Saint Etienne, now into their second decade of existence as a band, are no longer the heroes of the pop underground that they were in the early 90s. Nevertheless they continue to produce catchy singles fusing their pop sensibilities with dance beats and refuse to bow to music industry restrictions; with 5 tracks, this single is too long to qualify for the British charts.

"How We Used To Live," which appears here in three mixes, is a dreamy ballad which clocks in at nearly nine minutes. The next couple of tracks continue in similar style, although with less vocal. "Red Setter" in particular is a mesmerizing mesh of beats, hummed vocals and enticing piano lines.

Laid back and moody, this is a pleasing single. It would be nice to hear the songs with a slightly stronger focus, but Saint Etienne continue to please.

James Stewart  3/19/2000