We Were Promised Jetpacks Roar at Union Transfer Philadelphia

5/6/12 18:44 Since both shows in the New York area were sold out, I drove Amanda to see We Were Promised Jet Packs at Union Transfer in Philadelphia. I was beat from playing two hours of basketball in the morning but a little nap did the trick, I fell into a deep enough sleep the body shook and a dream which I forget flooded by sensibilities. Driving to Philly can be a challenge, the traffic can be thick, the weather can flare up and there is the chance that somewhere on the New Jersey Turnpike a police officer can pull you over for driving 55 in a construction zone or where there is not a shoulder. Once the weather gets warmer the work begins on the highways and doesn’t stop till the cops make their quotas for the decade. We encountered a sever accident on the Belt, heavy traffic on 347 close to where we live and a good dose of the Saturday Westward bound night revelers. We were delayed on the Belt and passed a flipped over limo, I watched a cop crouch down on his hands and knees and he looked inside, I thought I saw a leg and a black leather shoe covering a foot. Traffic picked up and the insanity grew with the speed of our cars. Finally we made it to Horsham and met my brother there, picked him up and headed to 76. Route 76 is a gamble. I didn’t know what to expect and I thought I saw the red haze of distant break lights, but the cars flowed and darted in and out dangerously on the dark highway. We made it in and saw both opening bands: Fort Lean and Breton. I wrote about We Were Promised Jetpacks previously, we saw them last October at Webster Hall in the city. They came onto the stage later than I expected, after 11 PM and stayed on till after midnight. There was no encore like the Webster Hall show, but this band is it, you can feel the energy rise in the room as their music roared. See them as soon as you can, buy their music before they become sucked into the wasteland of consumerism. There was little give and take between the band, they were tight and played with precision. I believe this band will be huge. Set List:

Short Bursts Human Error H2R Voices Peace Sign Ships Backseat Medicine Keeping Warm Sleeves Sorethumb Pear Tree Thunder Before I go, Union Hall is a unique place for a show…I was able to get up to the balcony and took some pictures. The vastness of the open space is endless. It’s a new venue in the city and worth it to see a show and have some beers. The staff there are all very personable which is sometimes missing in NY City, we know it’s true. After the show we spoke to the bassist Sean Smith who was down to earth and offered to take Amanda’s album back to the band to have it as well as a playlist signed. Sean was obliging for a picture and a hug from an adoring fan and perhaps his future wife? Sure. My daughter can dream like I used to dream of Debby Harry...