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08/28/09 7th st. entry^ Minneapolis
Discography
08/29/09 Schubas^ Chicago, IL 08/30/09 Vaudeville Mews Des Moines, IA 09/01/09 Hi Dive* Denver, CO 09/02/09 Waiting Room* Omaha, NE 09/03/09 Picador* Iowa city, IA 09/04/09 House Cafe* Dekalb, IL 09/05/09 Frankies* Toledo, OH 09/06/09 Garfield Artworks* Pittsburgh, PA 09/07/09 Fire+ Philadelphia, PA 09/08/09 Wonderbar+ Asbury Park, NJ 09/09/09 Union Hall* Brooklyn, NY 09/11/09 Melody Inn Indianapolis, IN * with Princeton + with River City Extension ^ with Wheat
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Wonder Subtly Crushing Us opens like pure indie rock beatitude; the knee-jerk impulse to look “not happy” and “wearing tiny pants” is overwhelming. “Phonebook Pillow” is probably the most straightforward track on Wonder. However, from that point forward things get interesting. Ice Palace, Minneapolis’s contribution to the lit-pop collective, accomplished what few have endeavored: to release an album that mutually embraces and excludes their audience. Who is their audience, you ask. Pirates, damsels in distress, gladiators, English professors, star-crossed lovers, book collectors, librettists, wayfarers, gothic scribes, steampunks, hipsters—the band has managed to cover all corners of “historical motifs adopted by pale contemporary outsiders.” It’s kind of weird, kind of impressive.
When listening to Wonder, I’m reminded of fellow gloomy wordsmith Kid Dakota (Darren Jackson) and his love of a darker, colder American landscape. Both musicians pen these sprawling, cryptic allegories that seem familiar, but are not (assuming you have not spent significant years in a little house on the prairie). Similar to Jackson, Adam Sorensen’s off-kilter vocals complement his curious narratives and are well suited for songs like “Lily” that never quite peak. Where KD traipses pastoral ennui, Ice Palace is interested in casually myth-historical points of reference; or, more specifically, in creating an environment that envelopes the senses, like moth-eaten crushed velvet.
Those of us that relate to normal subjects, like stupid regular love, may very well be scratching our heads half-way through (what simpletons do to denote confusion). Fortunately, Ice Palace’s capacity for antiquated romance is offset by a strong instrumental backing that’s more grrrunge than, say, the baroque pop of the Decemberists (to whom the band’s been compared). Once or twice the balance shifts: “Coliseum” lingers at mid-tempo and fails to grab; “Younger in a Year” is quite pretty-odd, but underwhelming as an album closer (although, the crackled outro is a nice touch).
“Devils Tower” and “Pirate By Thirty,” two of Wonder’s stronger tracks, sound urgent and reveal provocative imagery: some twisted sweep of waves crashing against jagged cliffs, ballrooms, absinthe, thorny sanctuaries and underground discothèques. Daring? Maybe. Creative? Certainly. Intuitive? Yes! More than anything else, Ice Palace has found distinction within the murky swamp of indie rock—as a local act and as artists trying to be uniquely approachable. A “band to watch,” if ever there was.
Ice Palace’s members include Jacob Mullis and Amy Hager of Fort Wilson Riot (a similarly strange little band that produced a rock opera). Mullis and Hager contribute vocals, bass, keys and trumpet, respectively. Other players: Sorensen (vocals/guitar), Jacob Grun (guitar/vocals), and Joe Gaskill (drums). Refer to the band’s website or Myspace for more information or for a list of upcoming shows (as an aside, on Sept. 9 they’re playing at my favorite Brooklyn bar-slash-bocce arena). Minneapolis music fiends be(a)ware: Ice Palace at the 7th St. Entry, Aug. 28 (with Wheat and Paragraphs)! Wonder Subtly Crushing Us was released in May of this year. You can purchase the album via their website.
08/11/2009 16:18:28 ♥ lara (
/lara206.vox.com) ♥ icepalacetheband.com ♥ myspace.com/icepalaceband
