Review: Passion Pit at the 9:30 Club on July 28

Passion Pit, the indietronica band led by Michael Angelakos, returned to the 9:30 Club last week. The band soared through the synth-saturated tracks as Angelakos celebrated almost 20 years since Chunk of Change (2008) and being the happiest he’s ever been on tour. Angelakos at times struggled with hitting the falsetto of many of the group’s early tracks, and the balance felt bass-heavy, often occluding Angelakos’s singing. Nonetheless, all of the touring musicians demonstrated impressive skill in recreating live the signature loops, cues, and leads that have become characteristic of Passion Pit’s sound.

The roughly 20-minute encore was the most striking moment of the night, with outstanding instrumentation and remarkable drumming. Michael’s acoustic “To Mend Two Broken Vessels” honored family in attendance, and the “Smile Upon Me” and “Alone (On Ice!) / Sleepyhead” combination captured the energy of the room.

The opener, Arden Jones, was mostly underwhelming, relying heavily on backing vocals and generally uninspired and unoriginal lyrics. That said, the mixing excelled (it was worth dancing to!) and the calls for audience participation—hand waving, frat flicks—were a bit cringey but admittedly fun at the same time. The San Franciscan multi-instrumentalist rapper and singer is certainly liked by many, but it was unclear whether the set belonged alongside Passion Pit’s. 

Passion Pit continues their Pretty Penny tour across the country through mid-August, inspiring older electronica heads to millennials who’ve been fans since ‘08 all the way to—one young audience member yelled out—people who were “in utero” back when Michael released Chunk of Change.