Passion Pit have unveiled the first single from the Cambridge, Massachusetts-born electro-pop outfit’s upcoming album Gossamer, due out on July 24 via Columbia. A stomping, politically charged anthem, “Take a Walk” suggests the biggest changes since 2009 debut Manners might have been behind the scenes. Frontman Michael Angelakos, who launched Passion Pit as effectively a solo project with 2008’s Chunk of Change EP, gets sole billing in a press release announcing the new song, and his lyrics, now posed more prominently in the mix, signal an acknowledgement of the financial crisis and ensuing recession.
Passion Pit actually premiered “Take a Walk” this past fall at the Moogfest in Asheville, North Carolina, although at the time we didn’t know the song’s title. The lyrics, which are posted online, suggest the tune could have been gestating even longer. In a jaunty, storytelling mode, Angelakos sings from the perspective of an immigrant working to bring his family to the states. “But then my partner called to say the pension funds were gone / He made some bad investments now the accounts are overdrawn,” Passion Pit’s frontman declares, going on to have his narrator decry “those socialists and all their damn taxes,” although he sings “taxes” with an awkward emphasis on the second syllable. Read our lips, no new taxes.
Angelakos co-produced Gossamer with Manners producer Chris Zane, so the good news is those who’d rather not focus on these slightly on-the-nose lyrics can instead focus on the rousing chorus and sumptuously twinkling synths. At live shows, the Phoenix-taut guitars and M83-bright electronics could easily make this a fist-pumping standout. Speaking of which, M83 has also announced tour dates that stretch from Dallas next month to Columbus in November, by way of Lollapalooza and other summer festivals.
Passion Pit tour dates:
June 2 – Dallas, TX @ Meltdown Music Festival
June 22 – Boston, MA @ Bank of America Pavilion
June 23 – New York, NY @ Governors Ball Music Festival
July 15 – Cincinnati, OH @ Bunbury Music Festival
July 16 – Nashville, TN @ Marathon Music Works
July 17 – Knoxville, TN @ The Valarium
July 19 – Charlotte, NC @ The Fillmore
July 20 – Norfok, VA @ The Norva
July 21 – Dover, DE @ Firefly Music Festival
August 3 – Chicago, IL @ Lollapalooza
August 5 – Montreal, QC @ Osheaga Festival
August 7 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheater
August 10-12 – San Francisco, CA @ Outside Lands Music Festival
August 18 – Tokyo, Japan @ SummerSonic
August 19 – Osaka, Japan @ SummerSonic
August 21 – Singapore @ Esplanade
September 9 – Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl
November 4 – Columbus, OH @ LC Pavilion
