Test Icicles Split; Cancel U.S. Tour

from Pitchfork:

Matthew Solarski reports:

Well, it was fun while it lasted. But just like that beloved snowman in your front yard, Britain's ace chaos-provocateurs Test Icicles have passed on to a better place (possibly the troposphere). Chalk it up to the burdens of hype, egos, drugs, infighting, or Arctic Monkeys-- no matter what, the headstone still reads: R.I.P. Test Icicles: 2004-February 2006.

Here's the official statement:

"The band have just come off a European tour and are exhausted from the constant pressures of touring--subsequently they have cancelled their show at the NME Awards show this Friday and US tour. The band will play their UK tour in April, but there are currently no plans to make another album or tour beyond this."

As you read, the band have scrapped their much-anticipated U.S. shows, as well as that sold-out NME gig opening for Nine Black Alps. They will, however, still play those five UK dates in April, recapped below.

First, the cancelled dates:

02-24 London, England - Hammersmith Palais
03-01 Brooklyn, NY - North Six
03-02 New York, NY - Mercury Lounge
03-03 Philadelphia, PA - North Star Bar
03-04 Baltimore, MD - Sonar
03-06 Seattle, WA - Neumo's
03-08 Portland, OR - Lola's Room
03-09 San Francisco, CA - Popscene
03-10 Los Angeles, CA - Spaceland
03-11 San Diego, CA - Casbah
03-13 Minneapolis, MN - Triple Rock
03-14 Chicago, IL - Logan Square Auditorium
03-17 Austin, TX - La Zone Rosa (Domino SXSW Showcase)
03-18 Austin, TX - Emo's

And the ones that are still on:

04-18 Glasgow, Scotland - Garage
04-19 Sunderland, England - Manor Quay
04-20 Manchester, England - Academy 2
04-21 Coventry, England - Coliseum
04-22 London, England - Astoria

Domino U.S. will release the now-swansong EP Circle. Square. Triangle in the U.S. later this spring. It will feature b-sides and remixes not previously available in America, as well as a brand new remix by Spank Rock.

New Shows Added

March:

3/3: Monsters are Waiting @ Rickshaw Stop (Club Loaded)
3/4: Mesh Magazine Spectacular featuring Tussle @ Rickshaw Stop
3/17: Orb @ Bimbo's
3/19: Field Music @ Bottom of the Hill

April:

4/8: Elbow @ TBA
4/21: Pinback @ Bimbo's
4/28: Yeah Yeah Yeahs @ The Warfield
4/29: Editors and Stellastarr* @ Mezzanine
4/30: Prefuse 73 @ Mezzanine

May:

5/22: I Love You But I've Chosen the Darkness @ The Independent

St. Etienne, Every Move a Picture (The Fillmore, 17 February 2006)

St. Etienne are one of those bands that was at its apex in the 1990's, when britpop was the new "indie". Unlike most of those bands, St. Etienne remained and withstood the test of time as they released album after album after album. Not only are the members of St. Etienne talented musicians with a penchant for catchy hooks and equally catchy lyrics, but they are fronted by one of the most dynamic female singers of all time: Sarah Cracknell.

Being in a band for over a decade can take its toll -- physically and mentally. However, Sarah didn't show any of that when she and the rest of St. Etienne performed in front of a sold out crowd at the Fillmore. Her diva status was reaffirmed when she took the stage with chants of "Sarah! Sarah!" and men of all ages, gay or straight, were in awe at Sarah's beauty. She must be in her mid-30s or (gasp) somewhere in her 40's, but regardless, she looked amazing.

They opened up with "Lightning Strikes Twice" from their new album Tales from Turnpike House. The instrumentation was flawless, and Sarah's voice resonated loud and clear through the speakers. Sarah's stage presence was equally felt, not only with her beauty but with her subtle dances and the occassional smile to the crowd.

Although songs from Turnpike House were well received, it wasn't until the classics did the crowd go wild. Recognizing this, the band next played "Sylvie" which ignited the crowd. The band got their loudest applause during the two encores. For the first encore, they played "Like a Motorway" and the infectiously dancy "Nothing Can Stop Us." For the second encore, they played another dance classic, "People Get Real."

The opening band was Every Move a Picture, a local San Francisco electro/indie rock outfit. Their songs are very catchy, their attire is excellent, but the sound in the Fillmore did not benefit them. At several points throughout the show, the lead singer's voice was drowned by the ever powerful guitars and bass. Regardless, they played their hits and received a warm round of applause and a bouquet of flowers.

