Okay, so I’ll guess I’ll start this review by saying that I’ve been listening to Passion Pit’s debut album Manners since it came out.  Released in May of this year, Manners captured my attention with its captivating lyrics, poppy beats, and high-pitched vocals (from lead singer Michael Angelakos).  Skip to a few months later, and I’m starting to see Passion Pit everywhere.  No, really.  They performed on Jimmy Kimmel last week and if you’ve been watching any television you’ve heard their song Sleepyhead in the new Palm Pixi commercials.  That being said, I was ecstatic Saturday night when the time came to trek out to the Fox Theater in Pomona to see the band live.

After the hour or so wait in the rain, we all filtered into the theater and waited for the opening acts.  As for the venue, the Fox Theater in Pomona is pretty much like the Wiltern on Wilshire, but just a bit bigger.  The bands were interesting to say the least – Plague Vendor was first and Band of Skulls was after them.

Plague Vendor – I’d never heard of these guys before the show.  They’re set was decent.  Their sound is like screamo, but less of the ‘o’.  Think, Blood Brothers but more calm.  While I wasn’t a fan of their music right off the bat, the lead singer was amazingly entertaining.  This guy was all over the place.  My friend, who came to the show with me, mentioned him “thinking he was James Brown” and made a few comments about recreational drug use.  Not to use those as insults – because this guy was on fire.  He was dancing, shaking, doing the splits, and even took off his shirt and showed us his bod.  Really, really, entertaining.  Interested?  Check out their music on the myspace.

Next up was Band of Skulls.  I must say, this band blew me away.  A three man band – or should I say two men and a woman – with drums, bass, and guitar had my attention from the first note.  Their sound is very blues-rock with alternative rock thrown into the mix.  Think, The Kills but more stripped down and guitar-fueled.  The male and female vocals mix wonderfully together and the solos are amazing.  They had this way of building up a song, taking it down more than a few notches, and then they would work on the buildup again before stopping completely.  Amazing.  I didn’t expect what they delivered.  Check out their music on their myspace.

Last, but not least, was Passion Pit.  Before coming on, the playlist over the sound system provided us with cheesy 80’s pop/r&b tunes, like “Candy Girl” by New Edition.  Surprisingly, these are popular songs among the Passion Pit crowd.  But that was just for warm up, because eventually, the lights went out and Passion Pit was on.

They opened up with “To Kingdom Come,” a song that immediately started the crowd with singing along with the na na na’s.  Angelakos delivered his high-pitched and uplifting vocals for the whole night.  Keyboardist Ayad Al Adham looked enthusiastic every second of the show as he sang and danced behind his set (I was on his side of the stage).  And he wasn’t the only one dancing – the pit was swaying because of the dancers in the crowd and Angelakos tended to dance in circles around the stage.  The band played a good set, given they only have one album and one EP, that lasted about an hour and a half.  But, there was never a dull moment.  The crowd rejoiced at the opening sounds of “Better Things,” a song off of their Chunk of Change EP.  During Sleepyhead, Angelakos ventured down to the barricade to greet a few crowd-surfers (the only ones of the night).  The crowd sang “Little Secrets” with him ecstatically, voices uplifting and singing “higher and higher and higher.”  During the encore, the band performed “The Reeling,” in which Angelakos encouraged the singing by saying, “We all came here to sing, right?  Let’s.”  The crowd did not fail to deliver.  However, all good things must come to an end.  Passion Pit eventually exited the stage on their last tour date of the year.

After briefly joining in with a group of happy fans singing Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing,” my friend and I left the theater.  Thankfully, there was no more rain.

Overall, a really good show.  Definitely worth the hour or so wait in the rain.  Passion Pit didn’t upset me and I get the feeling I’ll be playing songs from their album Manners for a while.  Check it out if you haven’t already.  Also, check out their EP Chunk of Change.

Setlist (in no particular order because I didn’t write them down at the show)
- To Kingdom Come
- Make Light
- Little Secrets
- Moth’s Wings
- The Reeling
- Eyes as Candles
- Folds In Your Hands
- Sleepyhead
- Let Your Love Grow Tall
- I’ve Got Your Number
- Better Things

Now, how about some not-so-sexy camera-phone photos, okay? okay.

Plague Vendor:

Band of Skulls:

Passion Pit:

(Thanks to my friend Lauren for some of the pictures!)