Live Review: The All-American Rejects - O2 Kentish Town Forum, London 16/06/2026
The All-American Rejects made a welcome return to London after 14 years away with a blistering showcase of old and new at the Kentish Town Forum.
The band are now independent, the millennial emos are all a decade and a half older, and the outside world has changed beyond comparison several times over.
But when the band hit the stage at 8.30 with ‘Swing Swing’, it feels like nothing’s changed. It’s a bold opener. Their breakthrough single, it’s also their highest charting song in the UK. It kick-starts a show rammed with nostalgia. Whether this is your first experience of The Rejects live, or returning from many years ago, the degree of urgency shows they’re making up for lost time.
Tyson Ritter, the frontman you can’t take your eyes and ears off, removed his denim jacket before ‘Fallin’ Apart’, from the band’s third album. It takes on the challenge of stepping up from the opening hit, taking the chaos up a notch. At one point, the singer was dodging his way around a roadie who ran on stage to get the mic stands back up. It’s that kind of show.
“This is not a democracy in here tonight, this is a full-on feudalistic nightmare, and we are your kings.” This statement from Tyson could be a nod to the band’s choice of intro music, ‘I’m Henry the Eighth I Am’ by Herman’s Hermits. It’s also part of a fair bit of ribbing from the 42-year-old musician and actor aimed at the crowd, particularly the “lords and ladies” sitting on the balcony. But it felt like the way long-term friends tease each other, rather than anything cruel.
In the self-titled album track ‘My Paper Heart’, he sings: “A year has passed, the seasons go”. Whilst it’s over 20 years now since the Oklahoma band hit the pop-punk scene, the feeling remains strong.
Last month, the band released their fifth album, ‘Sandbox’, their first as an independent act. “It was the hardest fucking two years of my life putting this stupid record together and putting it out in the world,” he revealed.
“This record took 14 years to fucking put together,” Tyson told the crowd at one point. “Not like we worked 14 years on it, there was a bit of constipation there for about a decade.” There are four songs from the record across the night. The first, ‘Get This’, is perfect for summer, and for fans of Jimmy Eat World. New songs are followed up by hits. In this instance, ‘I Wanna’, from ‘When the World Comes Down’, got the balcony standing again.
Whilst Tyson is the natural focus, the other members of the live quintet deserve credit for creating a rich environment of sound. Guitarists Nick and Mike and drummer Chris have been part of the band since its early days, and they help foster a sound which feels like classic rock all the time, even with the newer songs.
There’s a shoutout to Jamie Thraves, who directed the band’s music video to ‘Sweat’ – “by far my favourite thing we’ve ever done”, Tyson announced, ahead of their performance of the 2017 single. The singer, sans guitar, prowled the stage, creating a seductive atmosphere.
Emotional new album track ‘Search Party!’ was also dedicated to Jamie, who was in the crowd, before classic track ‘Stab My Back’, which highlighted the strength of band’s backing vocals.
If 2006’s ‘Move Along’ record is known for one thing though, it’s ‘Dirty Little Secret’. Such a huge song feels strangely placed in the middle of the set, but wherever it came, the effect would be the same. When Tyson yelled “sing it!” part-way through, he was far too late: the crowd had already taken it over, revelling in a song owned by everybody now.
‘Sandbox’ highlight ‘Green Isn’t Yellow’ started the show’s short acoustic section. It is a delicate emotional piece written about growing up in Oklahoma. When he sings “sometimes a little bit of blue will get you brave”, I sense he isn’t talking about the Navy sex scandal on the cover of the Playboy magazine cited in the song’s lyrics.
Meanwhile, a stripped back version of ‘There’s a Place’ was performed just vocals and guitar, because it was written in Kensington, London. These tracks showed the depth of the Rejects beyond the loud and brash expectations of some of their pop-punk contemporaries.
For all the comedy, the light-hearted antics, and the mockery of the audience’s choir voices, there is also a great deal of honesty and heart on display.
The All-American Rejects are quirky. Their biggest songs have life outside these members, but their best-charting album in the UK is not one with any of their big hitters. Instead, it’s 2012’s ‘Kids in the Street’, represented here solely by the title track. With the full band back after the acoustic section, it stands prominently. Tyson occasionally turns to sing to his bandmates, but it’s not a disrespect to the audience, but a recognition of the work of touring musician Sebastian on keys and Chris on drums who are keeping the whole thing alive to its rapturous ending.
The main set ends in a rousing, cathartic sing-along on the back of two more songs from the ‘Move Along’ record. The spotlight is on the keys player during the intro to ‘It Ends Tonight’, before the title track amps up the audience to another level.
In the encore, Tyson hyped up the crowd some more before ‘Sandbox’ opener ‘Easy Come, Easy Go’, a fun track with a surf-rock style. “Well that was pretty fucking fun,” Tyson told the crowd.
“I’m so sorry it took us this long to get the fuck over here. Honestly, you guys go off way better than any shit back in the States,” he revealed before the final track, to huge cheers. “That might be true, or that might just be some bullshit I’m saying right now just to make you do that shit.”
“This is a big middle finger from 2009.” And it all ends with ‘Gives You Hell’, another signature tune from the guys, albeit the Glee Cast version did better in the UK charts than the band’s own release. It ends with the chaotic high-octane pandemonium that has run through the previous 90 minutes. It’s one final opportunity to revisit our teenage years, many years after the fact, with all of the clapping, singing and swaying that has come before, but amplified one last time.
The band have shown their appreciation to the fans all night, from the old dude who tried to crowd surf, to the arts and crafts on display in the front row. As Fergie’s ‘London Bridge’ played from the PA, they were throwing out setlists, and Tyson played around with the drumsticks before launching them into the departing crowd. The playfulness throughout has been charming, and Tyson’s comedic bent runs true until long after ‘Gives You Hell’ has finished.
So the band return as kings, like Tyson said towards the start. Towards the end, he told the crowd: “I think we should start coming back more.” After 14 years away, I don’t think anybody disagrees. But if not, see The All-American Rejects in 2040. It will be worth the wait.
Words by Samuel Draper
Photography by Abigail Shii
