BY BOB MCMAHON
After a seemingly interminable hiatus, Jumbling Towers made its long-awaited return to the stage last night with a powerful, if occasionally shaky, reminder of why it's one of St. Louis's best indie-rock bands. Not playing a show in about a year left the quartet with some rust to discard, but the Towers still put on a winning performance that offered a great showcase of their unique sound.
This sound still earns the group some detractors, and anyone previously annoyed by their
Jay Farrar and Ben Gibbard are playing four shows in October, to celebrate the release of their Jack Kerouac-inspired collaboration, One Fast Move Or I'm Gone: Kerouac's Big Sur. The closest tour date is October 26 in Chicago at Lincoln Hall -- and judging by the band backing the pair, a road trip might be a no-brainer: The band features Jay Farrar (Son Volt), Benjamin Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie, Postal Service), Nick Harmer (Death Cab for Cutie), Mark Spencer (Son Volt) and Jon Wurster (
Photo: Egan O'KeefeSt. Vincent last night at the Firebird. See more photos from last night's show.
A few songs into her hour-plus set, St. Vincent's Annie Clark told the crowd that she was "flummoxed by your enthusiasm." For once, it didn't seem like an instance of rock-star faux-modesty -- her wide-eyed visage seemed to be taking in the nearly full house at the Firebird with equal parts grace and disbelief. But it was hard to be anything less than enthused with her performance, her first hea
