A couple of FatCats invaded the Sinclair on Wednesday! FatCat records is based in Brighton, England- with a satellite location in NYC- and has enjoyed an interesting musical history in a short 15 years.  Though they began as one of the indie scenes’ most prominent electronic labels, FatCat has grown to show off a wide range of sound, from electronica to punk-pop. This has been a result of their insistence on finding truly organic, DIY musicians. And so, in 2008, the FatCats found a handful of budding indie rock stars in Scotland, notably: The Twilight Sad, Frightened Rabbit and We Were Promised Jetpacks.

But! Before we get to Jetpacks as promised, much praise should be given to one of FatCats most recent signings, the opener of the evening, Honeyblood. Honeyblood are a two-piece indie-rock set hailing from, you guessed it, Scotland! With just guitar, vocals and drum, it’s hard not to question their ability to “rock”. However, Honeyblood’s modest size plays perfect match to their tight, hooking instrumentals and charming songwriting skills. I enjoyed all of their minimalist rock style, especially “Kissing on You”- off their new 7”, Bud– during which lead vocalist Stina Tweeddale shouted, with near staccato, “I don’t think we could ever stop/cuz I don’t know how to turn you off”. Honeyblood made full use of quick-paced rhythmic interplay to keep the sound as fun as their ironically blushing lyrics. When Tweedale let out a string of oooos during their final runner of a song, I was more than inclined to bob my head and make some sort of noise. Honeyblood’s short and sweet set showed a lot of potential.

We Were Promised Jetpacks entered to a much denser crowd- FatCat’s DIY ethos shined through the eager bodies and faithful faces of the Jetpack fans in attendance. The band worked its way into the set, starting with a few songs that displayed their ability to synthesize persistent guitar, bass and drum lines, with clear, powerful vocals. But their rock power flourished in the middle of their set when they played a real anthem of a song, “Its Thunder and Its Lighting”; extended fast paced riffs were traded with slow, shoe-gazing moments- the band crescendo-ed and decrescendo-ed as such for a cut much deeper than the one found on their recorded album. At the climax, the band dropped out completely to allow lead singer Adam Thompson an intimate, but loud swooning of the crowd. This quality was the penultimate sign of a DIY, fan-loving band: the audience came to hear Jetpacks expand on the musical and lyrical themes of their albums, they came to feel the bones of the music, like Thompson’s stripped down vocal solo. The rest of Jetpack’s set provided more anthemic ballads for the audience to put their arms around one another and jump and shout along. We Were Promised Jetpacks gave plenty of reason for new listeners to become dedicated fans.