Saint Etienne
Sarah Cracknell
Vocals
Pete Wiggs
Keys & synths
Bob Stanley
Synths
Location: Croydon, London, England
Genre: Alternative Dance, Indie Pop, Folktronica
Years Active: 1988 -
Meaning of the Name: Named after the French football team. Brings to mind an exotic place far away.
Way of Working: Collaborative
Essential Releases
Foxbase Alpha (1991)
Debut album that combined '60s pop with '90s rhythms.
So Tough (1993)
Concept album told as if entries from a diary.
Tiger Bay (1994)
An ambitious album that combines techno and folk.
Good Humor (1998)
A quieter record made without electronic elements.
Saint Etienne, an English band named after a French football team, defined the complexities of metropolitan life in their sound. The group was formed by music journalists Pete Wiggs and Bob Stanley (who wrote for NME), and soon welcomed vocalist Sarah Cracknell into the fore. Together, they became key figures in alternative dance, blending the accessible melodies of '60s pop with the rhythms of acid house on their debut album Foxbase Alpha (1991).
Wiggs and Stanley had a deep understanding of music history, which they combined with a love of their native London to tell stories about the city. For example, 'Girl VII' focuses on Carrie, a woman grappling with the memory of childhood teasing: "Carrie's got a boyfriend, Carrie's got a boyfriend." The interesting thing is that while most singers write from their own perspective, here, the city and its inhabitants are the main character.
To further establish this notion of a living city, 'Girl VII' continues with lyrics that juxtapose locations in the capital with faraway destinations (such as Winnipeg and Valencia), not to compare them, but in order to equate them, to convey the experience of being in a place where the world comes to you. This constant barrage of place names also evokes a sense of ceaseless movement that mimics the hustle and bustle of city life.
These thematic ideas are elevated by the use of anachronistic genre influences. While Saint Etienne used electronic instruments to create an undeniably modern feel, they were layered with the girl group vocal stylings of Motown, the Brill Building, and Northern Soul, forms of music decades past their peak.
This unusual cocktail of sounds coalesced into a unified whole that was both contemporary and nostalgic, mirroring the metropolitan environment that intersperses centuries-old architecture with modern constructions (like a Starbucks beside the Tower of London) to replicate how it 'feels' to be in a metropolis. The music of today didn't happen in a vacuum, it was built on a foundation of the music that came before, in the same brick-by-brick way that the city is.
Another key feature in Saint Etienne's work is social realism, which anchors their academic ideas in the everyday. Their second album, So Tough (1993), uses recordings of overheard conversations and radio clips to enhance the feeling of being in the real world. Songs take place in unglamorous settings, such as 'Mario's Cafe', and include mundane lyrics about looking through the paper and ordering toast, alongside moments of deep feeling — 'dreaming of all they've got to live for'.
More than being just key players in the alternative dance scene (alongside groups like Primal Scream), Saint Etienne were also pioneering forces in Folktronica: their third album, Tiger Bay (1994), merged the propulsive beats of techno with the instrumentation and melodies of medieval folk to remarkable effect. It was hard to believe that such a thing was possible at the time—the genre didn't even yet have a name.
Essentially, Saint Etienne is a band that bridges the gap between obscure intellectualism and the unabashed fun of pop music. Their music has a rich cultural history and a firm sense of place that acts as a record of the British urban experience.
Skills
*This is a work in progress. Values are subjective.Emotional Impact
65
Mental Impact
80
Originality
95
Artistry
90
Authenticity
40
Live
70
Production
85
Musicianship
65
Singing
75
Songwriting
85
Danceability
70
Fun
70
Consistency
80
Range
95
Cool
65
Charisma
60
Commercial & Critical Success
Awards >>>
- Mercury Prize Nominee 1992 - Foxbase Alpha
Certifications
Charts >>>
- So Tough - Number 7 in the UK
- Tiger Bay - Number 8 in the UK
- International - Number 8 in the UK
