We’re excited to announce that our song “Neda” is now available for download on iTunes in the U.K. You can download it HERE, or by visiting the link below:

http://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/neda-single/id377233544

We wrote this song in remembrance of Neda Agha-Soltan, who was shot and killed on the streets of Tehran by a government militia group on June 20th of last year during a peaceful protest of the disputed Iranian presidential election.

Many others died that week and more were wrongfully imprisoned, beaten, tortured and executed in the year since.

All proceeds go to Amnesty International’s work on human rights around the world.

Watch the video HERE.

Show your support for human rights in Iran by uploading a photo of yourself holding a sign saying “I am Neda” at Nedaspeaks.org.

Spread the word. On Twitter, Facebook, etc.

Good morning –

It is with full hearts that we write to you this morning to announce the release of our first song in almost two years. “Neda” — a song about Neda Agha-Soltan, whose brutal murder at the hands of the Iranian regime during the protests in Tehran last year made her a symbol of human rights the world over — is now available on iTunes. All proceeds from the sale of the song will benefit Amnesty International. To purchase the song, click HERE, or go to the link below:

http://idj.to/AmnestyNeda

In addition, we have made a web-only video for the song. The video is a retelling of the historic events surrounding Neda’s death: the disputed Iranian Presidential election, the brutality of the regime in cracking down on dissent, the desecration of Neda’s grave, the massive movement towards freedom and peace in Iran… You can watch the video above, or on YouTube.

We believe that the viral video of Neda’s death was a sea change in political power in the world. It was the first viral video to change the course of history, a symbol that the power of broadcasting ...
[Read More...]]]>

Good morning –

It is with full hearts that we write to you this morning to announce the release of our first song in almost two years. “Neda” — a song about Neda Agha-Soltan, whose brutal murder at the hands of the Iranian regime during the protests in Tehran last year made her a symbol of human rights the world over — is now available on iTunes. All proceeds from the sale of the song will benefit Amnesty International. To purchase the song, click HERE, or go to the link below:

http://idj.to/AmnestyNeda

In addition, we have made a web-only video for the song. The video is a retelling of the historic events surrounding Neda’s death: the disputed Iranian Presidential election, the brutality of the regime in cracking down on dissent, the desecration of Neda’s grave, the massive movement towards freedom and peace in Iran… You can watch the video above, or on YouTube.

We believe that the viral video of Neda’s death was a sea change in political power in the world. It was the first viral video to change the course of history, a symbol that the power of broadcasting is no longer simply in the hands of governments and corporations, but in the hands of people. It is in the hands of anyone with a cell phone camera and an internet connection. It is in your hands right now.

There’s also something about Neda herself. About the simplicity of her request (that her vote be counted) and the violence of the response her government gave her. She represents the most fundamental decency of the human spirit standing in the face of the most base corruption of that spirit. All she wanted was for her vote to be counted. For that, she was shot through the heart in the street in broad daylight holding a sign that said simply “freedom.”

Many others died that week and more were wrongfully imprisoned, beaten, tortured and executed in the year since. Some still sit in jail cells. These are people we do not know and we will never meet. But we have to let them know that we stand with them.

There are a few things you can do to help:

1. Go to nedaspeaks.org (the website we built to help the cause) and click the “ACT” button.  The link will take you to the specific political action Amnesty International has crafted to urge the release of political prisoners in Iran.

2. Go to nedaspeaks.org and click the “DONATE” button and give money to Amnesty International. Not your whole paycheck. Just what you can afford. It is appreciated. It is necessary. It is good.

3. Blast out the link to the video on your Twitter and Facebook, Imeem, Myspace, email. We are asking you to help us tell this story, to allow it in some small way to enter the public consciousness, to change the subject on Iran from the horrific little man who has hijacked the country to Neda, a warm and independent, educated and loving soul who is a more fitting symbol of one the world’s great cultures.

4. Go to nedaspeaks.org and upload a picture of yourself holding a sign saying “I am Neda.” This is a simple act. A show of force. A personal sign that you support the cause of freedom. Make it your profile picture on Facebook.

There are a lot of us. We need each other, and we need your help.

On the day of her death, the the last phone call Neda made before she was shot was to her mother. Her mother begged her to come home since everyone knew there were people being killed in the streets. 

Neda said, “If I don’t go, who will?” 

This is the question we pose.

If we don’t raise our voices, who will?

Join us.

with all our love–

Mikel, Anna, Steven, Daren, Noah
the Airborne Toxic Event

http://www.nedaspeaks.org

So we got a call from the Red Cortez crew saying that the Neda Project is a cause near and dear to their own soulful, bohemian hearts. As such, they will be joining us for the return to the Echo benefit on May 25th in Los Angeles. Red Cortez joined us for our entire fall North American tour last year and suffice it to say, they put on a SCORCHING live show. Thanks, lads.

Here’s a video for their song titled, appropriately enough, “In the Fall”: (You can also click HERE.)

Tickets for the show sold out immediately. Thank you all for supporting the cause. 

We will be debuting our new song “Neda” at the show. The song will be also released June 8th on iTunes, with all proceeds to benefit Amnesty International’s work on human rights in Iran. 

The video for the song will also be released online on June 8th. It will retell the events surrounding the death of Neda Agha-Soltan and the historic protests in Iran against the disputed presidential election.

Neda is in our hearts as are the many who gave their lives for basic freedoms and the chance to ...
[Read More...]]]> Good afternoon,

So we got a call from the Red Cortez crew saying that the Neda Project is a cause near and dear to their own soulful, bohemian hearts. As such, they will be joining us for the return to the Echo benefit on May 25th in Los Angeles. Red Cortez joined us for our entire fall North American tour last year and suffice it to say, they put on a SCORCHING live show. Thanks, lads.

