Test Icicles
London – Brixton Academy
16/11/05
The sense of occasion is oddly lacking inside the Brixton Academy tonight.
It’s the second date of Alkaline Trio’s first full UK tour since 2003, of which every date has sold out… except for tonight. Granted, punk bands rarely sound great at the Academy, but the Trio’s recent ‘Crimson’ album has arguably won them more fans than ever before. Still, there’s no point in dwelling on the matter, although doing so would probably be more entertaining than the mediocre art-rock of openers Sunshine.
It’s left to Mike Park (the founder of Asian Man Records, who released the Trio’s first two albums) to really get things started, with only the help of his acoustic guitar and a short but intriguing Plea For Peace documentary played on a projector. Although unknown to most of the crowd, his excellent folk-pop songs still incite a mass singalong from the devoted few at the front. He’d probably sound better in a small club or bar, but nevertheless manages to create a certain intimacy in the Academy’s cavernous confines – an achievement in itself.
London-based trio Test Icicles stick out like a sore thumb on this bill, with their hyperactive stage presence and blasts of feedback laden art-punk chaos that just about pass for songs. Occasional applause is largely drowned out by boos and cries of “Get off!“, but to their credit, the band don’t seem bothered, and instead concentrate on sounding increasingly louder and weirder. Good strategy!
The venue is respectably full by the time Alkaline Trio hit the stage, but as Matt Skiba and co. blast into the opening ‘Back To Hell’, our fears are confirmed: the sound is terrible. Worst affected is Dan Andriano’s bass, which is little more than an indistinct rumble for the first few songs, thankfully improving slightly thereafter. The crowd go nuts from the start, but the band themselves seem somewhat lost on the Academy’s spacious stage.
It’s understandable that ‘Crimson‘ material dominates the Trio’s set, but it’s debatable as to whether it measures up to old favourites like ‘Clavicle‘, ‘My Friend Peter’ and – let’s be honest here – the entirety of the brilliant ‘Maybe I’ll Catch Fire‘ album. Suffice to say that most of these don’t get played tonight; a likely bone of contention among the band’s long-term fans.
Still, an encore of ‘Time To Waste‘ and the classic ‘Radio‘ ensures that most of us leave Brixton happy. It certainly wasn’t a vintage Alkaline Trio gig, but the faults lie more with the venue than the band. Maybe two nights at the Astoria next time, eh guys?
Alex Gosman
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