8

So long and farewell from the one year wonders.

No one ever thinks of the poor old record companies, do they? When news broke that Test Icicles were to split, the fans were in tears and the music media hypothesised as to what caused the split. With all this going on, Domino Records were left to rue wasted money on an act that has split long before it all got a bit interesting.

Such is the backdrop to 'Dig Your Own Grave', a collection of unreleased tracks and remixes designed to placate the diehards and offset some losses. Considering it's an un-even package, the overall consistency and quality is not too bad and fans of the band will lap up the scratchy, wiry sounds that made the band's name briefly.

Opening up with the more obvious songs on the record, 'Pull The Lever' sets the last rites' tones with its ominous interlude before the frenetic riffing and pinging bassline propels the track onwards.

With an unreleased single edit of 'Your Biggest Mistake' following on, the commercial edge of the record is placed upfront and hints at a level of acceptance the band may have obtained if harder work was put in. Certainly the screamed vocals and angry lyrics are all the rage with the younger set nowadays, so perhaps the band could have existed for longer.

The Chromehoof remix of 'Circle Square Triangle' is the most interesting track on the album and could have opened up new avenues for Test Icicles. The track burns away with a glitch instrumental underpinning the commercial yelps and spooky backing track. If Aphex Twin got his hands on Bloc Party, the end result may not be dissimilar to this effort.

It's also interesting to note that one of the demos dates from March 2006. Would this indicate that the bands decision to break up was of a spontaneous nature or perhaps they were already working on other projects when they were winding up the band's natural life? Or was it just cynically creating extra material to recoup a bit of money?

With any sort of release like this, the real question is whether enough people care to warrant it being made available in the first place. It will be a good send-off for the keen fans of the band but with so much other releases available at the moment, the impulsive buyer would be unlikely to make this purchase.

Overall, 'Dig Your Own Grave' has some okay tracks on it and is a quirky collection but it fails to grab and excite and it is very unlikely to add to the batch of mourners bemoaning the Test Icicles passing.