The Airborne Toxic Event: The Airborne Toxic Event

Jun 7 2009 by Paul Cole, Sunday Mercury

THE AIRBORNE TOXIC EVENT

(Mercury)

wAFTER dividing the critics in the States, Mikel Jollett & Co’s atmospheric debut album gets UK release to cash in on a recent support slot stint with Razorlight.

The self-titled set serves up wordy narratives of love and loss in a stadium-sized Springsteen soundscape – but it’s more contemporary than its dusty Americana peers, raising the bar sky-high.

Jollett has had a tough time, suffering the lingering death of his parents and a casebook of illnesses himself, so minor key melancholy is inevitable. But that’s not say the set sounds Morrissey miserable.

Both Wishing Well and Gasoline nod to Springsteen, the latter with a retro backbeat. Papillon and This Is Nowhere are driven by new wave desperation.

Something New boasts an old school soul bassline before wandering into Magic Numbers soda pop and Girls In Their Summer Dresses is short but sweet.

Best are six-minute slowburner Innocence, which recalls Arcade Fire, and show-stealing Sometime Around Midnight, which is ushered in by lush descending strings. Imagine U2 fronted by Jarvis Cocker instead of Bono.

Album of the year, anyone? PC