The side of the Dragon: septiembre 2010

HISTORY

Name

The slang ''Passion Pit'' is derived from traditional Variety-speak used in the Hollywood industry publication. The trade used the slang to refer to the "make-out" spot at drive-in theatres, because of their privacy and romantic allure for teenagers.

Formation.

The songs, which would later become the Chunk of Change EP, were written by Angelakos as a Valentine's Day gift to his then girlfriend. He wrote and performed all of these songs on his laptop. After a solo show in the Boston area, Berklee College of Music student, Ian Hultquist, approached Angelakos to form a live band with the material Angelakos had at the time.Together, they formed a group that included Angelakos, Ian Hultquist (synth), Ayad Al Adhamy (synth), Thom Plasse (bass), and Adam Todd Lavinsky (drums). Nate Donmoyer and Jeff Apruzzese joined the band shortly after signing to Frenchkiss in 2008, replacing Lavinsky and Plasse, respectively.

''Chunk of Change''

The band's debut Extended play ''Chunk of Change'' was released on September 16, 2008. The first four tracks were an anniversary gift from Angelakos to his then-girlfriend that became popular throughout Emerson College, which Angelakos was attending. Tracks 5 and 6, "Sleepyhead" and "Better Things", were added to the commercial release.The song "Sleepyhead" contains samples of the song "Óró Mo Bháidín" by a Irish singer and harpist Mary O'Hara. "Sleepyhead" has gained media exposure through its use in a US Palm Pixi advertisement, a Canadian PlayStation Portable.
Pitchfork Media included the "Sleepyhead" music video, directed by The Wilderness, in its top 40 music videos of 2008 list. An edited version of sleepyhead was also used in a dance piece directed by Chris Baterina and Raniel Macasaet featuring dancers Phillip Chbeeb, Andrew Baterina, and Jordan Kolar.
"Sleepyhead" was also used as the music in Five USA/Fiver Promo – Seriously Funny Movies Advert in 2009. An instrumental version of "Sleepyhead" was also more recently used as the background song for the debut trailer of the Playstation 3 exclusive, LittleBigPlanet 2.
On February 24, 2009, the American iTunes store released "Sleepyhead" as a discovery download song.
Following the band's exposure on the BBC's Sound of 2009, Sleepyhead has started to receive airplay on NME TV in the UK.
Sleepyhead is also used as the title theme song for Max and Jason: Still Up on Current TV.
The song 'Cuddle Fuddle' was featured in the E4's series 2 of The Inbetweeners.
The song "I've Got Your Number" was used in an advertisement for the cash card from ''O2'' Money in the UK

''Manners''

The band's first full-length studio album, ''Manners'', was released on May 18, 2009 in the UK and May 19, 2009 in the United States and Canada. In celebration, the band played their record release party on the 18th in New York City on a Rocks Off boat cruise. In a preview article, ClashMusic.com commented that the album "has every chance to rank as one of the year’s best" and that "it reveals additional nuances with each visit: a sure-fire sign of an album with true longevity".
The album's single "The Reeling" was a surprise success on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart in the Fall of 2009, where it peaked at #34 in October.
Second single "Little Secrets" also was a chart success, topping out at #39. It has also been used by Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim pitcher Dan Haren as his run-out music.
The song "Sleepyhead" from the album was offered from iTunes for free in 2009 and since has appeared in several ads, including Top Gear advertisements in Australia, and most notably in spots for the Palm Pixi. Also, the song appeared in a PSP Canada advertisement.It was used in a season 3 episode of the Channel 4 teen-drama, ''Skins''. The song was most recently used in the debut trailer for LittleBigPlanet 2.This made the band more popular amongst fans of the game and soon an in game instrumental was made by players.
The song "Moth's Wings" was used in a season 3 episode of the CW teen-drama ''Gossip Girl'', as well as the video game ''FIFA 10'' and the closing credits of Episode 36 of HBO's ''Big Love''. It is also featured in the upcoming film''Life As We Know It'', starring Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel.
The PS22 chorus sang background vocals on the songs "The Reeling", "Little Secrets", "Let Your Love Grow Tall".
The song "Let Your Love Grow Tall" was used in a season 4 episode of the TV series "Ugly Betty"
"To Kingdom Come" was used in the Rhapsody commercial concerning its iPhone application.
It has been announced that Passion Pit will be touring with British band Muse Muse as the supporting act for 8 shows during their Fall 2010 tour through parts of the U.S.
The band released a cover of The Smashing Pumpkins hit song "Tonight, Tonight" as part of a promotion with Levi called "Pioneer Sessions".Cover of Smashing Pumpkins "Tonight, Tonight"

Downloads:

Chunk of Change