Passion Pit at the Olympia, Dublin on Sunday the 11th of November 2012

Passion Pit are one of those bands that fill a strange space in the music spectrum. They make music interesting enough to keep the hipsters onside yet poppy enough, with its incredibly catchy hooks, to keep it away from chin stroking territory.  The indie-pop merchants have a quite diverse fan base as a result. They are not a band anyone would step over their mother to see, but also, perhaps as a result, are not a band who court the ire of those who don’t believe they don’t deserve their success. They genuinely seem to appeal to the masses.

As a result, Passion Pit have unearthed an audience large enough to regularly sell out places like the Olympia whenever they like, provided they don’t try to squeeze too much out of ticket prices. It also makes them perfect for this type of free show that Heineken has put on. Any doubts lingering before the show – it’s a Sunday night, their last album ‘Gossamer’ flopped and none of the audience committed any money to turning up – are allayed as soon as the band take to the green-lit stage (perhaps Heineken are being a bit subliminal here) and crack into their opener Take A Walk. The crowd really get into it; jumping around, throwing their hands in the air and chanting back the chorus. The pace is kept up with The Reeling which follows the same formula as before.

Throughout the show, it’s songs from the début album (with the exception of Take a Walk) that keep the energy in the room while the newer songs fall comparatively flat. It seems that it’s something the band had anticipated, however, and they throw in song from ‘Manners’ regularly throughout the show. If the audience is flagging at any stage, there is always the eccentrics of lead singer Michael Angelakos and his effervescent bounding across the stage to keep them entertained. There is, too, the ever-present marching drum beat to keeps the feet moving.

The show eventually hits a lull late in the second half after a number of ‘Gossamer’ tracks are piled up together but, somewhat ironically, Sleepyhead (perhaps their biggest hit to date) wakes the shows from its slumber. This and encore Little Secrets return to the formula present on the two opening songs with ‘call and response’ choruses meaning the crowd do all the backing vocals. It’s all light, fun, bouncy and entertaining; like the show has been throughout. It may not be a show that will last forever but, like Passion Pit in general, the world just seems like a happier place for it having merely existed.

Passion Pit Photo Gallery

Photos: Kieran Frost