Here’s a video for their song titled, appropriately enough, “In the Fall”:
(You can also click HERE.)

Tickets for the show sold out immediately. Thank you all for supporting the cause. 

We will be debuting our new song “Neda” at the show. The song will be also released June 8th on iTunes, with all proceeds to benefit Amnesty International’s work on human rights in Iran. 

The video for the song will also be released online on June 8th. It will retell the events surrounding the death of Neda Agha-Soltan and the historic protests in Iran against the disputed presidential election.

Neda is in our hearts as are the many who gave their lives for basic freedoms and the chance to stand up to tyranny. June 12th is the one-year anniversary of the historic disputed election. June 20th is the one-year anniversary of Neda’s death. 

In the coming weeks, we will be asking you to join us to make a statement in solidarity with the people of Iran, a statement in support of basic human rights, a statement about the democratization of broadcasting and the new freedom that represents.

People have asked us: Why now? Why this? Why Neda?

Because there are people halfway across the world in jail cells—people we’ll never meet—who need our help. 

Because Neda represents the most basic morality of the human spirit confronted by the most violent distortion of that spirit.

Because we think that, if we do this, people will have a better understanding of their power to affect change in the modern interconnected world. 

The world is watching. The world is filming.

Mikel, Anna, Daren, Noah, Steven
the Airborne Toxic Event

http://www.theairbornetoxicevent.com

Here’s a video of Anna and Mikel talking about Neda and Red Cortez:
(You can also click HERE.)

We are thrilled to announced that we will be returning to the first place we ever played a show for a very special benefit concert to raise funds for the Neda Project, a series of events we are doing with Amnesty International about Neda Agha-Soltan and digital democracy in Iran. 

The show will be in two weeks on May 25th, 2010 at the Echo here in Los Angeles. Tickets are very limited and will be first come, first served. They went on sale today at noon PST. They are $30 each. All proceeds will benefit the Neda Project. Here is the LINK to purchase tickets.

The Neda Project Neda Agha-Soltan was a young woman living in Iran—a student, who was shot in the street by government militia for participating in peaceful protests against the disputed election of Mahmoud Ahmadenijad. Her death was captured on video, uploaded to YouTube and within hours seen by millions around the world. She quickly became a symbol for the resistance and for the brutality of unchecked tyranny. 

Like millions of people, we were deeply touched by the video and the horrific treatment of Neda and her family by ...
[Read More...]]]> Good afternoon,

We are thrilled to announced that we will be returning to the first place we ever played a show for a very special benefit concert to raise funds for the Neda Project, a series of events we are doing with Amnesty International about Neda Agha-Soltan and digital democracy in Iran. 

The show will be in two weeks on May 25th, 2010 at the Echo here in Los Angeles. Tickets are very limited and will be first come, first served. They went on sale today at noon PST. They are $30 each. All proceeds will benefit the Neda Project. Here is the LINK to purchase tickets.

The Neda Project
Neda Agha-Soltan was a young woman living in Iran—a student, who was shot in the street by government militia for participating in peaceful protests against the disputed election of Mahmoud Ahmadenijad. Her death was captured on video, uploaded to YouTube and within hours seen by millions around the world. She quickly became a symbol for the resistance and for the brutality of unchecked tyranny. 

Like millions of people, we were deeply touched by the video and the horrific treatment of Neda and her family by the regime afterwards: the desecration of her grave, the intimidation of those who wished only to mourn her death, the allegations of torture of those who deny the government’s claim that it was a foreign plot that killed Neda and not the Basij. (A member of the Basij was caught red-handed on the scene and confessed. His ID was confiscated, though he was released for fear of punishment. He has not been brought to justice).

We wrote a song, called simply “Neda,” in tribute to her. We will be releasing the song and an accompanying video telling Neda’s story on June 8th, 2010 in preparation for the one-year anniversary of the disputed election of Ahmadinejad on June 12th and the one-year anniversary of Neda’s death on June 20th.

We will be asking you to participate in an online march as a statement of empathy from people living in the West with people living inside Iran struggling for their freedom and for people struggling for human rights everywhere.

Amnesty International has become our partner and will be involved in the benefit, the release of the video and the online march to follow. We will have more details in the coming weeks.

The Neda video was the first viral video to change the course of political events. Many people were killed in the violence after the disputed election. Neda’s death was caught on film. It awakened the world to the brutality of the regime and widespread resistance to it by the Iranian people. It’s one of the first examples of the democratization of broadcasting—that broadcasting is no longer solely in the hands of corporations and government, but in the hands of people. 

Anyone with a cell-phone camera and an internet connection can broadcast to the world. It means not only that the world is watching, but also, that the world is filming.

We’ll see you at the Echo. If you buy a ticket, we not only want your money for the project, but your participation, and we will be asking you to do a few simple but powerful things to support the project, to honor what Neda represents and to send a message that we stand with people struggling for freedom.

Mikel, Anna, Steven, Noah, Daren
the Airborne Toxic Event

http://www.theairbornetoxicevent.com

—

Again, that ticket link is HERE.

To see a video of Mikel announcing the show and the purpose of the Neda Project with Nazanin Boniadi, spokesperson for Amnesty International, click HERE, or watch it above.

For more information on Neda, click any of these links:

Amnesty International – News and Updates about Neda

Amnesty International – Postcard to Ayatollah Sayed Ali Khamenei (PDF)

Amnesty International – Iran: Stop Using Basij Militia to Police Demonstrations

International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran

The night also featured our friends Aushua, who played an awesome set. We urge you all to check out their music.

This Saturday, January 30th, we’ll be playing a special concert with the Louisville Orchestra at the beautiful Whitney Hall at the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts, as part of their BB&T Strings Attached series. We’ve been busy these past couple of weeks adapting our songs for an orchestral performance, and we can’t wait to perform them. We hope you can join us.

