Even before Enter Shikari arrived on stage for their second of two Palais shows, the anticipation among their fans was intense, with hundreds of children running around in loud trainers and hoodies.

The band arranged their tour so 14-year-olds could get into the gigs, and the young MySpace followers brandished glowsticks and chanted for the St Albans four-piece.

That fever pitch wasn't obviously reflected on last night's chart, where Enter Shikari's single Anything Can Happen in the Next Half Hour scraped into the Top 30.

Significantly, though, the band have done it themselves, creating a riotous combination of hard rock and euphoric trance, then sidestepping the record companies and setting up their own label.

"It's like a vole in a rabbit hutch," was singer Rou Reynolds's way of describing their chart debut.

That was one of many bizarre on-stage comments during several meandering moments, although they didn't dent the teenagers' excitement, which was sustained thanks to the adrenalin rush of tunes such as Labyrinth.

But for anyone over 25 the rave sections of the set - where the drummer danced Bez-style with his top off at the front of the stage - were hard to take seriously. There were also some tawdry comments directed at female fans and tedious infantile banter.

Reynolds's dexterity partly made up for the flaws, though, especially when he gripped his keyboard, threw his legs in the air and, briefly, seemed to float. A thrilling moment - and not just for the 14-year-olds.