Mystery Jets at Mystery Location?

Imagine our surprise when gearing up to see tonight's performance by The Mystery Jets, a band whose live show we've greatly anticipated seeing, only to be stymied. So yesterday we checked the website of the club they were scheduled to play to confirm the set-time, only to discover the show had been moved to Schubas! Which, oddly enough, is where we were supposed to see them the first time they didn't come around when their previous tour was canceled due to visa issues. (Note to fans: even though the band's website states the wrong venue, their label has confirmed the show has been moved to Schubas.)

These kids are reasonably well-known overseas, so you would think that at least some buzz would have crept over here. Alas, they remain largely unknown in the U.S.A. Which is actually pretty surprising, because who wouldn't love a bunch of kids making an oddly cohesive and professional racket with one old man filling in on the bass? Sound-wise, the group most resembles a hyper cross of early Pink Floyd and The Smiths. Tight. And they've finally made their American debut with Zoo Time — most of their original British debut, Making Dens, along with a few newer songs swapped in — and now that they've got all their visa issues sorted out (we hope) they're finally set to start doing their best to convert the American crowds and to raise their profile.

So far we're guessing that profile is still pretty low, since tonight's show got moved to a much smaller room, but we prefer to take the optimistic view that we'll get to catch them in one of the best-sounding and most intimate clubs in the city. All the better to knock our collective socks off.

Mystery Jets open for Jaimie T tonight at Schubas and tickets are still available.

Photo by Tom Beard.