Also on the bill are Tucson’s own Calexico.

For info, click HERE.

For tickets, click HERE.

We miss you, we ...
[Read More...]]]> We’d like to thank everyone who made it out to the Troubadour in West Hollywood Wednesday night for our charity benefit for L.A.’s Friendly House. It was a crazy, fun night dedicated to recognizing and supporting one of the oldest treatment centers in the country for women recovering from alcohol and drug abuse. Thanks to those of who you who bought tickets and participated in the silent auction, we were able to help raise $40,000 for the organization. We had an amazing night and hope you did, too.

The night also featured our friends Aushua, who played an awesome set. We urge you all to check out their music.

This Saturday, January 30th, we’ll be playing a special concert with the Louisville Orchestra at the beautiful Whitney Hall at the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts, as part of their BB&T Strings Attached series. We’ve been busy these past couple of weeks adapting our songs for an orchestral performance, and we can’t wait to perform them. We hope you can join us.

Also on the bill are Tucson’s own Calexico.

For info, click HERE.

For tickets, click HERE.

We miss you, we love you, we find ourselves using our time off to learn new skills like French and riding motorcycles around L.A…

Click HERE for a larger version.

We’re proud to announce that we’ll be playing a very special “Rock the House” benefit concert on January 27th at the Troubadour in West Hollywood to benefit Friendly House, a non-profit organization aimed toward helping women suffering from alcoholism and drug addiction.

For information about the organization, you can visit their website at www.friendlyhousela.org.

It’s an extremely important cause, and one that’s close to our hearts, so we hope you can attend. General Admission and VIP tickets are available now online through Ticketmaster.

General Admission: $45 VIP: $150

All proceeds go to Friendly House.

You can also call Ticketmaster at 1.800.982.2787, or Friendly House at 213.389.8810.

More about Friendly House: It is their mission to continue to provide an environment in which women can recover from the devastation  of drug and alcohol addiction and progress toward healthy families and communities.

They seek to achieve a stabilized recovery from addiction, renew family relationships, and help reintegrate each woman back into the community. In order to help achieve this goal, Friendly House has daily round table meetings as well as off-site trips to Alcoholics Anonymous. Friendly House sponsors a women’s AA meeting each Thursday night.

It’s incredible to be back in L.A. after being away from home for so long. We’re happy to be sleeping in beds that aren’t speeding along the highway and doing normal things again, like hanging clothes in closets and eating lunch. Thanks to everyone who came out to our shows these past two months, and to our fans in the U.K. and Ireland who made London, Birmingham, Bristol, Glasgow, Dublin, Manchester, and Oxford the perfect, chaos-driven, booze-fueled end to the tour.

Of course, we’re not quite done with the year yet. We’ve been hard at work, planning and prepping our show at Walt Disney Concert Hall, which goes off this Friday, December 4th. We look forward to seeing all of you, and we promise there will be plenty of guests and surprises…

We’re also putting together a special DVD package of the show that will include a “behind the scenes” documentary. We’ll let you more about this…

Loveline Tonight We’ll be guests on Loveline tonight with the endlessly knowledgeable Dr. Drew. Hope you can tune in and listen to us give questionable advice to impressionable teenagers.

Gasoline Video Our bicycle video for “Gasoline” is available now on iTunes, as part of ...
[Read More...]]]> Good afternoon,

It’s incredible to be back in L.A. after being away from home for so long. We’re happy to be sleeping in beds that aren’t speeding along the highway and doing normal things again, like hanging clothes in closets and eating lunch. Thanks to everyone who came out to our shows these past two months, and to our fans in the U.K. and Ireland who made London, Birmingham, Bristol, Glasgow, Dublin, Manchester, and Oxford the perfect, chaos-driven, booze-fueled end to the tour.

Of course, we’re not quite done with the year yet. We’ve been hard at work, planning and prepping our show at Walt Disney Concert Hall, which goes off this Friday, December 4th. We look forward to seeing all of you, and we promise there will be plenty of guests and surprises…

We’re also putting together a special DVD package of the show that will include a “behind the scenes” documentary. We’ll let you more about this…

Loveline Tonight
We’ll be guests on Loveline tonight with the endlessly knowledgeable Dr. Drew. Hope you can tune in and listen to us give questionable advice to impressionable teenagers.

Gasoline Video
Our bicycle video for “Gasoline” is available now on iTunes, as part of our Does This Mean You’re Moving On? A/V Bonus Pack. Get it HERE.

We miss you, we love you, we’re loopy from spending so many days in one place..

Bikes. Cops. A tour of L.A.’s East Side.. Check it out on YouTube.

Also on the bill for the evening is a DJ set by Mark Ronson and performances by the Virgins and the Drums.

Hope you can spend the final, hazy hours of 2009 with us..

We’re somewhere in Idaho at the moment, about to wrap up the final week of our crazy North American tour. It’s been an amazing one so far, filled with lots of jumping, screaming, sweatiness, and boozy nighttime wanderings.. Thanks so much to all those who came out and made this tour such a memorable one. We’ve been having loads of fun in all these cities and enjoyed meeting all of you. It’s been especially nice seeing so many familiar faces speckling the crowds.

Also, our good friends and tour buddies The Henry Clay People and Red Cortez have been putting on some truly inspiring performances at all these shows. If you haven’t seen them yet, make sure you come early to catch them. If you have, you know exactly what we’re talking about..

NEW YEAR’S EVE IN CHICAGO:

To ring in 2010, we’re excited to announce that we’ll be playing a New Year’s Eve show in Chicago at the River East Arts Center. The night will feature a DJ set by Mark Ronson and additional performances by the Virgins and the Drums. Tickets go on sale this Friday. Go to the ...
[Read More...]]]> Good afternoon,

We’re somewhere in Idaho at the moment, about to wrap up the final week of our crazy North American tour. It’s been an amazing one so far, filled with lots of jumping, screaming, sweatiness, and boozy nighttime wanderings.. Thanks so much to all those who came out and made this tour such a memorable one. We’ve been having loads of fun in all these cities and enjoyed meeting all of you. It’s been especially nice seeing so many familiar faces speckling the crowds.

