Any music fan who came of age in the '90s knows the name Toad the Wet Sprocket.
The band was one of the decade's quintessential successes, thanks to radio-friendly hits like "Fall Down" and "All I Want." Their music was rocking yet accessible, with a gooey, emotional center that rivaled that of the similar-sounding Gin Blossoms.
The Santa Barbara-based group was also a constant presence in films and on TV, featured prominently in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Empire Records and So I Married an Axe Murderer. They also appeared on the I Know What You Did Last Summer soundtrack, where they delivered a surprisingly effective cover of the Beatles' "Hey Bulldog."
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Despite their alterna-rock acumen, Toad the Wet Sprocket may be best known for the slow ballad "Walk on the Ocean," which has provided the score to untold numbers of sweaty-palmed junior-high slow dances. A year after the release of a moderately successful fifth album, Coil, the band broke up.
Despite the split, Toad the Wet Sprocket have convened frequently over the years to record the odd track or to set out on small tours. In 2009, the group officially announced its reunion, with plans to release a new album sometime in 2011 -- the first since 1997's Coil. If you can't wait until then, don't worry -- the band will be in town on March 24 to play the Belly Up.
Tickets for the event can be purchased here, and you'll probably want to buy one for your sweetheart, too. After all, how often do you get the chance to slow-dance to "Walk on the Ocean" live?
Chris Maroulakos is a writer and managing editor for the San Diego music blog Owl and Bear.
