Passion Pit: Manners

    Passion Pit is a relatively new group, formed in 2007 in Cambridge, MA. Michael Angelakos was the creative influence behind the band's formation, when he wrote and recorded a bunch of songs on his laptop for his girlfriend as a belated Valentine's Gift. Angelakos soloed for a bit, before being approached by Ian Hultquist about joining forces; which they did by recruiting further members. They spent seven months practicing together before their first show, and even then two members were replaced when Passion Pit joined Frenchkiss Records in 2008. The original songs written by Angelakos were later compiled on their Chunk of Change EP (2008).
    Manners was released on May 19, 2009 in the U.S. with Rolling Stone magazine describing their success as attributed to Angelakos: "what makes the record are his loose beats, shamelessly fruity melodies and breathless little-boy vocals, all pushing skyward." Passion Pit has also remixed a number of tracks since the release of Manners, including "1901" by Phoenix, "Fall Hard" by the Shout Out Louds, "Wait Up (Boots of Danger)" by the Tokyo Police Club and "Ghost Under Rocks" by Ra Ra Riot.
    I believe I heard Passion Pit first on "The Pulse of Music", WIRT, 89.7, the RIT radio station in Rochester, NY. The song I heard was "Sleepyhead", which John Mayer called "one of the best songs I've heard in a long time." I do, however, recall having seen Passion Pit remixes, just not knowing what that meant. Admittedly, until I discovered RAC, I thought that the subname on a remixed track meant a particular style, instead of the group that remixed it, though they are obviously linked as well.
    Passion Pit is eclectic, you will hear funky brass, saxophone additions, and soaring strings, but all their songs maintain the upbeat, high pitched vocal style--which strikes me descriptively as a crystallized sound. They are clearly not Owl City, and should be more closely associated with the grungy Electro Pop and chorus singsong-yness of MGMT, but they have the same constantly optimistic style. Angelakos's voice may be the only drawback to Passion Pit, as it can grow a little tedious to listen to, sightly abrasive, never relaxing. I believe it is his high pitched voice that has caused the group to be considered Wonky Pop, which is mainly reserved for an 80's (which I can hear in the beat at times) female vocal style. There is also just a lot of sound, wavy and metallic, because of the synth and clear dance electronica influence.
    Enjoy the first track "Make Light", on which I love the synth sound and more Indie beat (less 80's) than most of the rest of the album, in the MixPod!