album review: passion pit, 'kindred'

I heard about Passion Pit the way a lot of people probably did: when he (it's a single person-band with two touring members) remixed a song by Imagine Dragons, specifically, It's Time (it's a good remix by the way, listen to it here) and as with most music (that isn't reggae), I fell in love. I listened to the singles, kept an eye out for albums, the usual me stuff and then I heard about Kindred. The website went offline for a while and came back as KindredtheAlbum.com. There was a lot of buzz around this album, and when the first single from it was released- Lifted Up (1985), I was there so fast I felt my metaphorical head spin.

Kindred is their third studio album and the main man Michael Angelakos spins beautiful pop tracks that have no happy endings but are positive in their own way. There is something about the melancholy lyrics mixed with the upbeat pop that resonates with me and wow...that sounded pretentious.

This album, from what I've seen and heard and read, is essentially Michael A. moving on from a dark point in his life but acknowledging that he was once there in the best way possible- through music. He's been through a lot from what I've gathered, but he's a wonderful example of moving on from whatever was dragging him down. He accepted, but never forgot or disregarded and as a teenager looking for assertion without strings wherever I can find it, this album is perfect.

Kindred is fantastic, though and I strongly suggest you, reader of mine, give it a go. You can stream it  fully on  iTunes Radio for a limited time or wait for a week to get it on the 21st, whatever floats your boat. You can pre-order and get Lifted Up (1985) and Until We Can't (Let's Go) immediately.

Top track:

Lifted Up (1985). Why? So relatable, even though I'm biased because I haven't soaked in the music juices of the other songs, SO THIS MAY CHANGE. Note: that sounded vaguely wrong.

Image sourced from...GOOGLE!

when everything you touch turns to gold

Imagine Dragons is the first band mention when I'm asked what band is my favourite (if i had to pick one on pain of death). They released Night Visions and another album is in the works called Smoke + Mirrors (out on February 17, 2015).

They've released two new singles from the new album in the past few months: I Bet My Life and Gold. Both are beyond epic and both are preparation for what is bound to be an amazing sophomore studio album. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Dan Reynolds said that this album is going to be different from Night Visions, a little more stripped back, more mature, and with more rock than the hip-hop sound that shared the spotlight with some of the songs in Night Visions.

The video for Gold came out just over an hour ago and I love it. It's simple and has Dan Reynolds at the forefront doing his thing (his thing which is awesome).

Watch it below.

Smoke + Mirrors is available for pre-order on iTunes.