STEREOLAB – INSTANT HOLOGRAMS ON METAL FILM (Warp/ Duophonic) (2025)

Stereolab’s eagerly awaited first album for 15 years doesn’t disappoint. Their genre defying, totally unique and instantly recognisable style has won many fans over a long career. From the synthesised opener ‘Mystical Plosives’ through the toe tapping electronica of the other single ‘Aerial Troubles’ (on which the lyrics refer to “an insatiable state of consumption”) to the pre-album single ‘Melodie is a Wound’ the sound they create is easy on the ear and irresistible, but underneath the surface are serious messages (for example expressing dismay at the rise of fascism and the exploitation of workers). The six minute long soulful ‘Immortal Hands’ hints at chukka-chukka guitar with brass sounds, piano and scintillating synths. ‘Le Coeur et la force’ features the lush vocal harmonies the band are renowned for; ‘Transmuted Matter’ and ‘If You Remember How to Dream Pt.1’ quickly emerge as favourites alongside ‘Melodie is a Wound’. More than two listens will be needed for sure, but for now I am satisfied; somehow the world seems a better place for Stereolab’s music.