Tag Archives: we were promised jetpacks

2014, albums, music, reviews, songs, Soundcloud

Stream: Protomartyr – “Under Color of Official Right”

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There just is not enough time to keep up with all the records that are coming out that I want to get. I have a list here, but it is just straight up getting out of control. This one is going on the list right up there toward the top. Let’s not forget that Record Store Day is happening this Saturday, so there is no reason to not buy at least a few things.

Protomartyr is from Detroit, and they are creating something akin to garage-rock, but a lot grittier, which seems only fitting when one considers from where they are coming. The overall aesthetic of their sound, and the atmosphere that they harness sounds a lot like that which Constantines conjured on “Shine A Light.” There’s darkness, anger, and sneer with plenty of roaring guitars in just the right places. Though “Scum, Rise!” comes off sounding a little more basic and stripped down than this next track, but still undoubtedly packs a punch.

“Come & See” covers a ton of territory. One second sounding like Klaxons and then tearing off into We Were Promised Jetpacks territory. Underneath it all is an interesting combination of anger and hopefulness with a little bit of derision. All this while the track clings to their gritty not-quite-garage-rock-but-close-enough sound.

These tracks come off of Protomartyr’s latest release “Under Color of Official Right,” being released by Hardly Art. You can listen to a lot more Protomartyr over at their Soundcloud page. Think of them this Saturday when you’re diggin’ down deep in the record bins.

You can also find Protomartyr on Facebook (of course), and are currently on tour (as of yesterday), and those dates, some with Tyvek,  Cloud Nothings,  Spray Paint, or Parquet Courts. Check the dates below.

04.15.14 – Philadelphia, PA – Kung Fu Necktie ~
04.16.14 – Baltimore, MD – The Gold Bar ~
04.17.14 – Raleigh, NC – Slim’s Downtown ~ =
04.18.14 – Atlanta, GA – 529 ~ =
04.19.14 – Tallahassee, FL – Liberty Bar =
04.21.14 – New Orleans, LA – Circle Bar =
04.22.14 – Birmingham, AL – Bottle Tree =
04.23.14 – Nashville, TN – Stone Fox = >
04.24.14 – Cincinnati, OH – MOTR Pub =
04.25.14 – Cleveland, OH – Now That’s Class = +
04.26.14 – Columbus, OH – Cafe Bourbon Street
04.29.14 – Kansas City, MO – The Riot Room *
04.30.14 – Iowa City, IA – Gabe’s *
05.01.14 – St. Paul, MN – Turf Club *
05.02.14 – Madison, WI – High Noon Saloon *
05.03.14 – Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall *
05.04.14 – Grand Rapids, MI – The Pyramid Scheme *
05.15.14 – Omaha, NE – Slowdown (bar) +
05.17.14 – Salt Lake City, UT – Kilby Court +
05.18.14 – Boise, ID – The Crux +
05.19.14 – Portland, OR – Bunk Bar
05.20.14 – Seattle, WA – Victory Lounge $
05.23.14 – San Francisco, CA – Hemlock Tavern
05.24.14 – Los Angeles, CA – Bootleg ^
05.25.14 – San Diego, CA – The Hideout (SD)
05.27.14 – Phoenix, AZ – Last Exit
05.29.14 – McAllen, TX – Cine El Rey +
05.30.14 – Austin, TX – Holy Mountain +
05.31.14 – Dallas, TX – The Foundry
06.03.14 – Oxford, MS – Lamar Lounge
06.04.14 – Memphis, TN – The Hi-Tone +

06.05.14 – Bloomington, IN – The Bishop

06.07.14 – Detroit, MI – PJ’s Lager House
06.09.14 – Montreal, QC – Il Motore !

