Stereolab were an alternative music band formed in 1990 in London,
England. The band originally comprised songwriting team Tim Gane
(guitar/keyboards) and Lætitia Sadier (vocals/keyboards/guitar), both
of whom remained at the helm across many lineup changes. Other
long-time members include Andy Ramsay (drums) and Mary Hansen (backing
vocals/keyboards/guitar). Called "one of the most fiercely independent
and original groups of the Nineties", Stereolab were one of the first
bands to be termed "post-rock". Their primary musical influence was
1970s krautrock, which they combined with lounge, 1960s pop, and
experimental pop music. They were noted for their heavy use of vintage
electronic keyboards, and their sound often overlays a repetitive
"motorik" beat with female vocals sung in English or French. Stereolab
often incorporated socio-political themes into their lyrics. Some
critics say the group's lyrics carry a strong Marxist message, and Gane
and Sadier admit to being influenced by the Surrealist and Situationist
cultural and political movements. The band were released from their
recording contract with Warner Bros. Records when Warner's imprint
Elektra Records folded. On 2 April 2009 Stereolab manager Martin Pike
posted a message on the band's website, announcing that after 19 years
the band would go into hiatus as "there are no plans to record new
tracks".
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stereolab>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1600:
Italian philosopher Giordano Bruno, best-known as a proponent of
heliocentrism and the infinity of the universe, was burned at the stake
as a heretic by the Roman Inquisition.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giordano_Bruno>
1801:
The U.S. House of Representatives elected Thomas Jefferson as
President and Aaron Burr as Vice President, resolving an electoral tie
in the 1800 U.S. presidential election.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_election%2C_1800>
1859:
Colonization of Cochinchina: The French Navy captured the Citadel of
Saigon, a fortress that was manned by 1,000 Vietnamese soldiers, en
route to conquering Saigon and other regions of southern Vietnam.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citadel_of_Saigon>
1904:
Italian composer Giacomo Puccini's Madama Butterfly premiered at La
Scala in Milan, generating negative reviews that forced him to rewrite
the opera.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madama_Butterfly>
2003:
The London congestion charge, a fee that is levied on motorists
travelling within designated parts of London, came into operation.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_congestion_charge>
2006:
A massive landslide in the Philippine province of Southern Leyte killed
over 1,000 people.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Southern_Leyte_mudslide>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
Ishikawa diagram (n):
A diagram used in quality management to display a detailed list of
causes and effects of a problem and thus to decipher the root cause of
a problem
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Ishikawa_diagram>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
All things are in the Universe, and the universe is in all things: we
in it, and it in us; in this way everything concurs in a perfect unity.
--Giordano Bruno
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Giordano_Bruno>