Does anyone know what the song "The Free Design" is about? To my knowledge, the phrase only existed as the name of the 60s sunshine pop band, but in the song, Lætitia Sadier seems to parlay this phrase into a deeper concept. I'll post the lyrics here, in case anyone can figure it out:
Where it had been left hundreds of years ago?Extract from the depth is but a setting sunParadise is scarce in this light that won't shineWhat is our earthly task but a worthy design?
Some held it in sight for scattered it may have beenThey're ready to fight in a priceless inklingThe request is here ready to resurrectWhat else can we do but recover the projectOur earthly design can be so detachedWhat crushes our desire not to be trapped?When the higher spheres tell us to and not toEveryone agrees demanding more vetoOur earthly design can we be so detachedWhat crushes our desire not to be trapped?
― Publicradio (3×5), Sunday, 9 July 2023 04:56 (nine months ago) link
Socialism bruh
― lilcraigyboi (Craigo Boingo), Sunday, 9 July 2023 07:35 (nine months ago) link
The backing tracks get working titles, sometimes they change to reflect the lyrics, but usually not.
― Mark G, Sunday, 9 July 2023 13:14 (nine months ago) link
Well, she doesn't actually say "The Free Design" in the song. And as much as Lætitia Sadier was a doctrinaire socialist, this song doesn't seem to have socialist themes to me, at all.
― Publicradio (3×5), Sunday, 9 July 2023 15:01 (nine months ago) link
Despite having heard that song hundreds of times and owning the Cobra CD with lyric sheet since it came out, I still thought "Paradise is scarce" was "Paradise is chaos", "Our earthly design" was "Or a free design", and "When the higher spheres" was "When the highest fears".
Guess I need to sit down with that lyric sheet and figure out what else I've been mishearing for the last two decades...
"The Free Design" is pretty cryptic but to me it seems to deal with a desire freedom from oppression of some sort (religious? governmental?)
― J. Sam, Sunday, 9 July 2023 18:29 (nine months ago) link
What crushes our desire not to be trapped?
Capitalism, imo.
― Deflatormouse, Sunday, 9 July 2023 19:11 (nine months ago) link
xp yeah, I'd always thought of "Free Design" as one of the rare Stereolab songs where the title shows up in the lyrics, but I guess not! Drawing a blank now -- are there ANY actual examples of this in their catalog?
― Vaguely Threatening CAPTCHAs, Monday, 10 July 2023 19:14 (nine months ago) link
"The Seeming And The Meaning"
― out-of-print LaserDisc edition (sleeve), Monday, 10 July 2023 19:39 (nine months ago) link
^Yes. A few more of their earlier songs come to mind: "Super Falling Star," "Orgiastic," "Doubt," "Changer," "Laisser-Faire," "Des étoiles électroniques." Seems like they stopped doing it after '94 or so.
― J. Sam, Monday, 10 July 2023 19:45 (nine months ago) link
Also "Brigitte"
― J. Sam, Monday, 10 July 2023 19:48 (nine months ago) link
It's interesting how many of the lyrics seem to have been written with the title in mind, phonetically if not conceptually. Rainbo Conversation is a good example.
― Deflatormouse, Monday, 10 July 2023 19:49 (nine months ago) link
1993 Berkeley, CA (instore + club performance): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sytObArOro8
Only 950 views as of posting, I'm responsible for at least 25 of them.
― citation needed (Steve Shasta), Monday, 10 July 2023 19:50 (nine months ago) link
Only too happy to add more
― Elvis Telecom, Tuesday, 11 July 2023 03:28 (nine months ago) link
I watched part of this when it was pretty newly posted and then forgot to finish the rest. It's super cool, and bonus points for being recorded exactly one week after the first time I saw them.
― Three Rings for the Elven Bishop (Dan Peterson), Tuesday, 11 July 2023 15:51 (nine months ago) link
Tim Gane makes a lot of interesting, in depth Spotify playlists
https://open.spotify.com/user/aciddeathpicnic
― bbq, Monday, 2 October 2023 18:08 (seven months ago) link
oooooh
― Muad'Doob (Moodles), Monday, 2 October 2023 18:11 (seven months ago) link
that's gonna be a lot of digging for me. From the last few looks like he's been listening to nothing but italian prog, soundtrack and library music for ages.
― dan selzer, Monday, 2 October 2023 18:30 (seven months ago) link
thanks to these lists I now know that Aretha Franklin did a swell cover of "What A Fool Believes" back in 1980
― Muad'Doob (Moodles), Monday, 2 October 2023 20:48 (seven months ago) link
Nice! Yeah, that Aretha cover is amazing, as is that free-improv album that his snipped-banana avatar pic is taken from: https://corbettvsdempsey.bandcamp.com/album/groupcomposing
― If I luge, if I luge, if I luge you on the track (Craig D.), Monday, 2 October 2023 21:54 (seven months ago) link
Groopcomposing
― Andy K, Monday, 2 October 2023 22:27 (seven months ago) link
... is in advertising.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6v9QzFGFhYg
― The Italian Yob (Tom D.), Monday, 1 January 2024 21:20 (four months ago) link
The past, too:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKjrPs7bnco
― eatandoph (Neue Jesse Schule), Monday, 1 January 2024 23:55 (four months ago) link
Wouldn't have guessed that Sadier's, er, 'untutored' singing, fully foregrounded, would be a hit with advertisers. Bless.
― Nag! Nag! Nag!, Tuesday, 2 January 2024 02:25 (four months ago) link
Sadier is Kiri te Kanawa compared to Trio's "Da Da Da," which Volkswagen turned into a hit 40 years ago.
(40? Christ I'm old.)
― Hideous Lump, Tuesday, 2 January 2024 05:40 (four months ago) link
Sadier spring 2024 North American tour and solo album
https://www.brooklynvegan.com/stereolabs-laetitia-sadier-announces-new-solo-album-tour-shares-une-autre-attente/
― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 2 January 2024 05:49 (four months ago) link
I remember hearing "One Small Step" and "OLV 26" in commercials, too (I think this was the early 2000s?).
― ernestp, Tuesday, 2 January 2024 16:59 (four months ago) link