Immediately as Passion Pit took the stage, I felt like I stepped into hipster church for the masses. The synths hummed as the band members took their places, the electronic buzz replacing a pipe organ’s call before mass. The over-produced stage lighting blinded my retinas like a messiah’s second coming and shone a halo of white above front-man Michael Angelakos (even his name sounds heavenly). The kids roared with excitement, shouting hallelujahs in the form of song titles, all hands in the air, praising the dance party to rain down the beats.
The set began with “Moth’s Wings”, followed by “The Reeling” and “Little Secrets.” With unwavering energy, the all-but-happy tracks sounded incredibly similar to the band’s recorded sound and people were eating up each note with shovel-sized spoons. Angelakos got the crowd extra pumped when he announced that they were filming the evening’s performance and needed everyone to dance extra hard. The congregation answered his prayer with more cheering, a whole lot more dancing and even a bit of crowd surfing. Prior to the encore, the crowd begged for “Sleepyhead” and when the band returned for their final two, request granted! Everyone may have came in a sinner, but we all left as sweaty saints.