The Like Young Breaks Up, Plays Last Local Show This Friday at the Hideout
By Scott Smith in Arts & Entertainment on Aug 29, 2006 1:00PM
The Like Young 
announced its breakup Sunday in a post on its website and in a press release from its label Polyvinyl Records yesterday. The band was four years old.
The duo came into being in 2002 following the marriage of members Joe and Amanda (née Lyons) Ziemba, both of whom had been part of the bands Wolfie and Busytoby since 1997.
The band embarks on its first and last West Coast tour throughout the month of September. Their last scheduled local show is this Friday at the Hideout with the Assembly opening. Tickets are $8 and the show starts at 10 p.m.
Back in July, The Like Young said “this is the start of a very exciting time for the band. We cannot wait to get out and play for people again.” Yet the press release announcing the split (written by Joe and posted at the band’s website) is fraught with heartbreak and emotion and leaves little question that the band is done.
“There's no big drama, no inner turmoil. The fact is, you can only take so much frustration and heartbreak before a once great love becomes something unpleasant and sad … We're no longer interested in being a part of an industry which, with a few exceptions, is often cold, cynical and senseless. The financial, mental, and physical strains are constant. The resulting victories are few. We need to make smart decisions at this point in our lives … The relief (and release) that we both feel after reaching this decision is nearly impossible to convey in words.”
The band signed with Polyvinyl last summer and released the album Last Secrets this past May. Though they cite dissatisfaction with the industry as a reason for the breakup, the band made a special point to hail both Polyvinyl and their prior label Parasol (currently home to critical darlings The 1900s) saying “we've loved working with them. They do it how it should be done.”
With Thax saying goodbye on Thursday, we’re hoping the Hideout shakes the funereal vibe before next weekend’s Touch and Go party so nobody breaks up onstage. Not that such a thing would ever happen in Chicago.