Passion Pit: Chunk of Change EP
Passion Pit: Chunk of Change EP
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Monday, 16, Feb 2009 10:33
French Kiss/Columbia, out now.
In a nutshell.
Electric. Loud. Unremitting. Synthesised. Promising.
What's it all about?
As a prelude to the anticipated album, new kids on the block Passion Pit have given fans and interested parties a chance to wrangle with some of their tracks on the Chunk of Change EP, coinciding its release with a trip around the UK to bring light into the otherwise dull and cold British winter.
Who's it by?
Passion Pit are a Boston-based band made up of five young men from Cambridge, Massachusetts, a city within Boston's greater suburbs known well for its university pedigree as home to both MIT and Harvard. The group featured high on the list for the BBC's 2009 ones to watch alongside Florence and the Machine, Lady GaGa and White Lies.
As an example...
"You're gonna drive me crazy/You're gonna drive me mad." - Better Things
What the others say
"All mashed up samples and whirligig fairground instrumentation, the lyrics 'You're gonna drive me crazy, you're gonna drive me mad' may prove prescient for those of a less sunny disposition, but for all those looking for a sugary melodic hit I recommend looking up Passion Pit." - Patrick Healy, the Epoch Times.
"Passion Pit make colourful and cerebral electronica, combining layers of sunny vocals, warped samples, glitchy beats and euphoric effects with a sturdy rhythmic backbone." - BBC.
So is it any good?
At first Passion Pit are largely unimpressive. The tune for EP opener I've Got Your Number, falls deep into Sonic the Hedgehog territory and while quite charming, is a difficult listen to due to the unremitting vocals.
There seems to be a constant battle between the intrusive yet enjoyable synthesised electronic beats and singer Michael Angelakos, who in the face of the power struggle decides to simply screech the lyrics - sometimes audible, sometimes noise - over the top.
Still, there's a lot to like in this band. Chunk of Change gets better as it progresses, with Smile Upon Me telling a tale of camaraderie only seen before in Queen's You're My Best Friend , this time with a new-age lilt. This is impressive in itself, as many of the samples used seem to come from a Roland TR-808 or similar 1980s equipment.
Funk reigns supreme in Better Things, an apt description of Passion Pit's likely future, while hit single and closing track Sleepyhead confirms the potential noted by many, the BBC included.
A little work is needed before the summer release of their debut album in the summer and it's uncertain whether the repetitive beats are an irritant; sometimes they displace the lyrics, which seem to be always out of tune in a complementary way, yet during other moments they block words out completely. This does give a level of incongruity to the songs Passion Pit produce, although many bands have done this successfully in the past.
Although certain songs such as Cuddle Fuddle let Chunk of Change down a little, it's others like Sleepyhead which earmark this band as a keeper for the future. I hope they spend their time wisely in the next few months leading up to their first major release, otherwise the final track on the album could be their final hit.
7/10
Matt Gardner