mean that they don't make some of the funnest, coolest music I've ever heared. If you put on this record during a party, everyone will think you are cultured and super cool. I love it, and I'm going to buy the rest of their stuff.

Hi, my name is Kristin. I love this album!! I don't know much about music, but they make me dance and sing along! I get happy when I listen to Ushiro Sugata ga kilei. Hi Ali!!