Passion Pit
Passion Pit |
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Passion Pit is an American electro band from Cambridge, Massachusetts. Formed in 2007, the group consists of Michael Angelakos (lead vocals/keyboards), Ian Hultquist (keyboards), Ayad Al Adhamy (synth/samples), Jeff Apruzzese (bass) and Nate Donmoyer (drums).
History
Formation
Passion Pit formed in late 2007. In 2008, after playing only a handful of shows, they were voted Best New Act in the The Boston Phoenix's Best Music Poll.[1] Soon thereafter the band was signed to the New York City-based Frenchkiss Records and Columbia in the UK. [2]
Chunk of Change and Manners (2007–present)
The band's debut EP Chunk of Change was released on September 16, 2008.[3] Originally, the set of six songs was a Valentine's Day gift from Angelakos to his then-girlfriend that became popular throughout Emerson College, which Angelakos was attending.[4] The song "Sleepyhead" contains samples of the song "Oro Mo Bhaidin" by Irish harpist Mary O'Hara. [5] "Sleepyhead" has gained media exposure through its use in a Canadian PSP advertisement as well as in MTVs 'What the Flip?' campaign.[6] Pitchfork included the "Sleepyhead" music video, directed by The Wilderness, in its top 40 music videos of 2008 list.[7] CMJ Music Marathon 2008 named Passion Pit one of the top bands[8] resulting in an MTV feature.[9] Passion Pit placed ninth in BBC's Sound of 2009 list of up-and-coming acts.[10] The band is slated to appear in Josh Schwartz's online show 'Rockville' in 2009 which will air exclusively on TheWB.com.[11]
On February 24, 2009, iTunes released "Sleepyhead" as a discovery download song.
Following the band's exposure on the BBC's Sound of 2009, Sleepyhead has started to receive airplay on NME TV in the UK.
The band has recently finished a full-length studio album, called Manners due to be released on May 18, 2009 in the UK and May 26, 2009 in the United States.[12] In a preview article, ClashMusic.com commented that the album "has every chance to rank as one of the year’s best" and that "it reveals additional nuances with each visit: a sure-fire sign of an album with true longevity". [13]
The band's live performance has also been received well, having opened for bands such as Death Cab for Cutie, Girl Talk, and These New Puritans. .[14]
On April 21, 2009, Passion Pit released on their youTube page the official video for the first single from Manners: "The Reeling".
Discography
EPs
- Chunk of Change (2008)
Singles
- Sleepyhead / Better Things (2008)
- 7" vinyl
Albums
- Manners (2009)
Compilations
- Monolith Festival 2008 CD Sampler
- featuring Sleepyhead
References
- ^ "Boston Music Poll" - Best New Act 2008 The Boston Phoenix
- ^ "Passion Pit sign to Columbia UK"- Pitchfork Media
- ^ "Chunk of Change" release date - Prefix Magazine
- ^ http://exclaim.ca/articles/multiarticlesub.aspx?csid1=128&csid2=946&fid1=35177
- ^ [1]
- ^ Passion Pit Sleepyhead used for MTVs what the flip? campaign
- ^ "Pitchfork top 40 music videos 2008"
- ^ "Top 10 CMJ bands" -NME.com
- ^ MTV News- CMJ 2008 - MTV
- ^ "BBC Sound of 2009: The longlist". BBC News website. 2008-12-05. Retrieved 2009-01-01.
- ^ Passion Pit on Rockville
- ^ [2]
- ^ [3]
- ^ [4]