Duophonic UHF Disks / Warp Records
STEREOLAB - Instant Holograms On Metal Film STEREOLAB
Pickup available at Dawson Street
Usually ready within 24-48 hours - Pre-order items available on day of release.
Album of the Week: Stereolab – Instant Holograms on Metal Film
Staff Review
They’re back! After a 15-year hiatus, Stereolab return with Instant Holograms on Metal Film, a brand-new album from the beloved avant-pop pioneers. Unsurprisingly, anticipation has been sky-high… and we’re happy to report it’s an absolute gem.
If you’re new to the groop (yes, that’s how they spell it), Stereolab emerged in the early ’90s with a string of groundbreaking albums that blended indie rock, post-punk, krautrock, art-pop, and electronica. Their catalogue is packed with classics, Mars Audiac Quintet, Emperor Tomato Ketchup, Dots and Loops, are each essential listening. While their sound stood apart from Britpop’s swaggering mainstream, they shared sonic space with fellow outsiders like Broadcast, Spiritualized, Pram, and Yo La Tengo, carving out a legacy that’s only grown richer with time.
Since their 2010 hiatus, founding guitarist Tim Gane explored modular synth terrains with Cavern of Anti-Matter, while vocalist Lætitia Sadier released a string of acclaimed solo albums. Now reunited, Stereolab sound… well, just like themselves. Instant Holograms on Metal Film doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it spins with familiar, irresistible charm.
Opening track Mystical Plosives sets the mood with vintage synth arpeggios, it’s gentle, warm, and unmistakably Stereolab. Lead single Aerial Troubles is pure pop bliss, evoking the bounce and brightness of Ping Pong or Cybele’s Reverie, complete with disco-tinged rhythms and Sadier’s ever-heavenly vocals.
Though the band has always displayed an affinity with left-wing politics, this may be their most overtly political record to date. Lyrically, it’s a sobering reflection on today’s chaos, climate, capitalism, collapse. Lyrical couplets that include “assigned trajectory,” “avid fear of death,” and “the numbing is not working anymore” cut deep in Aerial Troubles. Musically, however, the album grooves. Tracks like Melodie Is a Wound, Vermona F Transistor, and Esemplastic Creeping Eruption pulse with motorik rhythms and analog warmth. These songs twist and evolve in unexpected directions, yet remain danceable, accessible, and endlessly enjoyable.
There are echoes of Emperor Tomato Ketchup, Mars Audiac Quintet, and Switched On Volume 2 throughout, with brief nods to the jazz, ambient, and electronic explorations of Dots and Loops and Cobra and Phases....Two standouts come close to end of the album: If You Remember I Forgot How to Dream Pt. 1 pulses with retro-futurist funk, wah-wah guitar, and brass flourishes. Its companion, Pt. 2, offers a dreamier, more introspective finale replete with drifting guitar, bubbling drum loops, and lush, atmospheric synths.
Instant Holograms on Metal Film proves that Stereolab remain singular, visionary, and very much essential.
Product information
Delivery Details
FREE REGISTERED POST FOR ORDERS OVER €75 WITHINROI*
*DOES NOT INCLUDE HI-FI or HARDWARE PRODUCTS-CHECK DELIVERY RATES FOR MORE DETAILS
Orders are normally dispatched within 12-48 hours of receipt of the order, and normal delivery times to your door are as follows
- Ireland 2-5 working days
- UK 5-7 working days
- Europe 10-14 working days
- U.S. & Rest of World 10-14 working days
Usually ready within 24-48 hours. Pre-order items available on day of Release
Any delays are normally due to the postal service. Orders placed on a Friday will be dispatched on Monday. No orders will be dispatched over the weekend. If you have not received your order within the time shown above, you can check the status of your order. Please email your query to info@towerrecords.ie
CLICK & COLLECT ORDERS:
The service is available via our Website. The collection point is located in Dawson Street only
For more information, contact us at 01 6719444 or email info@towerrecords.ie
Refund and Returns Policy
If the product is in its original condition and unopened, we will accept its return within fourteen days from the day you received the item. You will receive a full refund to the value of the item* *Applies to Online orders only
Refund and Returns Policy Faulty or defective items:
In the unlikely event you receive an item from us that is either defective or faulty, please let us know so we can arrange collection of the item and dispatch a replacement as soon as possible. Please email us at info@towerrecords.ie to arrange the return of a defective item. If goods are being returned due to being defective or an error on our behalf, we will refund delivery charges resulting from the return of the original order. If you still have the original envelope, simply reseal it and return the item to the Sender, stating the fault. FAO Returns Dept. Tower Records 7 Dawson Street Dublin 2 D02 X688
Non-defective items:
If, for some reason, a customer wishes to return an item that is not defective, we will accept the item and issue a refund within 14 days from the day you received the item. If, for some reason, a customer wishes to return an item that is not defective, your item must be unused and in the same “as new” condition that you received it. It must also be in the original packaging. To complete your return, we require a receipt or proof of purchase. Items such as games, CDs or DVDs (any recordable media) that require a security seal must be returned with the seal intact in order to qualify for a refund. In the interest of hygiene, headsets and earphones may not be returned unless unopened and intact in their original packaging. You will receive a full refund to the value of the item* *Applies to online sales ONLY. FAO Returns Dept. Tower Records 7 Dawson Street Dublin 2 D02 X688
To return an item:
Please wrap the item and the package securely and send them to the address below. We do not accept liability for goods which are returned in faulty packaging. We recommend that you use a recorded or registered delivery service. Please ensure that you have included a note giving full details of the problem, the order number, return notification number and any other details that may be helpful to us in order to track your order down quickly and efficiently. FAO Returns Dept. Tower Records 7 Dawson Street Dublin 2 D02 X688