After 12 years of cranking out midtempo, alternative jangle pop, the Santa Barbara, California-based Toad the Wet Sprocket have called it quits.

A statement issued by Toad's management last Friday on the band's official website cited "emerging differences" as the reason for the break-up, and a publicist for Toad's label confirmed that the band was indeed no more.

In recent months it became harder to keep everyone satisfied within the confines of the band," said singer Glenn Phillips in the statement. "It felt like if we stayed together much longer, the tensions would hurt both the music and our friendships.

Toad, which formed in 1986 from a collection of high school friends, released its debut album, "Bread & Circus" in 1989 and went on to score platinum success in 1991 with the album "Fear," which was catapulted up the charts by two hummable, ear-candy singles, "All I Want" and "Walk on the Ocean.

The group's 1994 effort, "Dulcinea," also went platinum,

but interest in the band sagged with its two most recent releases, "In Light Syrup," a 1995 collection of previously unreleased material, and last year's studio album, "Coil.

Toad the Wet Sprocket had attempted to start work on a new album several times in the past few months, but eventually decided to disband rather than proceed with the recording.

By ending the band now," Phillips said, "we can look back on our career together with a sense of pride and pleasure.