That Was The Show That Was: We Were Promised Jetpacks | Middle East Rock Club | 14 Feb.

Last night in America there was only one rock band that mattered: We Were Promised Jetpacks. The fiery Glaswegian quartet played to a thronged subterranean nightclub, desperately and as if their souls were on the line. You only get one chance to see a band turn in a performance like what we witnessed. Despite it being eight months after the release of its debut full-length These Four Walls (FatCat Records), We Were Promised Jetpacks played like they had a lot to prove.

The four seeped onto the stage and conjured an incredibly riveting, completely annihilating "Keeping Warm," and from there launched the act's first, incendiary single "Quiet Little Voices." The latter completely unhinged the demonstrably ecstatic crowd. Band fronter Adam Thompson shook with sentiment as he belted lyrics, usually shouting and almost always repeating for emphasis. Mr. Thompson's intensity was unrelenting: he frequently stepped away from the microphone to shout directly over the audience members' heads, and occasionally clutched the microphone under white knuckles and shouted over top of the microphone as he repeatedly stabbed himself in the throat with it. For its part the assembled masses rewarded We Were Promised Jetpacks' shattering, cataclysmic performance with long, loud ovations. Last night's nearly sold-out (by the looks of it, although we were able to score tickets at the door), hour-long show was wedged between a sold-out evening in Washington, D.C. Saturday night and another in New York tonight. This is a band that is at the peak of its powers, and we urge you to get out to one of the remaining dates on the tour; we list the dates below.

We Were Promised Jetpacks made the track "Ships With Holes Will Sink" available for free download via a link at its MySpace; we're saving you the trip and posting the track below. The track was released by FatCat in November along with "It's Thunder And It's Lightning" as a double-A-sided single. There are two prior singles: "Roll Up Your Sleeves" b/w "Back To The Bare Bones" released in June 2009, and "Quiet Little Voices" b/w "Let's Call This A Map" released in May 2009.

We Were Promised Jetpacks -- "Ships With Holes Will Sink" -- These Four Walls
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[buy We Were Promised Jetpacks records from Fat Cat right here]

We Were Promised Jetpacks: Internerds | MySpace | YouTube | Flickr

02.15 -- The Knitting Factory -- Brooklyn, NY
02.17 -- Casbah at Tremont Music Hall -- Charlotte, NC
02.18 -- The Masquerade -- Atlanta, GA
02.19 -- The End -- Nashville, TN
02.20 -- Maxine’s Pub -- Hot Springs, AR
02.21 -- Hailey’s -- Denton, TX
02.23 -- Rhythm Room -- Phoenix, AZ
02.24 -- The Loft -- San Diego, CA
02.26 -- Troubadour -- Los Angeles, CA
02.27 -- Slim’s -- San Francisco, CA
03.01 -- Biltmore Cabaret -- Vancouver, BC
03.02 -- Neumo’s -- Seattle, WA
03.03 -- Doug Fir Lounge -- Portland, OR
03.05 -- Kilby Court -- Salt Lake City, UT
03.06 -- Hi Dive -- Denver, CO
03.07 -- Jackpot Saloon -- Lawrence, KS
03.08 -- The Waiting Room -- Omaha, NE
03.09 -- Varsity Theatre -- Minneapolis, MN
03.11 -- Lincoln Hall -- Chicago, IL
03.12 -- Grog Shop -- Cleveland, OH
03.13 -- The Summit -- Columbus, OH
03.14 -- Radio Radio -- Indianapolis, IN
03.15 -- The Old Rock House -- St. Louis, MO
04.15 -- Hoxton Bar and Grill -- London
04.16 -- Fleche d’Or -- Paris
04.18 -- Knust -- Hamburg
04.20 -- Gleis 22 -- Muenster
04.21 -- Werkstatt -- Cologne
04.22 -- Schlacthof -- Wiesbaden
04.23 -- Beatpol -- Dresden
04.24 -- Lido -- Berlin
04.26 -- Melkweg -- Amsterdam