We Were Promised Jetpacks
Words: Sean Moore / Photos: Kenneth Coles
Thursday night, the Scottish indie rock band We Were Promised Jetpacks brought their energy to Port City Music Hall and had the crowd yelling, singing loudly, dancing/ hopping up and down on their feet. The party started immediately with WWJP playing “Human Error” followed by two songs from their stellar 2018 album The More I Sleep the Less I Dream “Repeating Patterns” and “Someone Else’s Problem”. It was loud and fast right out of the gate and singer Adam Thompson was screaming the words to these emotion-driven songs at some points without even needing the microphone, and yet, people in the back of the long, rectangular room still heard him. Thompson’s energy was matched by the drummer, Darren Lackie, as he pounded the rhythms like they didn’t have 20+ more shows to play on this North American tour. I’ve known of WWPJ’s music over the years, but I had yet to witness their live show and I was glad to be in attendance. Simply from Thursday’s show, they are one of my favorite live performances of the past few years. Perhaps it has something to do with their Scottish heritage, because like their music friends and colleagues Frightened Rabbit and The Twilight Sad, by the end of the show, everyone’s energy is spent. Thompson has been quoted as saying, “It’s rainy and miserable in Scotland and there are lots of angry people. In a way, that’s why our music sounds the way it does.” And, if you listen to them and the aforementioned bands, you will realize that Thompson is on to something. But, that’s also what gives their songs life, and perhaps it’s also why the Portlandians came out and thoroughly enjoyed the night, because our long winters makes us angry and miserable for five or six months out of the year.
It was undeniable how much fun everyone in the room was having Thursday night, though. At one point, early into their set, someone in the crowd yelled “We were promised MORE jetpacks!” and Thompson laughed and quipped back, “I haven’t heard that one before! That’s a good one!”
They’ve put out four great, underrated perhaps, albums since forming in 2003, and their set in Portland included a plethora of songs to satiate all the long-time fans. They played four from each album, including Unravelling, which includes the song “Safety in Numbers,” the song they played to keep the energy of the crowd up. I think the highlight of the night, for me, was when the band played “Keeping Warm” and stretched it out to nearly ten minutes with some incredible guitar work and absolutely heart-stopping drums. They just put everything into each song they play and that was amplified within the moments of “Keeping Warm.” It starts with an incredible five minutes of all the instruments clashing together, the loud beating of the drums and the furious strumming of guitars, only to slow down just at the precise point when your head needs a break from banging back and forth.
The band blasted through a few more songs including one of my favorites, “Quiet Little Voices.” Thompson spoke to the crowd once “Hanging In” was over, before the last song, extending his gratitude that people came out and enjoyed their music. With no encore, they played one last song and headed to the merch table to talk to fans. “Pear Tree” was the perfect song to end the night, and it’s been their last song for while now, because of how incredibly well-received it is by the audience. It’s another song that extends past the seven-minute mark and makes me think how a band can be so full of energy through the entirety of the set. Albeit, their set only ran for about an hour and twenty minutes, but after witnessing the performance, it’s easy to understand how spent the members of the band must be. You certainly get your money’s worth with their live show. I did not leave disappointed and from the looks on everyone else’s faces, neither did they.