Beer Rating:

Jam of the Week: White Rose Movement

I like these guys. They are fun and very electro sounding. Their video for their highly infectioius single "Girls in the Back" can be found here

New Shows Added

March:

3/2: Nick Zinner (Yeah Yeah Yeahs) DJs @ Popscene
3/3: Mae Shi @ Hemlock Tavern
3/4: Citizens Here & Abroad @ Slim's
3/9: Test Icicles @ Popscene
3/11: Controller.Controller, Scissors for Lefty and You Say Party! We Say Die! @ Rickshaw Stop
3/20: Snow Patrol @ GAMH
3/22: White Rose Movement @ Bottom of the Hill
3/29: Britt Daniel (Spoon) @ Cafe Du Nord
3/31: Jason Collett @ Cafe Du Nord
3/31: Film School @ Slim's

April:

4/1: Wolf Mother and Parchman Farm @ Bottom of the Hill
4/6: The Boy Least Likely To (supporting James Blunt) @ The Warfield
4/8: Elbow @ TBA
4/27: The Go! Team and Dungen @ GAMH
4/27: Quasi @ Cafe Du Nord
4/27: Wilderness @ Bottom of the Hill
4/28: Hard-FI @ Slim's
4/28: Quasi @ Cafe Du Nord
4/29: Editors @ Mezzanine

May:

5/2: Sleater-Kinney @ GAMH
5/3: Sleater-Kinney @ GAMH
5/8: Destroyer @ Cafe Du Nord

June:

6/1: Liars @ Bottom of the Hill

Hey Willpower, Japanther and Two Tears (Hemlock Tavern, 14 February 2005)

Wow. Love is in the air. Yaddah. Yaddah. Yaddah. Nothing going on here really. Just three good bands playing a sardine packed room at the Hemlock Tavern. Shoot. For $5, you just can't beat this deal.

There was this band called the Two Tears. They were pretty good but I barely saw them. The stage at the Hemlock isn't really tall. Even worse than Popscene. But from what I heard, they were alright.

Japanther are these two crazy guys from Hamilton, Ontario apparently. The crowd went ape shit for these guys, jumping around like crazy and all that. I can't describe how good and fun these guys were, but let me take an excerpt from a fellow #1 person describing them:

"Japanther tried to steal the show--
How dare they take almost an HOUR to set up?
How dare does he have a rad lookin afro?
How dare does the drummer / singer set up his drum set so that he's SITTING down on the floor
/not the stage), and have his back turned to the audience?
HOW DARE THEY USE TELEPHONE RECEIVERS AS MICS!!!
How dare they play that song AGAIN ("I think we need
to play that song again") (N.B.: Referring to "River Phoenix" song)!
How dare they say this is our last two songs but play five or six more !

and on and on

How dare the fucken crowd be soooooooooooooo fucken crowded
for that band (ok, they were REALLY good, really energetic
and the crowd was rockin moshin out and it was fun."

That sums it up nicely for Japanther.

As for Hey Willpower, I'll let my #1 person describe part of that as well:

"Hey Willpower was soooooo fun"

They did all their typical songs like "Hundredaire" and "Magic Window" as they are accustomed to doing. But they also did a mash up of Annie's "Chewing Gum" which was great, great fun! And they have a new dancer apparently. He's pretty damn good. Again, to quote my friend:

"Hey Willpower didn't get to go on til 12:45am (that's technically the day AFTER valentine's day, fyi). It was a really fun show. Will at one point got his shirt taken off (then later his face wiped off by a front row girl's hankey, then later his chest by another girl's hanky --what's up oh you
didn't get the memo? Hanky codes are BACK for girls, straight girls tryin to get with
gay boys gay dreamy boys) ."

I think that sums it up nicely....

Beer Rating:

Wolfmother (Popscene, 11 February 2006)

Let me make this as short and sweet as possible.

I was not into this show from the very start. So, to give Wolfmother a negative review would be quite an injustice. I was not having an exciting time, and to hear a 70's sounding band that is akin to Jack White singing in Black Sabbath wasn't my idea of a good time that evening.

I was there. And, yes, I heard two songs. Some of the crowd was into it. I wasn't. It just wasn't good in my ears. Although their debut album isn't that bad.

So, I will reserve further review of this show because of circumstances that has nothing to do with the Aussie's stage act.

Flaming Lips to Play Bimbo's / Boy Least Likely To Supports James Blunt

This should be a treat...

The Flaming Lips are playing Bimbo's on March 27th. Tickets are a whopping $30 and availble through TicketWeb starting at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday, February 12th.

Also, in more disappointing news, The Boy Least Likely To are touring with that crap James Blunt. Why?!?!?!? Well, you can see The Boy Least Likely To support Mr. Blunt at the Warfield on April 6th. Tickets are $25.

Both shows are posted on the calendar.

Cat Power Tour Cancelled

From Matador Records (via Brooklyn Vegan):

We regret to announce that Cat Power's entire US tour has been canceled due to health reasons. Out of respect for Chan's privacy, we can't give more detailed information, but we hope and assume that you'll respect her privacy during this time as well.

There will be information about refunds available imminently, and the tour will be rescheduled as soon as possible.

