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Pulse of the Early Brain

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Pulse of the Early Brain
A drawing of a monitor with lines and dashes seen on the screen. A laser beam points at it. The artist and album title are displayed at the bottom left
Compilation album by
Stereolab
Released2 September 2022 (2022-09-02)
Recorded1992–2008
Length118:54
Label
Stereolab chronology
Electrically Possessed
(2021) 		Pulse of the Early Brain
(2022)
Singles from Pulse of the Early Brain
  1. "Robot Riot"
    Released: 24 June 2022
  2. "Simple Headphone Mind/Trippin' With the Birds"
    Released: 3 August 2022
  3. "Cybele's Reverie (Live at the Hollywood Bowl)"
    Released: 24 August 2022

Pulse of the Early Brain is a compilation album by the English-French avant-pop band Stereolab, released on 2 September 2022 under Duophonic Records and Warp Records. It is the fifth installment of the band's "Switched-On" series which collects the band's rarities, such as the EPs Simple Headphone Mind (1997) and Low Fi (1992); bonus and exclusive tracks from Chemical Chords (2008); and individual tracks from other albums, split singles and flexi discs. Unlike previous "Switched-On" releases, which compiled each of the band's eras in chronological order, Pulse of the Early Brain covers rarities from all over their career.

The compilation was announced with the release of the single "Robot Riot" in June 2022 and the singles "Simple Headphone Mind" and "Trippin With the Birds" in August. Pulse of the Early Brain received universal acclaim from music critics, who praised the inclusion of Simple Headphone Mind and Low Fi, but some also consider it to be the most and least essential release in Stereolab's catalogue. It ranked at number 3 in the UK Independent Albums Chart and at number 66 in the UK Albums Chart.

Summary

[edit]

The compilation begins with the Simple Headphone Mind EP, consisting of the title track and "Trippin' With the Birds". It is a 1997 collaboration with Nurse with Wound in which both tracks rework Stereolab's track "The Long Hair of Death" (previously released in a split single with Yo La Tengo and on Aluminum Tunes) into "euphoric, psychedelic motorik".[1] This lasts for 31 minutes and is followed by the next EP Low Fi (1992). It marks the first appearances of members Mary Hansen and Andy Ramsay and contains "blissfully loud and transporting rock" that has a variations of "a hypnotic whir that seems unencumbered by the rules of gravity: the analog rumble, synth squiggles, and strummed chords are a collective force onto itself."[1][2]

"Robot Riot" is an unreleased track "with its insistent strums giving way to a coda of hooky harmonies".[2] It was intended for a sculpture in 2000 by Charles Long, but the track "Unity Purity Official" with its "percolating rhythms, retro-futurisms, and ye-ye melodies" was chosen instead.[2] The tracks "Spool of Collusion" and "Forensic Itch" were part of an exclusive 2008 7" that came with the first 5000 copies of Chemical Chords.[3] "Magne-Music" and "The Nth Degrees" were also bonus tracks for the limited edition UK CD of Chemical Chords.[3] The "avant-garde sci-fi jazz" song "Symbolic Logic of Now!" was released in a 1998 split single with Soi-Dissant, released under Luke Warm Music.[1][3] The compilation contains a demo version of "Ronco Symphony", taken from the 1993 EP Space Age Batchelor Pad Music.[3]

"ABC", with "gnarled, fuzzed-out guitar riff hints at hard rock before it gets engulfed by studio trickery", is a cover of the Multitude, from the Godz album The Third Testament, originally for the tribute album Godz Is Not A Put On in 1996.[2][3] "Blaue Milch" is a "reimagining of a Peter Thomas Sound Orchestra piece" released under Bungalow Records in 1998.[4][3] "Yes Sir! I Can Moogie!" and "XXXOOO" are brief tracks that were released on flexi discs under the labels Wurlitzer Jukebox in 1995 and Encore! in 1992 respectively.[5][3] The compilation has an original version of "Plastic Mile", which was re-recorded for Fab Four Suture in 2006,[3] and a "spectral yet hard-hitting" remix of "Refractions of The Plastic Pulse" by Autechre, released in 1998.[1][3] The album closes with a 2004 live performance of "Cybele's Reverie" at the Hollywood Bowl.[3]

Release and reception

[edit]

