Passion Pit - Gossamer

[LemonMelon]

It sounds like something I might have said back then. Manners was very much a product of the emerging indie electropop scene in 2008-2009, they couldn't play live and it must have struck me as somewhat flavor of the month back then.

Even if I had said that (honestly don't remember), I would have retracted it after Gossamer revealed a new layer to Angelakos as a songwriter and artist.

 

[lazarus]

You people who prefer Manners are fucking insane.

 

[PhilsFan]

Yeah, Gossamer >>>>> Manners. Looking forward to this.

 

[corianderstem]

You people who prefer Manners are fucking insane.

I know

Yeah, Gossamer >>>>> Manners. Looking forward to this.

right?

 

[gump]

Manners is more entertaining to me, but Gossamer is more layered and complex, and probably the better album.

 

[LemonMelon]

Manners is more entertaining to me, but Gossamer is more layered and complex, and probably the better album.

I agree with this.

 

[cobl04]

I can appreciate that Gossamer was a step forward in terms of sound and lyricism.

But it just doesn't have the songs to compete with Manners. Make Light, The Reeling, Swimming in the Flood, Folds in Your Hands, Sleepyhead.

IMO

 

[cobl04]

Kindred is out April 21.

This, apparently, is the cover.

First single, decent tune.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeINWQDg7zg

01 Lifted Up (1985)
02 Whole Life Story
03 Where the Sky Hangs
04 All I Want
05 Five Foot Ten (I)
06 Dancing on the Grave
07 Until We Can't (Let's Go)
08 Looks Like Rain
09 My Brother Taught Me How to Swim
10 Ten Feet Tall (II)

 

[LemonMelon]

Their covers are always terrible.

 

[bono_212]

Took a couple minutes for me to get into it, but by the end I was pretty hooked. I'm almost tempted to start going to the gym again, just because their last album was my elliptical jam .

 

[bono_212]

Their covers are always terrible.

This one is awesome when it's in motion, though.

 

[cobl04]

Dude sounds super weird when he's singing clearly and without effects.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDuwmU1a1kY

 

[LemonMelon]

Album is streaming on iTunes.

Spoiler

I didn't like Gossamer very much on first listen and it slowly grew to be a record I play semi-frequently, so first listens aren't everything for this band. But man, I'm really disappointed right now. It's not the worst thing I've ever heard, but it's really cloying and, having paid fairly close attention to the album, the lyrics are trite as fuck. I know Manners sounds extroverted on the surface, but those lyrics cut deep in spots. Obviously Gossamer is full of gems. Kindred is one big warm fuzzy hug and not much else.

Will this grow on me? I don't know, maybe. Gossamer became a favorite because the lyrics resonated with me personally. Kindred is huge, loud and shrill and I guess it's something of a psychological peak for Angelakos but it's not something I enjoyed listening to. Mood records are generally known for being downbeat, but this is one of those upbeat records that sounds like shit unless you're out in the sun somewhere and feeling good. I'll pick the context for my next listen more carefully.

PS: Passion Pit discovered autotune. It's bad.

 

[Danny Boy]

Well, at least my expectations have been lowered going in.

 

[cobl04]

Passion Pit by-numbers. I hope it grows on me as well, has the potential to be better than Gossamer, which I didn't click with much, but was not too impressed on first listen. The first two tracks are pretty good but it all runs together, so much so that I found myself quite liking Ten Feet Tall II, the closer with the autotune.

Mostly I'm really disappointed that they didn't explore some different sonic textures; Constant Conversations was a massive standout on Gossamer, I really fucking love that song, with its slow, groggy beat and soul samples, and lower-pitched, more considered singing. and I was hoping this new album would be an experiment further along those lines with some really personal lyrics. Not to be.

 

[LemonMelon]

It's basically the shrill sugar rush parts of Manners that turned some people off without any of the nuance of tracks like Swimming in the Flood and Constant Conversations to balance it out.

 

[cobl04]

yep

 

[Kieran McConville]

'Shrill sugar rush' pretty well sums up why I don't like Passion Pit in the first place, although I'll freely concede I've never stuck around long enough to find the deep album cuts that might prove otherwise. Life's short that way.

 

[cobl04]

The shrill sugary songs on Manners still sound refreshing to my ears. Make Light, Little Secrets, Folds in Your Hands, Sleepyhead. They were all a little different to each other. Little nuances here and there. On Gossamer they were a little more grating and on Kindred it all just runs together and isn't exciting.

 

[PhilsFan]

I haven't heard Kindred yet, but I always much preferred Gossamer to Manners because Gossamer seemed to have some real topics to tackle. Constant Conversations and Cry Like a Ghost are great lyrics in addition to good songs, and Mirrored Sea is an excellent track as well.

 

[gump]

 

[cobl04]

Are all the songs on that channel Passion Pit songs? If so that means we've got five new ones...

 

[gump]

No idea. Maybe he's just messing around and posting some songs. But this latest one was tweeted out of the Passion Pit account (not sure about the earlier ones).