Test Icicles
Magnet, Berlin
8th February 2006
These blokes are a weird bunch. See them on stage and they look like a bizarre trio (with stupid names) DevMetal looks like he was recently ejected from the Public Enemy Fan Club for his penchant for heavy-metal T-Shirts, Sam E Danger looking like a indie-boy caricature with a bouffant quiff and Raary Decihells (significantly shorter than the other two) resembles one of the true white punks on dope. But this is truly what makes the Test Icicles great. They do not seem to have a need to incessantly fall into any of the neatly labelled musical potholes that litter today's indie-music highway.
From the outset you have the feeling that the band is unhappy about the level of enthusiasm from the crowd, which is a shame. Although let's be honest, these are not really sing-along anthems we are talking about here. However, the crowd do go suitably mental for ‘Circle, Square, Triangle'. And quite right too. It sounds like a screamcore acid trip with razorblade guitars and incomprehensible yet visceral vocals.
When they insist on speaking in between the songs they sound like absolute twats. Classic comments like "We would play longer, but we don't know any more songs" was duly met with the stony silence it deserved, while lame gags like "I dabbled in Christianity once. There was free food" even drew heckles from this predominantly non-English speaking crowd. Bear in mind that this is in the grey depths of Berlin.
Another reason they should talk a lot less during shows is that they possess such an abundance of stage presence, and make such a fantastic noise, telling lame jokes is even more superfluous than normal. After telling lame gags and attempting fruitlessly to insult the crowd they launch into a great performance of ‘Catch It' which is pretty much the highlight of the evening. Throughout the set, all three members take turns at the microphone and all manage to convey a furious, raw energy that still manages to remain accessible and interesting.
The gig ends with Raary and Sam leaving the stage to a cacophony of feedback, leaving Dev to play about with his guitar and various electronics for the next 10 minutes. During which, some rather cool noise was made. There is no encore. This was a short gig, and not one of the best in the world, but it was unexpected, fun and a lot more enjoyable than an Oasis show.
by Daniel Westerlund
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