Pulse of the Early Brain was announced with the release of the single "Robot Riot" on 24 June 2022,[6] followed by "Simple Headphone Mind" and "Trippin' With The Birds" on 3 August[7] and "Cybele's Reverie (Live at the Hollywood Bowl)" on 24 August.[8] The compilation released on 2 September under Duophonic Records and Warp Records. It was made available to purchase on vinyl, CD, and digital download. Limited vinyl and CD editions were released in a mirriboard sleeve. The digital edition only contains 16 tracks out of 21, with the EP Low Fi and the demo of "Ronco Symphony" being excluded due to digital licensing restrictions.[9] Low Fi had a separate 2022 digital re-release, and the "Ronco Symphony" demo appears as a bonus track for the 2018 digital re-release of Space Age Batchelor Pad Music, both under Too Pure records.[10][11] Pulse of the Early Brain ranked at number 3 in the UK Independent Albums Chart and at number 66 in the UK Albums Chart.[12][13] It also peaked at number 10 in the Scottish Albums Chart and number 89 in the German Albums Chart.[14][15]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic82/100[16]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
The A.V. ClubB+[2]
Clash8/10[4]
Classic Rock6/10[17]
Mojo[18]
Pitchfork6.6[5]
Record Collector[19]
Uncut[20]

Pulse of the Early Brain was met with universal acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 82, based on seven reviews.[16] Critics considered the inclusion of the EPs Simple Headphone Mind and Low Fi to be highlights of the compilation.[1][20] Acting as the first six tracks, some praised the transition between both EPs.[2][4] Stephen Thomas Erlewine commented: "Oozing with ambient grooves and catchy harmonies, the fifth volume of rarities from the avant-pop quintet calls back to their space-age prime."[2] Piers Martin of Uncut magazine considered the compilation to be "the best one yet".[20]

Some critics have simultaneously considered the compilation to be the most and least essential release in Stereolab's catalogue.[1][4][5] Robert Ham of Pitchfork questioned the inclusion of short tracks and felt that the EP Simple Headphone Mind were "skeletal and unfinished."[5] A critic for Classic Rock magazine panned the same EP, arguing that the compilation "never fully recovers" from it.[17]

Track listing

[edit]
No.TitleLength
1."Simple Headphone Mind"10:46
2."Trippin' With the Birds"21:01
3."Low Fi"5:22
4."[Varoom!]"9:19
5."Laisser-Faire"4:35
6."Elektro [he held the world in his iron grip]"8:01
7."Robot Riot"2:56
8."Spool of Collusion"2:13
9."Symbolic Logic Of Now!"4:05
10."Forensic Itch"3:06
11."Ronco Symphony" (demo)1:00
12."ABC"5:16
13."Magne-Music"3:53
14."Blaue Milch"4:58
15."Yes Sir! I Can Moogie!"1:03
16."Plastic Mile" (original version)6:36
17."Refractions In The Plastic Pulse" (Feebate Mix)7:51
18."Unity Purity Occasional"2:18
19."The Nth Degrees"4:14
20."XXXOOO"1:01
21."Cybele's Reverie" (live at the Hollywood Bowl)5:47
Total length:118:54

Notes: Tracks 3-6 and 11 appear in physical editions only.

Charts

[edit]
Chart performance for Pulse of the Early Brain
Chart (2022) Peak
position
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] 89
Scottish Albums (OCC)[14] 10
UK Albums (OCC)[13] 66
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[12] 3

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g Phares, Heather. "Stereolab - Pulse of the Early Brain: Switched On, Vol. 5". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (2 September 2022). "Pulse Of The Early Brain embraces Stereolab's arty, adventurous side". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Pulse of the Early Brain (liner notes). Stereolab. Duophonic Ultra High Frequency Disks. 2022. D-UHF-D43.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  4. ^ a b c d Merrick, Hayden (31 August 2022). "Stereolab - Pulse Of The Early Brain (Switched On Volume 5) | Reviews". Clash. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  5. ^ a b c d Ham, Robert. "Stereolab: Pulse of the Early Brain (Switched On, Vol. 5)". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
  6. ^ "Robot Riot". Retrieved 15 December 2022 – via Spotify.
  7. ^ "Simple Headphone Mind / Trippin' With The Birds". Retrieved 15 December 2022 – via Spotify.
  8. ^ "Cybele's Reverie (Live at the Hollywood Bowl)". Retrieved 15 December 2022 – via Spotify.
  9. ^ Stereolab - Pulse Of The Early Brain [Switched On Volume 5], Bleep, retrieved 23 September 2022
  10. ^ Stereolab - Low Fi (2022 Remaster), Bleep, retrieved 23 September 2022
  11. ^ Stereolab - The Groop Played Space Age Batchelor Pad Music (2018 Remaster - Bonus Track Version). Bleep., Bleep, retrieved 23 September 2022
  12. ^ a b "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
  13. ^ a b "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
  14. ^ a b "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
  15. ^ a b "Offiziellecharts.de – Stereolab – Pulse of the Early Brain" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
  16. ^ a b "Pulse of the Early Brain Switched On, Vol. 5 by Stereolab". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
  17. ^ a b "Classic Rock review". Classic Rock: 83. September 2022.
  18. ^ "Mojo review". Mojo: 100. October 2022.
  19. ^ Johnstone, Johnnie (October 2022). "From The Vaults". Record Collector (536): 116.
  20. ^ a b c Martin, Piers (October 2022). "Uncut review". Uncut: 48.
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