We Were Promised Jetpacks: Enjoy the View track-by-track

Not Me Anymore
I was wanting to write a song in a different style and not use any guitars. At the time of writing I was feeling hopeful and wanting to shed what I believed was an older version of myself and begin again. We originally thought this song would end the first half of the record but when it came to finalising the tracklist it only made sense to us if it opened the album.

Fat Chance
From March to July 2020 we wrote about eight or nine new songs, sending demos back and forth to one another. When we were finally able to get in the same room and play live together this came out of the blue. It’s about recognising that glimmer of light after you’d not given yourself a chance and believing you can do better and be better, no matter what you’ve been through.

All That Glittered
We made a demo of this song with Andy Bush (who engineered, co-produced and mixed this album) in early 2019, not long after Michael [Palmer] had left the band. We’d written all Jetpacks music together since 2005 so it was definitely strange to adjust and figure out our three-piece path. We enjoyed figuring out all the moving parts of this song and rhythmically it felt different to anything else on the album.

Don’t Hold Your Breath For Too Long
This song is probably the one that has changed the most from where it started. We took whole sections out and put new ones in to half it, flip it and twist it about a bit. We simplified some rhythms to try and make the end section a total party. We had some great, exciting moments recording this one. Lovely memories made with my mates. Six weeks of laughs in what was overall an absolutely shite time for everyone on the planet.

What I Know Now
We started jamming this song together before the pandemic. We’d turn the lights off and Sean [Smith, bass] and Darren [Lackie, drums] would play the verse over and over and I would just sing myself into a trance. We always thought the song had something about it and that for some reason we were never really worried about forcing ourselves to finish it. With the rest of the album we tried to trim off the fat and keep each song as lean as possible but with this one we gave it time to flourish. 

If It Happens
We had the skeleton of this song for years but it only started making sense during the writing sessions for this album. I somehow found myself in a place where I wasn’t worried about the past or the future and it felt good. Proper living in the moment stuff. 

I Wish You Well
The bridge part was really fun to put together. There were a couple of parts in there that we all spent hours trying to work out if they were fitting together correctly. What a euphoric moment for us when we got the mix back of this one! We were all really happy with it instantly. Andy Bush had suggested the higher guitar line as an intro and I love that part. Cheers, Andy!

Blood, Sweat, Tears
I bought an EHX synth pedal and was wailing out big chunky guitar lead lines and stumbled upon the chorus chords and melody for this song. I love the bouncy, playful verses and the bridge ended up working out much better than I was expecting! [It] had a last minute addition of lead guitar which I can’t wait to wail at a gig. During writing his song I was thinking about what it feels like when you are just pulling yourself through the slog of every day and every day you wake up thinking “no thank you”. 

Nothing Ever Changes
Sean and Darren wrote most of this song when I was on a holiday. I think we tweaked the chorus and then Sean wrote a new part for it and then we had a song! Definitely one of the most fun to play with some bigger, jaggy sounding guitars and pounding drums. It’s about wanting to reach out to someone but not being sure how to make that first move.

Just Don’t Think About It
I must have started writing this song a while ago but felt connected to it again during recording the album and couldn’t believe I had never finished it the first time! I made a demo when I got home that night and recorded some layered vocals off the cuff and really fell in love with the mediative feel of the song. A reminder that it is OK to not think about some things you don’t want to think about sometimes.