There was Scottish invasion of the loveliest kind here in Atlanta a couple of nights ago, with Fat Cat artists, Frightened Rabbit, The Twilight Sad and We Were Promised Jetpacks descending upon the Old Fourth Ward.
First to take the stage was, We Were Promised Jetpacks, the band I was least familiar with going into the show. While I was instantaneously intrigued by the band after hearing their single, “Moving Clocks Run Slow”, the album, ‘These Four Walls’, as a whole didn’t resonate with me. Now, after seeing them live, it is obvious why. We Were Promised Jetpacks is a young, rough around the edges band, and it’s the raw, non-technical details that seem to make their music and character appealing. This band looks good with a bit of dirt on their face.
Even though it was Thompson’s fervor filled vocals that occupied a majority of my attention, the four-piece also shined without words…they let their sound speak for itself. Their set-list included the tracks such as, “It’s Thunder And It’s Lightning”, “Ships With Holes Will Sink”, “Quiet Little Voices” and “This Is My House, This Is My Home”.
Next up to take the stage was The Twilight Sad, whose sophomore album, ‘Forget the Night Ahead’, was released about a week ago. To be honest I was not very into their set, even though all the instrumental constituents sounded on point. I am a fan of their debut album’s cold, remote sound and figured their set would be introverted, but the band seemed totally disconnected with the audience. I am not even sure Graham noticed that there was a crowd by his feet, and I’m pretty sure the three other members standing on the stage didn’t move more than an inch the entire time. Although, I can say that I fully enjoyed listening to their live rendition of, “Reflection Of The Television”.
For the final act of the evening, out walked Frightened Rabbit. For me, it was love at first listen with their album, “Midnight Organ Fight,” so I was certainly curious to hear the lyrics of “Twist” played live and in person. The mostly plaid wearing four-piece was charming on stage, and songs like “Backwards Walk” and “Good Arms vs. Bad Arms”, sounded even more earnest in a live, slightly dingy setting. The Frightened Rabb crew also debuted a new track, “Nothing Like You,” which is from their forthcoming album (2010). For one of the last encore songs of the evening, Scott Hutchinson stepped onto the stage, with an acoustic guitar, and without a mic for his organic version of “Poke” and pretty much lulled the audience.
