Sounds Like... : Run Toto Run covers "Sleepyhead"

Oh goodness.



And I thought the original version was really stuck in my head.

I really like Passion Pit's 'Manners,' sound like an asshole. Deal.

I'm going to sound like an asshole saying this, but I'll say it anyway : I don't like jumping on the bandwagon or fueling the hype machine. Yeah yeah, I know, I said it. Deal.

It's pretty unavoidable, though – often I find myself with one foot in said wagon, with or without having meant for it land there. I suppose everyone could argue the same point, but whatever. Such is the case with Passion Pit. I found out about them pretty organically – my friend's brother told me about them. I checked them out. And at the time, I thought, "This is something I could really get into," while the rest of the collective blogosphere collectively went nuts over their debut EP, Chunk of Change. How to reconcile that? By not being in love with it. I hadn't recklessly dedicated my heart to this Valentine’s gift-turned-band because I thought, gasp!, maybe I didn’t really like it all that much while everyone else seemingly did.

And then along came Manners. Oh, Manners. You just might be everything I wish for in a pop record. I know seemingly every other blogger out there is saying the same thing, but allow me to layer on my adulation as well.

I'm a lover of melody, an adorer of hummable riffs and lines, and on Manners, Michael Angelakos and company amped up the pop sensibilities from the get-go. "Make Light" and "Little Secrets" burst in with such poppy enthusiasm, the sort that makes me forget that I have the attention span of a gnat and not notice the fact that the latter clocks in at nearly four minutes, the former at nearly five. The refrain of "Make Light" doesn't even hit until halfway through the song, but the climax is perfect. (I mean, hello, did I mention that I have the attention span of a gnat?)

After the Super Mario Brothers-synths-on-serotonin stomp of "Little Secrets," "Moth's Wings" is almost unexpected, with its more sober, piano-driven lines and heavier lyrics ("Dear friend as you know / Your flowers are withering") that still manage to be eternally optimistic ("Put down your sword and bow / Come lay with me on the ground"). The first release from the album, "The Reeling," turns the club beats and 80s feel back up with a vengeance. (Seriously, I think I heard that riff coming from my parents’ stereo when I was wee, but like, it's cool.) And the next three tracks do the same thing, swimming back and forth between styles and overall sounds : The sparser "To Kingdom Come," with is toned-down falsetto and sad refrain matched with sing-along na-na-nas; the slow-dance of "Swimming In The Flood"; the return to the 90s dancefloor in "Fold Your Hands" that ends with overload. The middle of the disc is mutable in feel yet analogous to itself in a way that works.

And then "Eyes Like Candles." Admit it, the first ten seconds make you want to sing out "I'm not a perfect person" à la Hoobastank circa 2004 (I know I do...), but move past that and we're given sing-songy refrain and horns, a pretty moment to reflect. We're barely past the intro and my heart is already soaring. It's easily my favourite of the record, building upon itself and then backing off to solo guitar before the perfect slide into "Sleepyhead." Oh, "Sleepyhead." This was, inexplicably, one of my least favourite tracks from Chunk of Change, but here's it's the climax of the record, unbeatable, infectious and bursting by in less than three minutes, the shortest track in a record where most songs hit the four-minute mark, and its brevity is its strong suit. It's over before it's even begun, and I find myself constantly hitting "repeat."

The last two tracks, "Let Your Love Grow Tall" and "Seaweed Song," hold their own, avoiding the sense of trailing into nothingness that plagues so many other records, although after the teaming up of "Eyes" and "Sleepyhead," it feels a moment to sit back and relax after the previous nine or ten songs.

Don't let my admiration fool you – it's not a perfect record. Angelakos' vocals aren’t for everyone. Speaking of vocals, when I first heard that the band had gotten a children's choir to sing back-up on some of the tracks (watch the video here), I thought, "Well, that makes sense," yet, as endearing as small children are, I haven’t decided if I love or loathe the effect. It's more toned down, more pop-attuned than its predecessor. But in terms of buoyancy, optimism, and enthusiastic beats, all of which Passion Pit hands out in copious amounts without becoming twee or saccharine, well, you really can’t beat Manners.

Besides, when's the last time you fell in love with someone – or something – completely perfect? Yeah, that's what I thought.

Passion Pit - "The Reeling"
Passion Pit - "Sleepyhead"

Passion Pit are currently on tour in the US support of Manners. Dates include 18th June at The 'Dise in Boston, and the 19th and 20th at Bowery Ballroom in New York, all of which are sold out. All dates are listed here.


Also, if you like this sort of thing, you should totes check out Yes Giantess. I should probably write about them, too.

OPP : Stereogum writes about Tweets, Passion Pit gets Cracker Barrel, I'm so amused.

I don't use Twitter, although I've considered it as of late. (As if I need another "social networking"/"microblogging" site to take over my life...thanks, Facebook, but I still hate your new layout.) Anyway. Stereogum does, they've started doing a "best Tweets of the week" feature (what would you call that? writing about people tweeting? meta-tweeting?), and this tweet from Passion Pit totally made my day:

@passionpit: Cracker.Barrel. :)http://twitpic.com/2dqa9



HA. 'Cause that's how I met these guys, donchaknow.

Nothing's On Telly : Passion Pit + small children = pretty adorable.

From Fader:



When I read the blurb about Michael Angelakos wanting to bring the sound of a children's choir to Passion Pit's forthcoming debut LP, I actually thought, "Oh, well, yeah, I mean, the refrains already sound sort of like a bunch of kids singing along, anyway." Voila.

Passion Pit's currently on tour in the US, and then they're going to the UK, Paris, and Canada. (Man, I just listed Paris like it's a separate country.) The 4th Feb. Bowery Ballroom date is sold out; the Mid East down and Iron Horse ones aren't. (So, basically, go take a trip to NoHo, 'cause it's like, a quarter of the size of Bowery.) All the dates are listed at their 'Space; I'm too lazy to repost them here, sorry.

Check This : Passion Pit

Back in May, during Senior Week, I went out for dinner at some new noodle joint with two friends and one of my friend's brother, whom I had met two years prior at a dance party in my friend's room but hadn't seen since, and my friend was all like "Katy writes a music blog" and her brother was all like "Check out my friends' band, Passion Pit" and went on for about five minutes about how amazing they were and I felt all not-hip and shit and so I went home that night and checked them out and thought "Not bad," and now it's July and apparently in that two month span, Passion Pit has done some stuff like signed to this little label called Frenchkiss Records and been voted "best local act" by this little poll run by this little station called WFNX and this little publication called The Boston Phoenix and now they're playing the WFNX New England Product show at the Middle East down on 8th August and "Better Things" is all of my speakers right now and I am totes dancing all around my basement as I write this no rly fr srs.

Passion Pit - "Sleepyhead"
Passion Pit - "Better Things"

Their first EP, Chunk of Change, is out on 16th September. Here's the poster for that 8th August show:




fuckingbostonandyourfuckinggoodbandssrsly.