Mind Your "Manners"

I have two weeks of college left, and a lot of my life post-June 13 has yet to be determined. I'm swamped this week with tying up loose ends, and am exhausted from, well, the last 4 years of academics.

Needless to say, I've not had time to post to this here blog (though, if I'm unemployed in two weeks, that will change quite dramatically.) I've also been in desperate need of some pick-me-up music.

Killing two birds with one stone, here is a write-up I just completed for the Athens News' Ear Buds section of a killer album I've been listening to fairly non-stop for the last three days. Go buy it and listen to it all summer. It's called "Manners," from the Boston band Passion Pit.

Passion Pit, "Manners": Melodic dance-pop albums are usually not my thing; the sugar coated catchiness of the melodies, the wandering fuzz of the synths and the cliche nonsensical lyrics typically drive me crazy after a third or fourth listen. Such albums are intended mostly for the dance floor, not for an iPod-assisted walk to work, and don't spend too much time trying to chalk up originality points. But "Manners" from Passion Pit is something quite different: a crazy-melodic record from start to finish, it laces each song with a throbbing tempo, inspired lyrics and an eclectic mix of synths and indie rock that avoids any kind of pretentiousness. Imagine mixing the catchy synths of M83 with the dance-rock of Of Montreal, and throwing in some children-choir vocals and fast-forwarded samples-a-la-Kanye West for good measure - that'll give you an idea of what this Boston-based band sounds like. In a just world, this entire album would be the go-to anthem for summer 2009.

Here is my favorite song from the album, "Little Secrets."

Little Secrets - Passion Pit