Considering how consistently
Stereolab collects their hard-to-find releases -- and the wealth of bonus tracks on the late-2010s reissues of their albums -- it's remarkable that there's anything left in their vaults. However,
Pulse of the Early Brain: Switched On, Vol. 5 proves there is still plenty of value in the band's archives. Track for track, it may be one of the shorter installments of the Switched On series, but it offers a generous amount of music, not the least of which is the pair of releases that comprise its first half.
Pulse of the Early Brain begins with
Simple Headphone Mind, a 1997 limited-edition collaboration with
Nurse with Wound that transforms "The Long Hair of Death" (which appeared in its original form on a spilt single with
Yo La Tengo and on
Switched On, Vol. 3: Aluminum Tunes) into euphoric, psychedelic motorik. Though the blobby Moogs and unfazed lockgroove on the title track are expected, the way they're combined is exhilarating, and even more so on "Trippin' with the Birds," which elaborates on the project's themes with fractal-like intricacy.
As welcome as it is to have
Simple Headphone Mind widely available, the most significant release collected on
Pulse of the Early Brain is the
Low Fi EP. Arriving in September 1992 -- shortly after
Stereolab released the first
Switched On -- the EP fell through the cracks of the band's reissues for 30 years. That's something of a shame, since it's
Stereolab's first release to feature beloved vocalist/keyboardist
Mary Hansen and longtime drummer
Andy Ramsay, both of whom make their mark on the EP's blissfully loud and transporting rock. On "Low Fi" and "Laisser-Faire" (a brilliant live version of which appeared on
ABC Music: The Radio 1 Sessions), the vocal interplay between
Hansen and
Laetitia Sadier and the fuzzed-out keyboards and guitars cresting and crashing over
Ramsay's bashed kit is early '
Lab at its finest. Later, "Elektro [he held the world in his iron grip]" morphs from analog synth shenanigans to weightless pop guided by
Sadier and
Hansen's counterpoint, capturing how the group made these shifts seem effortless.
Pulse of the Early Brain's second half goes deeper into eclecticism, juxtaposing concise tracks such as the buzzy, previously unreleased "Robot Riot" (which the band composed for their
Music for the Amorphous Body Study Center collaborator,
Charles Long) and the chamber-pop whimsy of
Chemical Chords bonus tracks like "Spool of Collusion" with the avant-garde sci-fi jazz of "Symbolic Logic of Now!" and
Autechre's spectral yet hard-hitting remix of "Refractions in the Plastic Pulse" for maximum impact. Though a handful of tracks fall into the category of fun but not essential,
Pulse of the Early Brain feels more necessary than some of the previous Switched On volumes. As it covers a wide swath of the band's career, it provides a few surprises for even the most avid fans -- and whether listeners are hearing these songs for the first time or the first time in a long time, they sound equally great. ~ Heather Phares
