Oracle Online

With that being said, one can imagine me being a little skeptical before listening to the latest Saint
Etienne release on Sub Pop Records, Travel Edition 1990ą2005, which is being marketed as the band’s “first U.S. best-of.”

It is an 18-track collection of some of the highlights of Saint Etienne’s first 15 years of music, and apparently all that they will do in the coming year, plus two previously unreleased songs.

If you are now wondering “who the hell is Saint Etienne?” and why you know of no hits of theirs, this is due to the fact that they have no hits in the United States.

Saint Etienne is musicians Bob Stanley and Pete Wiggs and vocalist Sarah Cracknell, who have enjoyed much underground and some mainstream success in their British homeland, but have so far failed to capture a following overseas.

Their techno- and dance-influenced pop sound found a great home in the early and mid-nineties, but may seem a little dated to many today.

Saint Etienne was not the first group to do dance music, nor were they the first to do pop music. But it is their spin on the dance genre that created a more accessible sound that went on to influence many followers of the scene in Britain.

So while many may never have heard of the band directly, they have more than likely been exposed to a band that was directly influenced by these British popsters.

However, being influential does not guarantee an important greatest-hits album.

The band seems to have two styles present on this particular collection: catchy dance tracks and slower emotional tracks.

The former of these Saint Etienne styles does well, creating songs that should have done better in the United States than they did.

The latter is another story. This style the band should have stayed away from, because these tracks fall flat again and again.

Also, as one would expect from a 15-plus year career, the band’s style constantly changes, and since the tracks are not in chronological order č or any particular order č the result is a jumbled, incoherent collection of songs.

This is not the type of CD meant to be listened to straight through, because the tracks fail to complement one another in any way.

Aside from the inherent flaws in compilations of this matter, the CD contains most of the tracks fans would expect, with favorites like “Like a Motorway” and “He’s On the Phone,” both well-produced and catchy tracks that show off the best of the band’s style.

Just like most other bands with similar releases, Saint Etienne includes new tracks to try to convince fans to buy a CD filled with songs they already have. One of these is a less-than-exciting instrumental track, and neither of them stand out as special.

So if you are already a fan, stick to the older releases and get the most out of the music. There is nothing special for you here.

If you are like most Americans and are new to the band, Travel Edition 1990ą2005 might be a good introduction to an influential band from their genre.

But, on the whole, there is little here that has not been done to death by pop music in the last 10 years, which is unfortunate for one of the founding bands of the style that has seen limited success of their own here in the United States. Luckily, they have an international following to fall back on.