Bob Stanley DJ Set

Saint Etienne's Bob Stanley will be doing a DJ set at Rough Trade East in London for a couple of hours on Feb 1, 2025.

Postlude

Timeline and Other Projects

Check out Sarah Cracknells' five other musical projects pre-Saint Etienne

Check out Sarah Cracknells' timeline pre 1990, pre Saint Etienne

Check out Sarah Cracknells' collaborations over the years

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Interlude 9 (Bonus)

Before Saint Etienne

Shortly before joining Saint Etienne Sarah Cracknell was one half of an electronic duo called LoveCut DB

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Interlude 8 (Bonus)

Before Saint Etienne

Sarah Cracknell goes Solo in 1987 with the help of her friend Mick Bund and releases a single called Love Is All You Need with the spectacular B-side Coastal Town

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Prelude 8 (Bonus)

Before Saint Etienne

Sarah Cracknell was getting some records pressed up here in 1987.

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Interlude 6 of 7

Before Saint Etienne

Oblivion River

In 1986, Oblivion River were Mick Bund (Future Mexico 70) and Saint Etienne's Sarah Cracknell

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Interlude 4 of 7

Before Saint Etienne

Prime Time

Prime Time were Saint Etienne's Sarah Cracknell and Mick Bund (Future Mexico 70) circa 1984 to 1986.

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Interlude 2 of 7

Before Saint Etienne

Worried Parachutes

Saint Etienne's Sarah Cracknell was lead singer of the Worried Parachutes which formed in September 1981 and broke up in 1983.

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I Love To Paint

In January 1995 Saint Etienne fans started to receive the first Fanclub release from Saint Etienne. I Love To Paint, a 12 track CD, was the result of the band rummaging through five years worth of Saint Etienne tapes for unreleased material. The release was limited to 500 copies.

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Postlude

Timeline and Other Projects

Check out Bob and Pete's eight other musical projects outside of Saint Etienne

Check out Bob and Pete's timeline pre 1990, pre Saint Etienne

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Interlude 7 of 7

Before Saint Etienne

The Next Projected Sound (Circa 1988 & 1989)

Pete, Bob and Andrew Midgley formed this side project and were active in the late eighties. They were The Next Projected Sound for their "pisspoor 1988 attempt at acid house", mainly memorable for Richard Norris coming to the studio and lending them his 303. Tracks were recorded across two sessions but never released.

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Interlude 5 of 7

Before Saint Etienne

Forever Drone (Circa 1986)

Saint Etienne's Bob Stanley is in a band with Andrew Midgley (Cola Boy) called Forever Drone named after a Josef K song (rumour)

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Interlude 3 of 7

Before Saint Etienne

Reardon (Circa 1983/84)

Around 83/84, Bob and Pete created their semi-famous 'party tapes', they chose the nom de guerre Reardon. The thinking here was that nobody from the UK would use the name because of Ray Reardon the aged snooker player, therefore the name would sound like an authentic NY electro artiste. Our assumption is that 'We Survived' came out of this session.

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Interlude 1 of 7

Before Saint Etienne

The Lost Chapel Picnic (Circa Early Eighties)

At the height of DIY in the early eighties, Saint Etienne's Bob Stanley and Pete Wiggs hired a portastudio for a week, with a Korg MS 10 they'd saved up for, and created an unlistenable noise under the name The Lost Chapel Picnic. This has never been released.

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Cat Music

Pollards Hill Mitcham, around this time 35 years ago.

Ian Catt: "They came in to record some demos - I'd worked with the Field Mice, and Bob had asked Bobby Wratten where they did their stuff. The original recording was done in January 1990 at my mum's place in Pollards Hill. They'd said they were going to start a group and make records in the 90s - such a stereotypically Saint Etienne thing to say. And so in January there they were."

Ian Catt: "As far as I'm concerned they were making a demo! Two songs in an afternoon. We didn't really have much time to think about it."

Ian Catt: "It was amazingly quick. They left clutching their demo and I didn't really expect to see them again. Then two months later they were back."

The assumption is that the two songs were Only Love Can Break Your Heart and Kiss And Make Up. Vocals for the two songs were done initially by Moira Lambert. Kiss and Make Up would be re-recorded with Donna Savage as vocalist and released in October of this year.

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The Ship

Croydon, around this time 35 years ago.

"There was one pub in Croydon where everyone into alternative music went, The Ship. There was a really diverse mix of goths, indie kids, greebos and old rockers who drank there, with a couple of big skinhead lads on the door. That’s where I met Pete’s brother Danny(Wiggs) and we were very close for a few years. When his brother and Bob Stanley decided to start a band they had the idea of using different singers for each song, so they asked Moira(Lambert) to record a couple of demos for them. It took about five hours to record from start to finish in a bedroom studio and was never even meant to be released. But it went on to be a massive cult hit – I still hear it on the radio thirty years later, it’s amazing. They gave her some money when it became clear it was doing well. Whenever I hear it now it takes me right back to that bedroom studio." Mark Wilsher, Faith Over Reason*

Moira Lambert, Faith Over Reason, was the vocalist on the single Only Love Can Break Your Heart which was recorded in January of 1990 and released in May of the same year. *Quote taken from the Feb 25, 2024 interview by Cloudberry Cake Proselytism Blog

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61 Dartmouth Park Road

Saint Etienne's Bob and Pete moved to Tuffnell Park, London in January 35 years ago and rented the basement flat in this London house from landlady Louise.

Homebase for the start of Saint Etienne with some friends already living in the area.

Bob ran Caff records out of this location and fans could write to Saint Etienne at this address

Word is that Lucy Gillie, who was a member of Saint Etienne's Icerink Label's Golden and appeared in the first music video miming Only Love Can Break Your Heart, lived in the house above.

The Foxbase Alpha cover photo was taken at the bottom of this road

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Discosis

Third issue of Saint Etienne Disco's annual Newsletter 'Discosis' is out today. A DIY cut and paste 22 page digital document put together with contributions from Saint Etienne Fans and the Saint Etienne Discography. A nice summary of what happened in 2024 and what's in store so far for 2025.

Prelude 7 of 7



What is the next projected sound?
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Dark Star


In late December 2024, Pete Wiggs did a 22 song mix for Amateurism Radio. Check out the details and get a link to the mix in the Mix Tapes, Mixes, Playlists section of the Discography.

Prelude 6 of 7


Are you ready for the journey along Oblivion River?
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Prelude 5 of 7


Drone, is a minimalist genre of music that emphasizes the use of sustained sounds, notes, or tone clusters called drones. #saintetienne35

Prelude 4 of 7

Are you ready for prime time?
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Prelude 3 of 7

Are you up for a game?
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Prelude 2 of 7

Do you have your parachute?
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Prelude 1 of 7

Are you ready for the picnic?
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Happy New Year

2025 looks to be another exciting year on the Saint Etienne front. Too Young To Die turns 30 this year, The Sound Of Water album turns 25 this year, and Tales From Turnpike House turns 20. The band are targeting to release new material in the Summer. More info in the third issue of the Saint Etienne Disco newsletter 'Discosis' out next week. Keep your eyes on this website for news as it happens. Keep your eyes locked on the 2025 Tracker for Saint Etienne related releases as they are announced.