Passion Pit Heats Up Tampa

Thursday, 17 June 2010 12:14

Electronic rockers Passion Pit visited Florida recently, stopping at the Ritz Ybor venue in Tampa along the way. Passion Pit played a hot, sweaty set inside the club, which was sweltering hot as the temperatures had soared in the past week. Singer Michael Angelakos seemed genuinely humbled by the enthusiastic response of the sold-out crowd that brought plenty of energy for dancing and singing along to many of the songs.

Story and Photos by John Davisson

Singer Michael Angelakos first formed Passion Pit in Cambridge, Mass. in 2008 to record some solo songs on his laptop as a Valentine’s gift for his girlfriend. The band coalesced around him over the next year. I first saw them at SXSW in 2009 shortly before they released their first album Manners and were still figuring out their stage presentation. Since then, I have seen them slightly evolve at several festivals; Michael moved further away from his keyboards and became more of a frontman. Despite only a couple of minor chart hits, the band has exploded in popularity anyway, with their songs in commercials and TV shows.

At the Ritz Ybor show, fans knew many of the lyrics and sang along vociferously, as well as dancing enthusiastically despite the heat. With a sound that is reminiscent of ‘70s disco music, Passion Pit is following the unconventional path of other recent electronic disco acts such as Gossip, Owl City (which actually isn’t so disco but is electronic and marketed unconventionally) and Black Kids. Whatever they’re doing, it’s working. The show was sold out and hipster kids were begging for tickets outside. During “Little Secrets,” the fans singing along drowned out the band!

Singer Michael Angelakos sings mostly falsetto, and they played most of the tracks from Manners and a cover of the Cranberries’ “Dreams.” Judging by the quick sell-outs on this tour, they will probably be playing at larger venues soon.

Watch Passion Pit perform their Cranberries cover live below!