Also, our good friends and tour buddies The Henry Clay People and Red Cortez have been putting on some truly inspiring performances at all these shows. If you haven’t seen them yet, make sure you come early to catch them. If you have, you know exactly what we’re talking about..

NEW YEAR’S EVE IN CHICAGO:

To ring in 2010, we’re excited to announce that we’ll be playing a New Year’s Eve show in Chicago at the River East Arts Center. The night will feature a DJ set by Mark Ronson and additional performances by the Virgins and the Drums. Tickets go on sale this Friday. Go to the SHOWS section this Friday for the link. More info to come..

“MOVING ON” SINGLE/”GASOLINE” VIDEO BUNDLE AVAILABLE ON ITUNES NOVEMBER 17:

We’re also extremely happy to announce the upcoming release of an iTunes Bundle which, along with the song “Does This Mean You’re Moving On?” includes our official “Gasoline” music video.

This video was filmed as we rode bicycles all over east and downtown L.A. A few things to look out for in the video include: bike-riding inside the Metro station, a police helicopter, and Steven wiping out on steps..

The “Does This Mean You’re Moving On?” [A/V Bonus Pack] will be available on iTunes beginning November 17th.

Special thanks to L.A.’s own Midnight Riddaz and the hundred or so bike riders who showed up for our nighttime bike ride/video shoot through Silver Lake and Echo Park. The whole night was one of those unique experiences we’ll never forget..

SPECIAL PERFORMANCE WITH THE LOUISVILLE ORCHESTRA – JANUARY 30:

Just a reminder that we’ll be playing a special performance with the world-famous Louisville Orchestra on January 30, 2010 at the Kentucky Center for the Arts in Louisville, KY. Tucson’s own Calexico will also be joining us on the bill for this show.

Sat Jan 30 – Louisville, KY – Kentucky Center for the Arts – BUY TIX

Up next, our final six shows before heading off to the UK..

North American Fall Tour:
Wed Oct 28 – Vancouver, BC – Commodore – BUY TIX
Thu Oct 29 – Seattle, WA – Showbox Market – BUY TIX
Fri Oct 30 – Boise, ID – Knitting Factory – BUY TIX
Sat Oct 31 – Portland, OR – Roseland – BUY TIX
Mon Nov 2 – San Francisco, CA – Fillmore (w/special guests Everything Must Go) – SOLD OUT
Tue Nov 3 – San Diego, CA – House Of Blues – BUY TIX

UK & Ireland Fall Tour:
Fri Nov 6 – London, UK – Shepherds Bush Empire – BUY TIX
Sat Nov 7 – Birmingham, UK – Academy – BUY TIX
Sun Nov 8 – Bristol, UK – Anson Rooms – BUY TIX
Tue Nov 10 – Glasgow, SCO – ABC – BUY TIX
Wed Nov 11 – Dublin, IRE – Olympia – BUY TIX
Thu Nov 12 – Manchester, UK – Ritz – BUY TIX
Sat Nov 14 – Oxford, UK – Academy – BUY TIX

Fri Dec 4 – Los Angeles, CA – Walt Disney Concert Hall BUY TIX

Sat Jan 30 – Louisville, KY – Kentucky Center for the Arts – BUY TIX

Hope you can join us for all this madness..

We miss you, we love you, we think it’s perfectly acceptable to succumb to utter insanity every now and then..

Thanks so much for all the emails wishing a speedy recovery. We’re doing fine here in L.A., Mikel’s recuperating well, and everything looks to be on track for a great (if tremendously hectic) Fall tour, which begins TONIGHT at the Fox Theater in Pomona. We hope you can come out to join us when we swing into your town..

Speaking of swinging into town, we’re excited to announce a couple new shows. First off, we’ve added a San Diego date to cap off our North American tour on November 3rd at the House of Blues:

Tues Nov 3 – San Diego, CA – House of Blues – BUY TIX

We’re also extremely honored to announce a special performance with the world-famous Louisville Orchestra on January 10, 2010 at the Kentucky Center for the Arts in beautiful Louisville, KY. Tucson’s own Calexico will be joining us on the bill for this show, as well. Pre-saletickets are on sale now:

Sun Jan 10 – Louisville, KY – Kentucky Center for the Arts – BUY PRE-SALE TIX Enter the promotion code: toxic

Photo Credit: Joao Paulo Lages

Tickets go ...
[Read More...]]]> Good evening,

Thanks so much for all the emails wishing a speedy recovery. We’re doing fine here in L.A., Mikel’s recuperating well, and everything looks to be on track for a great (if tremendously hectic) Fall tour, which begins TONIGHT at the Fox Theater in Pomona. We hope you can come out to join us when we swing into your town..

Speaking of swinging into town, we’re excited to announce a couple new shows. First off, we’ve added a San Diego date to cap off our North American tour on November 3rd at the House of Blues:

Tues Nov 3 – San Diego, CA – House of Blues – BUY TIX

We’re also extremely honored to announce a special performance with the world-famous Louisville Orchestra on January 10, 2010 at the Kentucky Center for the Arts in beautiful Louisville, KY. Tucson’s own Calexico will be joining us on the bill for this show, as well. Pre-saletickets are on sale now:

Sun Jan 10 – Louisville, KY – Kentucky Center for the Arts – BUY PRE-SALE TIX
Enter the promotion code: toxic

Photo Credit: Joao Paulo Lages

Tickets go on sale to the public on Friday, Sept 18. You can find more info about it the Louisville Orchestra website here.

