Rocker (feedbot)
Gold Member
Back in the dawn of the new millennium, Alien Ant Farm were everywhere. Their cover of Michael Jackson’s ‘Smooth Criminal’ went platinum and topped charts across the world in 2001, and mainstream success beckoned. After a series of dubious decisions including bootlegging their own fourth album, splitting in 2007 then reforming, allegedly assaulting fans twice, and, let’s not forget, headlining last year’s Gathering of the Juggalos, 2024 was planned to be Alien Ant Farm’s renaissance year.
Following a punch-up ingloriously recounted on social media in which both participants blamed the other, joint headliners CKY were removed from their UK tour and Alien Ant Farm continued on alone. Somewhat ambitiously, their show at O2 Forum Kentish Town is their biggest on their now-solo run, over twice the size of the venue they played the night before. The millennial AAF faithful are out in force tonight, most of them with the air of someone who could probably roll up their jeans to show you a scar from a teenage skating injury. Somehow, along the way, Dryden Mitchell and co have picked up a kernel of very involved supporters who are eagerly awaiting every second of AAF’s London show.
From under the ever-present blanket of distortion, a small yet determined pit coalesces from the opening shivers of ‘Courage’, their live sound harsher without the protective coating of over-production but presenting a lot of potential for intriguing brutality. Overwhelming love pours from the centre of the crowd as the pit slowly grows to take up half the floor, their shuddering hardcore riffs finalised into static posing. “Should we keep going down memory lane?” Mitchell asks, miming a walk with his fingers as the ska-lite strut of ‘The Wrong Things’ drives out from neon green bass stings. Any song from their latest album ‘mAntras’, their “beautiful little ten month old baby record”, automatically stands out as stronger in their setlist, and the bigger singles like ‘Movies’ obviously get a resounding reception. When there’s a chance for an extended instrumental, or space given to highlight each member, it’s obvious Alien Ant Farm can give as good as they get. They’ve still got it in them.
However, for most of their set, there’s a sensation of something missing, some vital ingredient that needs to be tapped and collected like a stray converse shaken loose from a crowd surfer (of which there are many tonight, each one receiving a high five from Mitchell or a handshake on their way out). Maybe it’s the intricacies of their sound, buried beneath in the snowfall of distortion that smothers every note, or the forced stage banter (“Thank you for your participation, everybody!”). It’s frustrating because each song on the setlist will have at least ten seconds of absolute genius, be it the nostalgic lilt of ‘Stranded’ or ‘Attitude’ and it’s extended, neo-eighties intro, but then they drift back into fuzzy anticlimax.
The encore is worth trudging through the rest of their set though. Album track ‘What I Feel Is Mine’ bursts with love, with backing you can sing along to and a circle pit that extends and whirls across the floor. A long instrumental intro translates into guitar riffs with a touch more sharpness to claw into your skin. And, of course, closing on ‘Smooth Criminal’ was basically a requirement for this show, and while the surge of excitement is expected it’s still more than welcome. At the time there was nothing like this song, and perhaps it might be eclipsed by others when we look back, but for those precious minutes, we’re back in the era when this was the hottest cover on the planet. The fire in their performance can still scorch when it’s summoned.
So, where can the former skate punk darlings fit into 2024’s scene? There’s plenty of bands with one huge hit that continue to pack out smaller shows through ticket sales based in nostalgia, and plenty more who had one glimpse of the mainstream but continued making excellent music under the radar, but Alien Ant Farm don’t seem to fit into either category, despite the definite core of folk who adore them. The good in their set is very, very good, but the bad is remiss with wasted opportunities to reinvigorate their sound that bounce away onto the sidewalk like the moonwalking kid from their most iconic video.
KATE ALLVEY
Following a punch-up ingloriously recounted on social media in which both participants blamed the other, joint headliners CKY were removed from their UK tour and Alien Ant Farm continued on alone. Somewhat ambitiously, their show at O2 Forum Kentish Town is their biggest on their now-solo run, over twice the size of the venue they played the night before. The millennial AAF faithful are out in force tonight, most of them with the air of someone who could probably roll up their jeans to show you a scar from a teenage skating injury. Somehow, along the way, Dryden Mitchell and co have picked up a kernel of very involved supporters who are eagerly awaiting every second of AAF’s London show.
From under the ever-present blanket of distortion, a small yet determined pit coalesces from the opening shivers of ‘Courage’, their live sound harsher without the protective coating of over-production but presenting a lot of potential for intriguing brutality. Overwhelming love pours from the centre of the crowd as the pit slowly grows to take up half the floor, their shuddering hardcore riffs finalised into static posing. “Should we keep going down memory lane?” Mitchell asks, miming a walk with his fingers as the ska-lite strut of ‘The Wrong Things’ drives out from neon green bass stings. Any song from their latest album ‘mAntras’, their “beautiful little ten month old baby record”, automatically stands out as stronger in their setlist, and the bigger singles like ‘Movies’ obviously get a resounding reception. When there’s a chance for an extended instrumental, or space given to highlight each member, it’s obvious Alien Ant Farm can give as good as they get. They’ve still got it in them.
However, for most of their set, there’s a sensation of something missing, some vital ingredient that needs to be tapped and collected like a stray converse shaken loose from a crowd surfer (of which there are many tonight, each one receiving a high five from Mitchell or a handshake on their way out). Maybe it’s the intricacies of their sound, buried beneath in the snowfall of distortion that smothers every note, or the forced stage banter (“Thank you for your participation, everybody!”). It’s frustrating because each song on the setlist will have at least ten seconds of absolute genius, be it the nostalgic lilt of ‘Stranded’ or ‘Attitude’ and it’s extended, neo-eighties intro, but then they drift back into fuzzy anticlimax.
The encore is worth trudging through the rest of their set though. Album track ‘What I Feel Is Mine’ bursts with love, with backing you can sing along to and a circle pit that extends and whirls across the floor. A long instrumental intro translates into guitar riffs with a touch more sharpness to claw into your skin. And, of course, closing on ‘Smooth Criminal’ was basically a requirement for this show, and while the surge of excitement is expected it’s still more than welcome. At the time there was nothing like this song, and perhaps it might be eclipsed by others when we look back, but for those precious minutes, we’re back in the era when this was the hottest cover on the planet. The fire in their performance can still scorch when it’s summoned.
So, where can the former skate punk darlings fit into 2024’s scene? There’s plenty of bands with one huge hit that continue to pack out smaller shows through ticket sales based in nostalgia, and plenty more who had one glimpse of the mainstream but continued making excellent music under the radar, but Alien Ant Farm don’t seem to fit into either category, despite the definite core of folk who adore them. The good in their set is very, very good, but the bad is remiss with wasted opportunities to reinvigorate their sound that bounce away onto the sidewalk like the moonwalking kid from their most iconic video.
KATE ALLVEY