''Margerine Eclipse'' is the eighth studio album by English-French

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

Stereolab Stereolab are an Anglo-French avant-pop band formed in London in 1990. Led by the songwriting team of Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier, the group's music combines influences from krautrock, lounge and 1960s pop music, often incorporating a re ...

. It was released on 27 January 2004 in the United States by

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between th ...

and on 2 February 2004 in the United Kingdom by

Duophonic Records Duophonic Ultra High Frequency Disks Limited (also known as Duophonic Records or Duophonic Super 45s) is a British independent record label formed by English-French rock band Stereolab in 1991. The label has two imprints: Duophonic Ultra High F ...

. The album is in large part a eulogy to former band member

Mary Hansen Mary Therese Hansen (1 November 1966 9 December 2002) was an Australian-born guitarist and singer. She joined the London-based avant-pop band Stereolab in 1992. As a member, Hansen recorded six studio albums from ''Transient Random-Noise Burst ...

, who died in 2002. By June 2004, ''Margerine Eclipse'' had sold over 40,000 copies in United States. A

remaster Remaster refers to changing the quality of the sound or of the image, or both, of previously created recordings, either audiophonic, cinematic, or videographic. The terms digital remastering and digitally remastered are also used. Mastering A ...

ed and expanded edition of the album was released by Duophonic and

Warp Warp, warped or warping may refer to: Arts and entertainment Books and comics * WaRP Graphics, an alternative comics publisher * ''Warp'' (First Comics), comic book series published by First Comics based on the play ''Warp!'' * Warp (comics), a ...

on 29 November 2019.

Background

In December 2002, Stereolab member

was killed in a cycling accident. The band subsequently dedicated ''Margerine Eclipse'' to Hansen, with the lyrics of the song "Feel and Triple" making specific reference to her. Shortly before work commenced on the album, band members

Tim Gane Timothy John Gane (born 12 July 1964) is an English songwriter and guitarist who co-founded Stereolab with his then-partner Lætitia Sadier.Gregory, Andy (ed.) (2002) ''International Who's Who in Popular Music, 2002'', Europa Publications Limit ...

and

Lætitia Sadier Lætitia Sadier (born 6 May 1968, sometimes known as Seaya Sadier) is a French musician, best known as a founding member of the London-based avant-pop band Stereolab. In 1996, while Stereolab was still active, she formed the side project Monade. ...

ended their romantic relationship. Their breakup is alluded to in Sadier's lyrics for the song "Hillbilly Motobike". ''Margerine Eclipse'' was mixed with full

stereo Stereophonic sound, or more commonly stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that recreates a multi-directional, 3-dimensional audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two independent audio channels through a configuration ...

separation – or as Stereolab termed it, in "dual mono". For every song, the band made two recordings – each with a different

arrangement In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orchestr ...

– then created a final mix by synchronising both recordings together, with one on the left channel and the other on the right channel. The technique was also used on the band's 2003 EP '' Instant 0 in the Universe''.

Track listing

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes. Stereolab *

– electric guitar, electronics, organ *

– vocals, trombone on "Margerine Melodie" * Dominic Jeffery – organ, electric piano,

harpsichord A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a musical keyboard, keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a ...

celeste Celeste may refer to: Geography * Mount Celeste, unofficial name of a mountain on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada * Celeste, Texas, a rural city in North Texas ** Celeste High School, public high school located in the city of Celeste, ...

* Simon Johns – bass, drums on "Margerine Rock" * Andy Ramsay – drums, drum machine Additional musicians * Fulton Dingley – drum machine, synthesizer,

MIDI MIDI (; Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is a technical standard that describes a communications protocol, digital interface, and electrical connectors that connect a wide variety of electronic musical instruments, computers, an ...

, percussion *

Sean O'Hagan Sean O'Hagan (born 1959) is an Irish singer, songwriter, and arranger who leads the avant-pop band the High Llamas, which he founded in 1992. He is also known for being one half of the songwriting duo (with Cathal Coughlan) in Microdisney and f ...

– keyboards, acoustic and electric guitars, other instruments * Jan St. Werner – electronics on "Vonal Declosion" and "Feel and Triple" Production * Fulton Dingley –

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

, mixing * Stereolab (credited as "The Groop") – mixing

Charts

References

External links

''Margerine Eclipse''
at official Stereolab website * * {{Authority control 2004 albums Stereolab albums Elektra Records albums