Released 18th May- Columbia Records

Passion Pit’s E.P Chuck Of Change was a revelation upon its release earlier this
year.  Like LCD Soundsystem having a dance-off with the Black Kids it was great fun throughout whilst, in a great trick shared with the irrepressible LCD, injected heart and more than a dash of melancholy into its electro party mash-up. 

Therefore, the debut album has been feverishly looked forward to in this little section of the Isles.  If they could knock out 6 such wonderful songs for Chunk Of Change, they’d only need to repeat this, chuck in a few of the tracks off the E.P and a genuine barnstormer they’d have on their hands.

 Unfortunately, and this is said with a heavy heart indeed as Passion Pit have much to admire about them, Manners is, relatively speaking, a bit of a letdown.  Its not a bad album by any stretch; it just doesn’t live up to the promise they initially displayed and really only gets going in the second half of the album, where there are a couple of big grin and tingles moments.

Opener ‘Make Light’ has a driving drum beat and a swirl of guitar propelling it on, but is really rather bland and sounds like a bad Black Kids B-Side.  ‘Little Secrets’ isn’t a lot better, though it does have suitably chipper chorus of ‘getting higher and higher/getting higher and higher’.  It demonstrates that lead singer Michael Angelakos hasn’t lost his propensity for a charmingly child-like vocal (if this sounds like a criticism, its not.  His falsetto voice makes such statements sound totally uncontrived).

Quite why ‘The Reeling’ was a single is a mystery to these ears as it starts of with some low key distortion that, while morphing in to a fun little beat, is nothing particularly exciting.  ‘Eyes As Candles’ is an improvement, and is a sweet dance ditty with a hummable ‘nah nah nah nah nah nah nah/hey hey hey hey’ chorus.  We’re back inLCD-on-happy-pills territory, and is similarly suitable being played in thebedroom or down the local discotheque.

‘Swimming In The Flood’ is bit slower, andreverses the mood to melancholy after the party of ‘Eyes As Candles’.  Its lovely, and Angelakos’s voice is on pure heartstrings detail.

It is in the final three songs where Passion Pit’s heart really shines through. ‘Sleepyhead’, the only track on Chunk Of Change to feature on the album, has been around for while now and is still nothing less than stunning. With a scratchy sample and triumphant breakdown,  its a pure party track that will make the listener anything other than tired.  It is surely one of the best, most enjoyable songs of the last year and, if you let it, might just be the soundtrack to your summer.

‘Let Your Love Grow Tall’ is wonderful with its child-like lyrics (sang by a childrens chorus no less);  a song to make one sit up, smile and shake thehead in delight that someone is making tunes this devoid of posturing or negativity.  Although musically complex, message-wise its as straightforward as you could hope for, and in that lies its complete charm. Its sincere, and its fitting that the kids chorus comes in later as there is a very honest wide-eyed attitude on display.  Listen to this with MDMA in your veins and anyone in the same room will have precisely no chance of getting away with anything less than a slobbering, over-friendly snog.  F*ck, even without it I’m tempted to make some ‘I love you’ phone calls.

‘Seaweed Song’ carries on the feelgood factor with its Royskopp-y chorus of ‘nobody knows you the way you know you,’ and cheesy keys in the verse.  It’s Massive Attack with the glass half full, and a brilliantly cheery way to sign off the album.

Despite these definite high points, it’s a shame that the first half of the album isn’t as good and joyous as the second (though perhaps in time and with repeated listens it will come to dawn that the album is better as a whole for the slightly more sedate mood). As it is, one can’t help but think that what is an 7/7.5 out of 10 album couldhave been a 8.5/9. A dance classic perhaps.  Regardless of this, there is more than enough to be getting on with here as it is essentially a very good album and worthy of your pennies. They are also going to certainly be one to catch at festivals in  the summer as watching this in the sun, with happy people in a alternative state of mind is surely to enjoy Passion Pit in their natural home.

Posted In Album Reviews, May 18 2009. Words - David