Mars Audiac Quintet

Mars Audiac Quintet is the third studio album by English-French rock band Stereolab. It was released on 2 August 1994 in the United States by Elektra Records[2] and on 8 August 1994 in the United Kingdom by Duophonic Records.[1][3] Keyboardist Katharine Gifford joined the band for the recording of the album. During recording, guitarist Sean O'Hagan left as a full-time member in order to focus on his band the High Llamas.[4]

Mars Audiac Quintet
Studio album by
Stereolab
Released2 August 1994 (1994-08-02)
Recorded1994
StudioBlackwing (London)
GenreSpace age pop
Length66:57
Label
Stereolab chronology
Ping Pong
(1994)		 Mars Audiac Quintet
(1994)		 Wow and Flutter
(1994)
Stereolab studio album chronology
Transient Random-Noise Bursts with Announcements
(1993)		 Mars Audiac Quintet
(1994)		 Emperor Tomato Ketchup
(1996)
Singles from Mars Audiac Quintet
  1. "Ping Pong"
    Released: 18 July 1994[1]
  2. "Wow and Flutter"
    Released: 17 October 1994[1]

Mars Audiac Quartet peaked at number 16 on the UK Albums Chart. A remastered and expanded edition of the album was released by Duophonic and Warp on 3 May 2019.[5]

Composition

AllMusic critic Heather Phares characterises Mars Audiac Quintet as a more pop-oriented affair than previous Stereolab albums, noting that it largely highlights the band's brand of space age pop.[6]

The song "International Colouring Contest" is a tribute to Lucia Pamela and opens with a sample of her voice.[7]

Reception and legacy
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[6]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[8]
Entertainment WeeklyC+[9]
Pitchfork9.1/10[10]
Q[11]
Record Collector[12]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[13]
Select4/5[14]
Spin Alternative Record Guide8/10[15]
Uncut8/10[16]

In 2003, Pitchfork ranked Mars Audiac Quintet as the 78th best album of the 1990s.[17]

The American indie rock band Transona Five took their name from the title of the third track on the album.[18]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier, except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Three-Dee Melodie" 5:02
2."Wow and Flutter" 3:08
3."Transona Five" 5:32
4."Des étoiles électroniques" 3:20
5."Ping Pong" 3:02
6."Anamorphose" 7:33
7."Three Longers Later" 3:28
8."Nihilist Assault Group" 6:55
9."International Colouring Contest" 3:47
10."The Stars Our Destination" 2:58
11."Transporté sans bouger" 4:20
12."L'enfer des formes" 3:53
13."Outer Accelerator" 5:21
14."New Orthophony" 4:34
15."Fiery Yellow"
4:04
Total length:66:57
Limited edition bonus disc
No.TitleLength
1."Klang Tone"5:36
2."Ulan Bator"3:14
Total length:8:50
2019 expanded edition bonus disc[19]
No.TitleLength
1."Ulan Bator"2:20
2."Klang Tone"5:38
3."Melochord Seventy-Five" (original Pulse version)5:32
4."Outer Accelerator" (original mix)6:05
5."Nihilist Assault Group – Part 6"2:13
6."Wow and Flutter" (7"/EP version – alternative mix)3:06
7."Des étoiles électroniques" (demo)1:25
8."Ping Pong" (demo)2:55
9."The Stars Our Destination" (demo)1:19
10."Three Longers Later" (demo)2:05
11."Transona Five" (demo)1:30
12."Transporté sans bouger" (demo)2:09
Total length:36:17

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[20]

Charts
Chart (1994–2019) Peak
position
Scottish Albums (OCC)[21] 33
UK Albums (OCC)[22] 16
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[23] 13
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[24] 92

References
  1. "The Lab Report". The Lab Report. September 1994. Archived from the original on 1 August 1997. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  2. Morris, Chris (25 June 1994). "Elektra's Stereolab Gets A Fresh Start On Lollapalooza 2nd Stage". Billboard. Vol. 106 no. 26. p. 15. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
  3. Mars Audiac Quintet (press advertisement). Duophonic Records. 1994. Archived from the original on 11 November 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  4. Phares, Heather. "Stereolab". AllMusic. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  5. "7 Albums To Be Reissued Via Warp And Duophonic UHF Disks". Warp. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  6. Phares, Heather. "Mars Audiac Quintet – Stereolab". AllMusic. Retrieved 31 May 2016.
  7. Mason, Stewart. "International Colouring Contest – Stereolab". AllMusic. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  8. Larkin, Colin (2011). "Stereolab". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
  9. Jackon, Devon (19 August 1994). "Mars Audiac Quintet". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 31 May 2016.
  10. Sherburne, Philip (18 July 2019). "Stereolab: Mars Audiac Quintet". Pitchfork. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  11. "Stereolab: Mars Audiac Quintet". Q. No. 97. October 1994. p. 126.
  12. Rathbone, Oregano (May 2019). "Laboratoire Granier". Record Collector. No. 492. pp. 96–97.
  13. Sarig, Roni (2004). "Stereolab". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 779–81. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  14. Wilkinson, Roy (September 1994). "Stereolab: Mars Audiac Quintet". Select. No. 51. p. 98.
  15. Strauss, Neil (1995). "Stereolab". In Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (eds.). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. pp. 375–76. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  16. Pattison, Louis (June 2019). "Stereolab: Transient Random-Noise Bursts with Announcements / Mars Audiac Quintet". Uncut. No. 265. p. 49.
  17. "Top 100 Albums of the 1990s". Pitchfork. 17 November 2003. p. 3. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  18. Wilonsky, Robert (1 February 2007). "Transona Five's Chris Foley Died Sunday; Causes Still to Be Determined". Dallas Observer. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
  19. "Stereolab – Mars Audiac Quintet (Expanded Edition)". Duophonic Ultra High Frequency Disks. Retrieved 24 February 2019.
  20. Mars Audiac Quintet (liner notes). Stereolab. Duophonic Records. 1994. D-UHF-CD05.CS1 maint: others (link)
  21. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  22. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
  23. "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  24. "Stereolab Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
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