March 29, 2024

Interview: We Were Promised Jetpacks

Rockin’ The ‘Burbs recently caught up with Adam Thompson, vocalist/guitarist from Scottish indie band We Were Promised Jetpacks. WWPJ will be playing a FREE show in Philly on Wednesday, 6/12 at Morgan’s Pier (at Penn’s Landing). The show is scheduled to start at 9pm and fellow FatCat labelmates PAWS will be opening (more details here). See all of their upcoming tour dates here.

You can listen to WWPJ’s prior studio releases (including their 2011 LP In the Pit of the Stomach) on Spotify. Below is their official music video for “Medicine” from In the Pit of the Stomach. Their next release will be a live album/DVD from a show they did in Philly in 2012. Read more about that, as well as whose “boobies” Adam has seen, below.

RTB: We hear you’re planning to release a live album from a show you did a while back here in Philly. Can you tell us a little more about that?
WWPJ: We recorded it last year sometime last year at Union Transfer. We tried doing a live recording for this record in Glasgow, but it didn’t quite work out. So, we had one more go in Philadelphia (as we were running out of shows). We played Union Transfer before and loved the venue and our crowds there were always real nice. I remember thinking “hope I don’t make any big mistakes” before the show, but then forgot all about it when we were playing.

RTB: You’ve played Philly every year now for at least the past 5 years straight. Is there anything about performing in and/or visiting Philly that you particularly enjoy?
WWPJ: I think the First Unitarian Church show (in 2010) was our first headline show in the US outside of New York and I remember really enjoying that one. We enjoy places that have a signature food, so we thoroughly enjoyed stuffing our faces with cheesesteaks.

RTB: When can we anticipate your next full length release? Any plans to release an EP, etc. with new material in the interim?
WWPJ: Just now it is looking like our next release after the live album will be a full length. We’ve been working away at it, so it should hopefully be ready to record late this year/early next year. We want to take our time with it, but don’t want to take so long that everybody forgets that we exist!

RTB: How similar/different will your new material be compared to prior releases? Are you taking inspiration from anything particular? Any surprises in store?
WWPJ: It won’t change drastically, but we are hoping to introduce some different sounds. Up until now its been mainly 2 guitars, a bass and some drums… we’d like to give our songs on the next album a little more room to breathe. The last album was thick and full for the whole album.

RTB: Your upcoming US tour is really short. What are your plans for a proper US national tour?
WWPJ: I think we are hoping to do a tour later this year. But the opportunity to do this tour came up and we haven’t toured here in a while, so we’re really happy about it.

RTB: Do you ever get any downtime between shows? If so, what do you like to do? Are you into this whole Game of Thrones hubbub?
WWPJ: Yeah! Peter and Mike have seen it all up-to-date. Sean and I have been playing catch up and have almost finished Season 2. Otherwise, we love playing football (soccer) and going to the movies and eating food!

RTB: Philly Beer Week will have just concluded before your show at Morgan’s Pier on 6/12. What are your favorite domestic (US) and import (non-US) beers?
WWPJ: Sean’s favorite domestic (American) beer is Sierra Nevada. Mike’s favorite Non-US beer is Dos Equis. I prefer white rum!!!!!

RTB: Lastly, Kelly Macdonald (NOTE: my favorite Scottish actress)… discuss.
WWPJ: Seen her boobies in Trainspotting ages ago.

THE END