Seeing a band perform in a small space can be very telling. When the number of attendees is less than 150 people, it’s easy to judge the ability of not only said band’s live show, but also how they’re able to connect with an audience in a room that would be just a hair bigger than their practice facility.

Those are the challenges that Los Angeles’ The Airborne Toxic Event had last night when they played in front of the aforementioned number of lucky KCRW listeners, friends and family at Berkeley Studios in Santa Monica. The hour set, along with an interview with lead singer Mikael Jollett was taped for an upcoming edition of the station’s Morning Becomes Eclectic broadcast. With a new EP coming out on March 11 and a full-length, Such Hot Blood, on the way, the band tested out a few of the new tunes in this controlled setting, while mixing in a few of their hits along the way.

A former scribe, Jollett has comfortably become an affable frontman. As he pointed out, the night felt more like a session of VH1’s Storytellers instead of stuffy room full of radio donors, label people and friends. Song explanations resonated with many audience members, especially on the solemn, yet folksy “The Storm” where he explained how his lost a number of family members in the time the song was written, yet elicited a laugh when he said that they’re still telling him to get his shit together. 

While it’s fair to debate the new direction and merits of the songs they’re about to release (which were recorded at Nashville’s Blackbird Studios with producer Jacquire King), it’s impossible to critique the passion of their performance. The band treated the evening like they were playing in front of a sea of people at Coachella, doing their best to connect. Whether it was Jollett thrusting his body and guitar back and forth or viola player Anna Bulbrook flailing around as much as she could in packed space, the quintet treated the night like hungry newcomers, not one that has been around for several years.

For a band that’s played over 800 shows over the past five years, a small show was a welcome change for The Airborne Toxic Event. While a song like “Sometime Around Midnight” elicited the biggest the cheers and applause, the night felt like cozy homecoming for the quintet. By the time they blew through “Missy” and tagged it with historical faves like “Ring of Fire,” “American Girl,” and “Born in the USA,” the crowd that politely clapped and nodded along for much of the night were singing and howling to the music. The passionate performance by sweat soaked band demonstrated that even you aren’t familiar with their tunes or fans of their newer material; it’s hard not to like and appreciate what they do on stage.

The set will be broadcasted on KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic on March 11.

Photos by Micah Cordy