Airborne Toxic Event rock the Koko

February 28^th saw Californian indie rockers Airborne Toxic Event taking London’s KoKo stage for a night of incendiary rock ‘n’ roll.

Everything was set for them to be once again the kings of Camden Town (the band played for a whole month at the Dublin Castle back in 2008, as part of its 30 shows in 30 days tour of the United Kingdom) and they did take its scintillating gold crown and made the most out of it.

Performing tracks off their first two albums such as Sometime Around Midnight and All at Once, the US rockers surely knew how to treat their Briton fans right, giving them a night they will hardly forget.

Compared to the likes of Arcade Fire, The Strokes and Kings Of Leon, Airborne Toxic Event are painfully staggering to watch live, with their majestic blending of West Coast indie rock and orchestral arrangements – their formation include viola player Anna Bulbrook.

The band has a peculiar craving for England and therefore they were extremely happy to be playing back in London, as frontman Mikel Jollett stated on their website: “I was just too weird and wondered where all the other weird people were. And I’m not saying that they were in England. I’m saying that this music—this English music, this English conception of rock and roll with it’s desperate, cloying, angry, winking beating heart made me feel less alone. […] we can’t wait to play tonight.”

And they did play, putting on one hell of a rock show, with crowd-surfing, moshing and just about everything you can think of when talking about great rock shows.

They went on for almost two hours of insane playing and mind-blowing antics, through fan favourites Numb, Does This Mean You’re Moving On? and newly released single Timeless, off their soon-to-be-released third album Such Hot Blood.

An absolutely mesmerising experience, one of those great ones leaving you with a genuine tingling inside; the only trace left when witnessing something truly profound.

Verdict: ••••

Eleonora Ricotta

Photos: Bartek Odias 

For further information on Airborne Toxic Event visit their website here. To buy new single Timeless click here