Manners

9.0/10

Best Track: Sleepyhead

Worst Track: Seaweed Song

Holy FUCK what a great CD.

With that said, I am very happy to be able to have an outlet to the world so I can show how much I appreciated this sparkling jewel of an LP amongst the hazy and often tedious sea of electro pop trash.

From start to finish, “Manners” is one vibrant and energetic thrill. From its overflowing and overlapping synthesizers to its recurrent children’s choir providing the backing vocals, the album is a joy ride that ends as abruptly as it begins. Starting with the grand, carnivalesque “Make Light," Passion Pit’s synth-induced high only ends with the final falsetto-ed chorus of “Seaweed Song."

However, beyond being a great album with almost impeccable flow, the album is almost entirely comprised of great individual tracks that can hold their own in any mix-tape or, as it is in the case of most of the album, any dance floor.

“Sleepyhead” and “The Reeling” are two particular gems off of this album, hard as it was to pick them out. “Sleepyhead” sounds as vibrant and shiny as in its original appearance amidst the also great, yet definitely inferior, “Chunk of Change," Passion Pit’s first EP. In particular, it’s also a great introductory song as it has all the elements and staples that comprise most of Pit’s works: handclaps, overlapping synths, a thumping beat, and incessant, nonsensical lyrics sung in falsetto by Passion Pit’s charismatic leadsinger, Michael Angelakos.

The band’s single, “The Reeling," on the other hand, is an indie dance club anthem just waiting to happen. Its stuttering synths in the introduction give lead to one of the jumpiest tracks on the album, and that’s saying a lot based on the saccharine-filled nature of the tracks on “Manners." It has a great buildup to the chorus that, once again, has the stuttering synths of the introduction but is now backed up by Angelakos’ falsettos, that add musical depth and that bubble-gum catchiness that will get you singing the chorus for the rest of the day.

Despite my decision to set those two tracks apart, the rest of the album does not lag behind, in any shape or form. “Moth’s Wings” is an ambitious tune, with grand, open, piano chords, while “Swimming in the Flood”, the album’s slowest track, is a solid and masterfully produced power ballad, just to name two more.

Passion Pit’s first record is fresh, masterfully produced, danceable and, so far, one of the year’s greatest surprises. If you can handle the high doses of falsettos and synthesizers, “Manners” will not only be constantly spinning in your bedroom but also inside your turntables. 

Also a big shoutout to Jessica Stewart for helping me MAJORLY out with this post, the last post, and for noticing the similarities between Angelakos and this guy.