06.10.14 – Cambridge, MA – TT the Bears
06.11.14 – Brooklyn, NY – Sugarhill Supper Club %
06.13.14 – Ottawa, ON – Club Saw (Ottawa Explosion)
08.17.14 – London, UK – Brixton Windmill
08.18.14 – Manchester, UK – Ruby Lounge
08.19.14 – London, UK – Lexington
08.20.14 – Leeds, UK – Brudnell Social Club
08.21.14 – Glasgow, UK – Broadcast

~ – w/ Spray Paint
= – w/ Whatever Brains
> – w/ Cheap Time
* – w/ Cloud Nothings
% – w/ Parquet Courts
! – w/ Tyvek
$ – w/ Unnatural Helpers, Grave Babies
^ – w/ the Intelligence
+ – all-ages show

2011, albums, groovemine, music, reviews

Album review: We Were Promised Jetpacks – "In the Pit of the Stomach"

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Sometimes it just feels great to have some loud music blasting into your ears. It’s better if the sonic assault isn’t something that is relentless, rather persistent but giving and taking in all the right places. The band has a knack for knowing how to take things back a bit, build up the momentum and charge ahead again at full speed. This album is appropriately titled in that the loudness and sheer power of the guitars only seems to get progressively louder, leaving the listener feeling like they were punched squarely in the gut.

I mean that in the best way possible.

Take opening track “Circles and Squares”. It begins with the guitars creating a loud barrage of sound through to the beginning of the verse, where they back down a bit. But they can’t seem to hold themselves back for very long. Everything returns to full volume save for the voice, which retains its calm in the eye of the storm. In that way the voice creates a point of balance. The entire latter half of the song consists of a steady buildup. The amount of energy that is created seems unbearable for a while, yet continues to accumulate, exploding into the conclusion of the track . Before we are given the chance to catch our breath, the next track, “Medicine”, is already building itself up with maniacally pounded guitars in a thick, clear tone.

We Were Promised Jetpacks - "In the Pit of the Stomach"
We Were Promised Jetpacks - "In the Pit of the Stomach"

The name of the band even manages to capture some of the barely restrained energy of the anger or disbelief at unfulfilled promises.  Track after track the album unfolds in a roar. “Through the Dirt and the Gravel” benefits from layers of rhythmic complexity courtesy of the bass shifting the established pulse. Layers of melodic guitar lines weave throughout the bridge while the vocals are recorded to sound a bit more distant and cold. The frantic, tremolando strumming of the guitars form an active backdrop as singer Adam Thompson belts “I have soared higher than eagles…” which is followed by the song really building up a big head of steam. The same distant treatment of the vocals is used to great affect in “Sore Thumb” and “Pear Tree”, where the instruments nearly completely fade out, the voice calls out from an apparent distance, immediately after which the wall of guitars slams into us full throttle.

But, as mentioned before, the band knows exactly when to pull back, which is exactly the purpose that the entire song “Act on Impulse” seems to be fulfilling. Of course it only begins subdued. The entire track reveals itself to be a slow burning constant crescendo building up one element at a time, adding more vocal harmonies, cross rhythms, drums and other various instruments and effects in the background.

This certainly isn’t to say that the entire album is comprised of loud guitars and swirls of cacophonous distortion. Jetpacks has the enviable talent of being able to balance those elements with sweet melodies in the vocals, or sometimes hidden in understated guitar lines. Both of these can be found in “Picture of Health”. They also aren’t afraid to repeat things several times in order to give elements the proper amount of space to grow. If that means having an instrumental introduction that clocks in at over 2 minutes then so be it. We Were Promised Jetpacks aren’t bound by structure and aren’t afraid to break from it.

A great line from “Boy in the Backseat” states “If there’s breath in my lungs, then there’s wars to be won”. That line displays the fight contained in the songs. Strength without aggression, pride and power controlled but not held back.

[audio:http://quartertonality.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/01-Circles-And-Squares.mp3|titles=Circles And Squares] [audio:http://quartertonality.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/07-Sore-Thumb.mp3|titles=Sore Thumb]