Stereolab - Margerine Eclipse

When Mary Hansen died in a cycling accident in December 2002, Stereolab lost one of the voices at the very heart of its sound. Margerine Eclipse, recorded in 2003 at the band's Instant Zero studio in France and dedicated to her, is their response, and it plays less like a eulogy than a bright, restless celebration of everything she brought to the group.

It is also one of the most inventive records in their catalog. The album was mixed in dual mono: for every song the band recorded two distinct arrangements and placed one hard in the left channel and the other in the right, so each track becomes two interlocking pieces of music at once. "Vonal Declosion" and "Need To Be" open in a rush of bubbling analog synths and chiming guitar, "Cosmic Country Noir" and "La Demeure" bring the melodic warmth, and "Hillbilly Motorbike" and "Bop Scotch" show the band's taste for odd, joyful pop structures fully intact.

Released in early 2004 as the band's eighth studio album, it reached number 6 on the US Heatseekers chart and drew strong reviews from critics who heard a group rediscovering its purpose. Two decades on, it stands as a moving close to the classic Stereolab era.

This remastered reissue from Duophonic Ultra High Frequency Disks and Warp Records presents the original twelve-track album across two LPs and four sides of vinyl.