Pitchfork

Lush, lovely, longstanding UK pop trio Saint Etienne have a truckload of music to their credit, and for a newcomer to their world, it can be a lot to parse. Thank goodness, then, for London Conversations: The Best of Saint Etienne, which will give the uninitiated a chance to hear just what all the chatter's been about.

The career-spanning London Conversations is due in a plethora of formats September 29 from Heavenly/Universal. A concise single CD edition collects 16 Saint Etienne classics and a pair of new songs (a new take on "Burnt Out Car" and "This Is Tomorrow"), while a double disc version rounds out the best with the rest of the band's many, many A-sides and some other nuggets. There's also a limited edition double-LP set and a bound book sporting the 2CD edition and a DVD of all of the band's videos. Truly, lesser saints would be put to shame by a package such as this.

The set will be preceded by a single for the aforementioned "Burnt Out Car", due September 22 on 7" and CD. The track, according to the band's MySpace blog, is a new version of their mid-1990s "lost single" produced by hit-making production house Xenomania. The single will be coupled with the B-sides "River", "Destroy the Building", and "Night Vision", along with "beautiful Balearic mixes from moptop hero Mark Brown." Another single for "This Is Tomorrow" is due by the end of the year, and an elaborate reissue campaign of all of the band's studio offerings is in the works.

Saint Etienne have but a single show planned for the time being, a Forever Heavenly performance at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall September 14 with the Little Ones and Dot Allison.

London Conversations:

Disc 1:

01 Only Love Can Break Your Heart
02 Nothing Can Stop Us
03 Join Our Club
04 Avenue Edit
05 You're in a Bad Way
06 Hobart Paving
07 Who Do You Think You Are
08 Pale Movie
09 Like a Motorway
10 Hug My Soul
11 He's on the Phone
12 Sylvie
13 Heart Failed (In the Back of a Taxi)
14 Action
15 A Good Thing
16 Side Streets
17 Burnt Out Car (Xenomania Mix)
18 This Is Tomorrow

Disc 2:

01 Kiss and Make Up
02 Filthy
03 Spring
04 People Get Real
05 Mario's Cafe
06 Goodnight Jack (Original 1998 Version)
07 The Bad Photographer
08 Lose That Girl
09 Lover Plays the Bass
10 How We Used to Live
11 Boy Is Crying
12 Finisterre
13 Soft Like Me
14 Shower Scene
15 Stars Above Us
16 Teenage Winter
17 I Was Born on Christmas Day

LP:

A1 Only Love Can Break Your Heart
A2 Nothing Can Stop Us
A3 Join Our Club
A4 Avenue Edit
B1 You're in a Bad Way
B2 Hobart Paving
B3 Who Do You Think You Are
B4 Pale Movie
B5 Like a Motorway
B6 Hug My Soul
C1 He's on the Phone
C2 Sylvie
C3 Heart Failed (In the Back of a Taxi)
C4 Action
D1 A Good Thing
D2 Side Streets
D3 Burnt Out Car (Xenomania Mix)
D4 This Is Tomorrow

DVD:

01 Only Love Can Break Your Heart
02 Kiss and Make Up
03 Nothing Can Stop Us
04 Avenue
05 You're in a Bad Way
06 Hobart Paving
07 Who Do You Think You Are
08 I Was Born on Christmas Day
09 Pale Movie
10 Like a Motorway
11 Hug My Soul
12 He's on the Phone
13 Sylvie
14 The Bad Photographer
15 How We Used to Live
16 Heart Failed (In the Back of a Taxi)
17 Action
18 Side Streets