We’ve got some more European dates to announce:

Sun Nov 15 – Paris, France – La Dame de Canton – FREE SHOW
Mon Nov 16 – Cologne (Köln), Germany – Gebäude 9 – ON SALE SEPT. 23 – INFO
Tue Nov 17 – Brussels, Belgium – Botanique – ON SALE SEPT. 17 – INFO
Fri Nov 20 – The Hague, Netherlands – Crossing Border Festival – BUY TIX
Sat Nov 21 – Munich, Germany – Backstage Hall – ON SALE SEPT. 23 – INFO
Tue Nov 24 – Frankfurt, Germany – Batschkapp – ON SALE SEPT. 23 – INFO
Wed Nov 25 – Vienna, Austria – Wiener Stadthalle (w/ Mando Diao) – BUY TIX
Thurs Nov 26 – Berlin, Germany – Frannz Club – ON SALE SEPT. 23 – INFO
Fri Nov 27 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Vega – ON SALE SEPT 18 – INFO

… And we’re happy to announce the winner of our Tour Poster Contest. Congrats to Chris Presswell, who designed the poster below:

We’ve also got a couple more contests involving FREE TICKETS for the upcoming tour:

1) The first is a photo submission contest we’re doing with SPIN Earth. You can get all the info at our link on the SPIN Earth website here.

2) There’s also a Text to Win contest. Use your phone to text “ATOX__” to 66937 to win a pair of tickets to a select show in your town. Add your state abbreviation after “ATOX” to win tickets for your state (for example, New York would be “ATOXNY”):

Thu Sep 17 – Pomona, CA – The Fox Theatre – “ATOXPO”
Sun Sep 20 – Tempe, AZ – Tempe Beach Park – Arizona Fall Frenzy – “ATOXAZ”
Tue Sep 22 – Salt Lake City, UT – In The Venue – Co-Headline with Arctic Moneys – “ATOXUT”
Wed Sep 23 – Denver, CO – Ogden Theater – Co-Headline with Arctic Moneys – “ATOXCO”
Thu Sep 24 – Boulder, CO – Boulder Theatre – “ATOXCO”
Fri Sep 25 – Omaha, NB – The Slowdown – “ATOXNB”
Sat Sep 26 – Des Moines, IA – People’s Court “ATOXIA”
Mon Sep 28 – Lawrence, KS – Granada – “ATOXKS”
Tue Sep 29 – Tulsa, OK – Cain’s – “ATOXOK”
Wed Sep 30 – Dallas, TX – House Of Blues – “ATOXDA”
Thu Oct 1 – Houston, TX – House Of Blues – “ATOXTX”
Sat Oct 3 – Austin, TX – Zilker Park – Austin City Limits – “ATOXAU”
Tue Oct 6 – St. Petersburg, FL – State Theatre – “ATOXFL”
Wed Oct 7 – Atlanta, GA – Variety Loft – “ATOXGA”
Thu Oct 8 – Columbia, SC – Headliners – “ATOXSC”
Fri Oct 9 – Norfolk, VA – Norva – “ATOXVA”
Sat Oct 10 – Philadelphia, PA – Trocadero – “ATOXPA”
Mon Oct 12 – Washington, DC – 930 Club – “ATOXDC”
Tue Oct 13 – Boston, MA – House Of Blues – “ATOXMA”
Thu Oct 15 – New York, NY – Webster Hall – “ATOXNY”
Fri Oct 16 – New York, NY – Webster Hall – “ATOXNY”
Sat Oct 17 – Albany, NY – Northern Lights – “ATOXNY”
Wed Oct 21 – Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall – “ATOXOH”
Thu Oct 22 – Detroit MI – Crofoot – “ATOXMI”
Fri Oct 23 – Chicago, IL – Metro – “ATOXIL”
Sat Oct 24 – Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line – “ATOXMN”
Thu Oct 29 – Seattle, WA – Showbox Market – “ATOXWA”
Fri Oct 30 – Boise, ID – Knitting Factory – “ATOXID”
Sat Oct 31 – Portland, OR – Roseland – “ATOXOR”
Mon Nov 2 – San Francisco, CA – Fillmore – “ATOXSF”

TOUR DATES:

North American Fall Tour:
Thu Sep 17 – Pomona, CA – The Fox Theatre – BUY TIX
Sun Sep 20 – Tempe, AZ – Tempe Beach Park – Arizona Fall Frenzy – BUY TIX
Tue Sep 22 – Salt Lake City, UT – In The Venue – Co-Headline with Arctic Moneys – BUY TIX
Wed Sep 23 – Denver, CO – Ogden Theater – Co-Headline with Arctic Moneys – BUY TIX
Thu Sep 24 – Boulder, CO – Boulder Theatre – BUY TIX
Fri Sep 25 – Omaha, NB – The Slowdown – BUY TIX
Sat Sep 26 – Des Moines, IA – People’s Court – BUY TIX
Mon Sep 28 – Lawrence, KS – Granada – BUY TIX
Tue Sep 29 – Tulsa, OK – Cain’s – BUY TIX
Wed Sep 30 – Dallas, TX – House Of Blues – BUY TIX
Thu Oct 1 – Houston, TX – House Of Blues – BUY TIX
Sat Oct 3 – Austin, TX – Zilker Park – Austin City Limits – BUY TIX
Tue Oct 6 – St. Petersburg, FL – State Theatre – BUY TIX
Wed Oct 7 – Atlanta, GA – Variety Loft – BUY TIX
Thu Oct 8 – Columbia, SC – Headliners – BUY TIX
Fri Oct 9 – Norfolk, VA – Norva – BUY TIX
Sat Oct 10 – Philadelphia, PA – Trocadero – SOLD OUT
Mon Oct 12 – Washington, DC – 930 Club – BUY TIX
Tue Oct 13 – Boston, MA – House Of Blues – BUY TIX
Thu Oct 15 – New York, NY – Webster Hall – SOLD OUT
Fri Oct 16 – New York, NY – Webster Hall – BUY TIX
Sat Oct 17 – Albany, NY – Northern Lights – BUY TIX
Sun Oct 18 – Montreal, QC – Le Tulipe – BUY TIX
Mon Oct 19 – Toronto, ON – Phoenix – BUY TIX
Wed Oct 21 – Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall – BUY TIX
Thu Oct 22 – Detroit MI – Crofoot – BUY TIX
Fri Oct 23 – Chicago, IL – Metro – BUY TIX
Sat Oct 24 – Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line – BUY TIX
Wed Oct 28 – Vancouver, BC – Commodore – BUY TIX
Thu Oct 29 – Seattle, WA – Showbox Market – BUY TIX
Fri Oct 30 – Boise, ID – Knitting Factory – BUY TIX
Sat Oct 31 – Portland, OR – Roseland – BUY TIX
Mon Nov 2 – San Francisco, CA – Fillmore – BUY TIX
Tue Nov 3 – San Diego, CA – House Of Blues – BUY TIX

European Fall Tour:
Fri Nov 6 – London, UK – Shepherds Bush Empire – BUY TIX
Sat Nov 7 – Birmingham, UK – Academy – BUY TIX
Sun Nov 8 – Bristol, UK – Anson Rooms – BUY TIX
Tue Nov 10 – Glasgow, SCO – ABC – BUY TIX
Wed Nov 11 – Dublin, IRE – Olympia – BUY TIX
Thu Nov 12 – Manchester, UK – Ritz – BUY TIX
Sat Nov 14 – Oxford, UK – Academy – BUY TIX
Sun Nov 15 – Paris, France – La Dame de Canton – FREE SHOW
Mon Nov 16 – Cologne (Köln), Germany – Gebäude 9 – ON SALE SEPT. 23 – INFO
Tue Nov 17 – Brussels, Belgium – Botanique – ON SALE SEPT. 17 – INFO
Fri Nov 20 – The Hague, Netherlands – Crossing Border Festival – BUY TIX
Sat Nov 21 – Munich, Germany – Backstage Hall – ON SALE SEPT. 23 – INFO
Tue Nov 24 – Frankfurt, Germany – Batschkapp – ON SALE SEPT. 23 – INFO
Wed Nov 25 – Vienna, Austria – Wiener Stadthalle (w/ Mando Diao) – BUY TIX
Thurs Nov 26 – Berlin, Germany – Frannz Club – ON SALE SEPT. 23 – INFO
Fri Nov 27 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Vega – ON SALE SEPT 18 – INFO

Fri Dec 4 – Los Angeles, CA – Walt Disney Concert Hall (BUY TIX)

Und wenn ich ein Tischler wäre?

Nennt es Pubrock, nennt es Postpunk: Die kalifornische Band The Airborne Toxic Event macht Poesie, zu der man tanzen kann, traditionsgesättigt und mit Riffs an der richtigen Stelle.

July 10, 2009

Photo Credit: Autumn de Wilde

Wenn man diese Platte flüchtig anspielt, dann möchte man abwinken: schon wieder eine dieser Postpunk-Bands, deren Mitglieder mehr Zeit vor dem Spiegel verbringen als mit dem Stimmen ihrer Instrumente. Selbst wenn sie es täten – die Instrumente funktionieren, und am Äußeren ist, wie oben zu sehen, auch nichts auszusetzen. Das unbetitelte Debüt gehört zu den schmissigsten, bündigsten Rockplatten der vergangenen Jahre, voller guter Einfälle, reizvoller Akkordwechsel und gefälliger Melodien, wie sie auf die LP-Distanz nur ganz wenige Band hinbekommen.

Die Strokes und die Kooks, die Fratellis und die Thermals, Razorlight und wie die Mucker alle heißen, müssen sich jedenfalls warm anziehen. Und wenn man dann noch hört, dass der Sänger, Rhythmusgitarrist und Hauptsongschreiber Mikel Jollett eigentlich Tischler von Beruf ist – „I used to be a carpenter“, sagt er, ...
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Und wenn ich ein Tischler wäre?

Nennt es Pubrock, nennt es Postpunk: Die kalifornische Band The Airborne Toxic Event macht Poesie, zu der man tanzen kann, traditionsgesättigt und mit Riffs an der richtigen Stelle.

July 10, 2009

Photo Credit: Autumn de Wilde

Wenn man diese Platte flüchtig anspielt, dann möchte man abwinken: schon wieder eine dieser Postpunk-Bands, deren Mitglieder mehr Zeit vor dem Spiegel verbringen als mit dem Stimmen ihrer Instrumente. Selbst wenn sie es täten – die Instrumente funktionieren, und am Äußeren ist, wie oben zu sehen, auch nichts auszusetzen. Das unbetitelte Debüt gehört zu den schmissigsten, bündigsten Rockplatten der vergangenen Jahre, voller guter Einfälle, reizvoller Akkordwechsel und gefälliger Melodien, wie sie auf die LP-Distanz nur ganz wenige Band hinbekommen.

Die Strokes und die Kooks, die Fratellis und die Thermals, Razorlight und wie die Mucker alle heißen, müssen sich jedenfalls warm anziehen. Und wenn man dann noch hört, dass der Sänger, Rhythmusgitarrist und Hauptsongschreiber Mikel Jollett eigentlich Tischler von Beruf ist – „I used to be a carpenter“, sagt er, das klingt so schön nach Tim Hardin! – und nach getaner Arbeit, mit schmerzendem Rücken im wesentlichen nur noch Bier trinken will. Damit haben sie schon gewonnen.

Tanzbare Poesie

Aber das ist ein aus Sympathie vergebener Vorschuss, wie man ihn auch Bands geben kann, die nur Fußball im Kopf haben. Die Wahrheit liegt immer noch auf dem Plattenteller, und da ist denn zu sagen, dass The Airborne Toxic Event alles richtig gemacht haben. Sie wissen um die verführerische Kraft von Rockklischees und haben, obwohl ihre Aufmachung anderes vermuten ließ, mit dem in letzter Zeit wieder so gängigen informierten Kunststudentenrock nichts zu tun. Es ist, wie es ihre Heimatzeitung, die „Los Angeles Times“, in hoffentlich aufrichtiger Bewunderung formulierte, „Poesie, zu der man tanzen kann“.

Zu verhältnismäßig dichten Texten, die einen entschieden skeptischen, auf Desillusion zielenden Geist atmen und nicht nach dem klassischen Strophe-Refrain-Schema angeordnet sind, schnurrt die bestens geölte Maschine ab, und alles hört sich an, als würden die durchgekauten Wahrheiten hier zum ersten Mal serviert. „Wishing Well“ klingt nach dem Springsteen von „Born To Run“ und dessen Nachmachern von The Hold Steady; „Papillon“ puckert wie die schnellen Songs der hierzulande leider immer noch so gut wie unbekannten britischen Dogs; dann kommt auch schon der erste Höhepunkt: „Gasoline“ hört sich erst an wie „Roxy-Music-Imitat („Love is the Drug“), aber das täuscht. Hier übernehmen die Rabiatheit von The Jet und die betont rotzige Ättitüde der ersten Razorlight-Platte schnell das Kommando, das Tempo ist beachtlich, aber immer noch tanzbar.

Die Gitarren (neben Jollett Steven Chen) sind da, wo sie hingehören – ganz vorne –, aber Bass (Noah Harmon) und Schlagzeug (Daren Taylor) sind auch nicht zu überhören und verrichten hier wie überall kraftvoll ihre Arbeit; nur was die ohnehin kaum zu hörende Violine (Anna Bulbrook, die auch Keyboard spielt) in der Besetzung zu suchen hat, versteht man nicht so richtig. Vielleicht ist das eine Reminiszenz an Velvet Underground.

Überbewertete Fröhlichkeit

Am reizvollsten klingt die Band, wenn sie sich dem Pub- und Glamrockgestampfe hingeben, wie es die Fratellis wieder hoffähig gemacht haben; die entsprechenden Titel gehören in ihrer Entschlossenheit denn auch zu den überzeugendsten des Albums. Aber The Airborne Toxic Event liefern auch die raffinierten Synthesizer-Schwelgereien, wie sie Spätsiebziger/Frühachtziger-Attraktionen wie Blondie, Icehouse oder Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark schon im Repertoire hatten. Und die in Amerika bereits durchschlagend erfolgreiche Single „Sometime Around Midnight“ fängt mit Streichern an (Anna Bulbrook nun doch in ihrem Element), die klingen wie Mascagnis „Cavalleria Rusticana“, so dass man fast meint, Martin Scorsese, der ja auch ein Rocker ist und diese und ähnliche Klänge schon mehrmals sehr wirkungsvoll eingesetzt hat, säße an den Reglern.

Aber dann nimmt auch dieses Lied Fahrt auf, der romantische Eckensteher-Geist, die Stimmung einsamer, verregneter Abend wehen hinein, bevor dann alles, nun ganz nach Art der an sich so scheußlichen achtziger Jahre, zerbröselt wird. Ärgerlich ist nur, dass die Albumversionen uneinheitlich sind, drei gleichfalls sehr gut Bonus-Titel gibt es nur in der britischen Ausgabe.

Insgesamt ist die Musik von The Airborne Toxic Event geprägt von einer lauernden Nervosität, die wenig zutraulich erscheint. Ob es das ist, was die Band auch bei der absoluten Prominenz in Amerika so beliebt macht? Mikel Jollett hätte dafür Verständnis. Seine Hauptsorge aber ist, dass ihm nun, wo die Band so erfolgreich ist, keine Zeit mehr zum Schreiben bleibt. Im Bus herumzureisen (im August auch durch Deutschland!) und mit Freunden herumzuhängen, sei alles gut und schön, „I’m happy, but it doesn’t make a lot of sense to me“. Wie sagt er aber selber in einem Lied? „Happiness is Overrated“. Nichts gegen Bücher, aber ein Mann wie er muss wissen, was er zu tun hat.

It’s good to be back in L.A. for a hot second before we take off for Europe tomorrow. Thanks to everyone who braved the ridiculous heat at Lollapalooza on Sunday in Chicago (the hottest of the summer so far, we hear) to come watch us play. It was a memorable experience, to say the least. We had all kinds of fun. Hope you did, too..

With that in mind, we’re happy to announce our Chicago date at the Metro on our upcoming Fall tour. Pre-Sale starts TODAY:

Friday, October 23 – Chicago, IL – Metro PRE-SALEbegins today, August 11 – BUY TIX HERE General Public Tickets go on sale beginning this Sat Aug 15.

We want to remind you that pre-sale tickets for our Walt Disney Concert Hall show on December 4 go on sale this Saturday, August 15. BUY TIX HERE. General public tickets go on sale Aug 23.

We’re also having a Tour Poster Contest for our upcoming U.S. tour. If you’d like to try your hand at designing one, we’d love to see it. You can go here for more info.

TOUR DATES:

Europe: Fri Aug 14 – Gampel, Switzerland – OpenAir Gampel ...
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Good afternoon,

It’s good to be back in L.A. for a hot second before we take off for Europe tomorrow. Thanks to everyone who braved the ridiculous heat at Lollapalooza on Sunday in Chicago (the hottest of the summer so far, we hear) to come watch us play. It was a memorable experience, to say the least. We had all kinds of fun. Hope you did, too..

With that in mind, we’re happy to announce our Chicago date at the Metro on our upcoming Fall tour. Pre-Sale starts TODAY:

Friday, October 23 – Chicago, IL – Metro
PRE-SALEbegins today, August 11 – BUY TIX HERE
General Public Tickets go on sale beginning this Sat Aug 15.

We want to remind you that pre-sale tickets for our Walt Disney Concert Hall show on December 4 go on sale this Saturday, August 15. BUY TIX HERE.
General public tickets go on sale Aug 23.

We’re also having a Tour Poster Contest for our upcoming U.S. tour. If you’d like to try your hand at designing one, we’d love to see it. You can go here for more info.

TOUR DATES:

Europe:
Fri Aug 14 – Gampel, Switzerland – OpenAir Gampel BUY TIX
Sat Aug 15 – Leicester, UK – Summer Sundae – BUY TIX
Wed Aug 19 – Munich, Germany – 59:1 – SOLD OUT
Thu Aug 20 – Vienna, Austria – Frequency Festival – BUY TIX
Fri Aug 21 – Hasselt, Belgium – Pukkelpop Festival – BUY TIX
Sat Aug 22 – Biddinghuizen, Netherlands – Lowlands Festival – BUY TIX
Mon Aug 24 – Cologne (Köln), Germany – Gebäude 9 – BUY TIX
Tue Aug 25 – Berlin, Germany – Frannz – BUY TIX
Wed Aug 26 – Hamburg, Germany – Knust – BUY TIX
Fri Aug 28 – Reading, UK – Reading Festival – BUY TIX
Sun Aug 30 – Leeds, UK – Leeds Festival – BUY TIX

New Zealand:
Thu Sep 3 – Auckland, New Zealand – The Kings Arms – BUY TIX

Australia:
Wed Sep 9 – Melbourne, Australia – East Brunswick Hotel – BUY TIX
Thu Sep 10 – Brisbane, Australia – The Zoo – BUY TIX
Fri Sep 11 – Sydney, Australia – Oxford Art Factory – BUY TIX
Sat Sep 12 – Gosford, Australia – Coaster Festival – BUY TIX

North American Fall Tour:
Thu Sep 17 – Pomona, CA – The Fox Theatre – BUY TIX
Sun Sep 20 – Tempe, AZ – Tempe Beach Park – Arizona Fall Frenzy – BUY TIX
Tue Sep 22 – Salt Lake City, UT – In The Venue – Co-Headline with Arctic Moneys – BUY TIX
Wed Sep 23 – Denver, CO – Ogden Theater – Co-Headline with Arctic Moneys – BUY TIX
Thu Sep 24 – Boulder, CO – Boulder Theatre – BUY TIX
Fri Sep 25 – Omaha, NB – The Slowdown – BUY TIX
Sat Sep 26 – Des Moines, IA – People’s Court – BUY TIX
Mon Sep 28 – Lawrence, KS – Granada – BUY TIX
Tue Sep 29 – Tulsa, OK – Cain’s – BUY TIX
Wed Sep 30 – Dallas, TX – House Of Blues – BUY TIX
Thu Oct 1 – Houston, TX – House Of Blues – BUY TIX
Sat Oct 3 – Austin, TX – Zilker Park – Austin City Limits – BUY TIX
Tue Oct 6 – St. Petersburg, FL – State Theatre – BUY TIX
Wed Oct 7 – Atlanta, GA – Variety Loft – BUY TIX
Thu Oct 8 – Columbia, SC – Headliners – BUY TIX
Fri Oct 9 – Norfolk, VA – Norva – BUY TIX
Sat Oct 10 – Philadelphia, PA – Trocadero – SOLD OUT
Mon Oct 12 – Washington, DC – 930 Club – BUY TIX
Tue Oct 13 – Boston, MA – House Of Blues – BUY TIX
Thu Oct 15 – New York, NY – Webster Hall – SOLD OUT
Fri Oct 16 – New York, NY – Webster Hall – BUY TIX
Sat Oct 17 – Albany, NY – Northern Lights – BUY TIX
Sun Oct 18 – Montreal, QC – Le Tulipe – BUY TIX
Mon Oct 19 – Toronto, ON – Phoenix – BUY TIX
Wed Oct 21 – Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall – BUY TIX
Thu Oct 22 – Detroit MI – Crofoot – BUY TIX
Fri Oct 23 – Chicago, IL – Metro – BUY TIX (PRE-SALE STARTS TODAY – AUGUST 11)
Sat Oct 24 – Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line – BUY TIX
Wed Oct 28 – Vancouver, BC – Commodore – BUY TIX
Thu Oct 29 – Seattle, WA – Showbox Market – BUY TIX
Fri Oct 30 – Boise, ID – Knitting Factory – BUY TIX
Sat Oct 31 – Portland, OR – Roseland – BUY TIX
Mon Nov 2 – San Francisco, CA – Fillmore – BUY TIX

European Fall Tour:
Fri Nov 6 – London, UK – Shepherds Bush Empire – BUY TIX
Sat Nov 7 – Birmingham, UK – Academy – BUY TIX
Sun Nov 8 – Bristol, UK – Anson Rooms – BUY TIX
Tue Nov 10 – Glasgow, SCO – ABC – BUY TIX
Wed Nov 11 – Dublin, IRE – Olympia – BUY TIX
Thu Nov 12 – Manchester, UK – Ritz – BUY TIX
Sat Nov 14 – Oxford, UK – Academy – BUY TIX

(Mainland Europe will be announced soon)

Fri Dec 4 – Los Angeles, CA – Walt Disney Concert Hall (PRE-SALE STARTS AUGUST 15)

We miss you, we love you, our dreams these days keep getting weirder and weirder..