Chan is a good friend and a dear member of the Matador family, and when we have news about future performances, we'll be certain to share it with you here.

Calendar is updated to reflect cancellation.

New Shows Added (Crazy March!)

A whole slew of shows added recently, with Noise Pop 2006 coming up in the end of March. Some notable additions:

February:

2/14: The Lovemakers @ GAMH
2/14: Hey Willpower & Japanther @ Hemlock Tavern
2/15: The Lovemakers @ Slim's
2/23: Nada Surf & Rogue Wave @ The Fillmore

March:

3/10: Voxtrot, We Are Wolves & Kiss Me Deadly @ Hemlock Tavern
3/11: Voxtrot, Joggers and Kiss Me Deadly @ Bottom of the Hill
3/15: BRMC & Elefant @ Fillmore
3/18: Numbers @ Hemlock Tavern
3/19: Jose Gonzalez @ Cafe Du Nord
3/21: Mystery Jets @ Cafe Du Nord
3/23: Franz Ferdinand & Death Cab for Cutie @ Sacramento Convention Center
3/23: Tapes N Tapes @ Cafe Du Nord
3/24: Hellacopters @ Slim's
3/28: Feist @ Bimbo's (Noise Pop)
3/30: The National @ The Independent (Noise Pop)
3/30: Rogue Wave @ Bimbo's (Noise Pop)
3/31: We Are Scientists @ The Independent (Noise Pop)
3/31: Two Gallants @ Bimbo's (Noise Pop)

April:

4/1: The Velvet Teen & Xiu Xiu @ GAMH
4/18: Josh Rouse @ GAMH
4/19: Dinosaur Jr. @ GAMH
4/20: Dinosaur Jr. @ GAMH
4/27: Depeche Mode @ Shoreline
4/28: Mates of State @ GAMH

May:

5/1: TV On The Radio @ The Independent
5/2: TV On The Radio @ The Independent

June:

6/4: Pretty Girls Make Graves @ GAMH

Jenny Lewis with The Watson Twins (Swedish American Music Hall, 3 February 2006)

I guess Rilo Kiley fans are really hardcore afterall.

Jenny Lewis, that cute as a button lead singer of Rilo Kiley, played her second ever show as a solo artist with the Watson Twins, Jonathan Rice and some guy named Farmer Dave at the Swedish American Music Hall last night. As of 8 p.m., the line of ticket holders (and those hoping to get lucky with one) wrapped around the block. And for good reason: the Swedish American is a sit down venue with no assigned seating. It's a very intimate venue, so not sitting down isn't really a disadvantage but it may be a minor hindrance. We didn't wait in line (opted for cheap sushi instead) and still got a good spot in the back.

Opening up with Ms. Lewis is Jonathan Rice. He's a guy with good hair, an acoustic guitar and a nice voice which some may compare to a young Johnny Cash. He had his fair share of admirers from the crowd, with some rather loud woman yelling "I love you!" which he replied, 'You don't even know me." The crowd laughed at the off-the-cuff remark and that shut the girl up a bit. I only saw the first three songs in his set and opted to go next door to get a dirty martini (N.B.: Swedish American is a "dry" venue. All they serve are cookies, samiches, tea, hot cocoa and coffee).

We arrived just in time to see Jenny. Jenny and the Watson twins were upstairs and they walked down, candle in hand, and sang "Run Devil Run" as if they were in a funeral procession. Jonathan and Farmer Dave were already on stage when this happened. They then proceeded to play "The Big Guns."

Their set all consisted of songs off of Jenny's new album, Rabbit Fur Coat. So, no, yelling out or even wishing they would play anything Rilo Kiley was out of the question. It was a mellow show, with the crowd in dead silence as Jenny and her band played each song. The only noises emitted were in between songs, with the crowd giving Jenny and her bandmates plenty of loud applause and recognition. It was probably not a good idea to come to this show dead tired (I admit, I fell asleep for a few seconds at a time) since the songs are not as "rock" oriented as Rilo Kiley, but it was superb nonetheless.

Other highlights included "The Charging Sky" and "Rabbit Fur Coat." All of which Jenny played with a lot of emotion and vigor. She ended her main set with "Born Secular" with Jenny on the piano. Jenny and the Watson twins then left the stage the same way that they entered: funeral style and singing acapella.

The crowd gave her a standing ovation. After a few minutes, Jenny came back down. She then did a duet song with Jonathan Rice which I didn't recognize. Regardless, it was very, very good. It reminded me of Walk the Line where Johnny Cash and June Carter would do songs together.

It was a treat to see Jenny in an environment that is simple, intimate and stripped of all the lights, noise and rock stardom. Her songs were well played and her voice was ever so angelic. They will be back next month at Bimbo's, so definitely catch them there if you haven't seen them here.

Beer Rating: