Passions Reignited

Good news for anybody without tickets to Passion Pit's sold-out gig in The Olympia on March 13th. Heineken Green Spheres are organising another one of their free gigs and have selected the American electronic outfit as their headline act.

The Savoy Theatre in Cork has been chosen as the venue for the gig on March 12th. This may involve a road-trip for the likes of me but, having caught the band at Electric Picnic last year, I reckon it's worth it.

I was lucky enough to catch Green Spheres events in Carlow (Marina & The Diamonds, Miike Snow, Digitalism) and Dublin (White Lies, Neon Indian) last year and had a blast at both. Click here to apply for tickets.

Meanwhile, an alternate video for Passion Pit's breakthrough track 'Sleepyhead' has been leaked. Apparently the video pre-dates the official video but was rejected by the band and their management. To be honest, I kinda prefer this one.

Sleeper Hit

Almost a year after the initial release of 'Sleepyhead' by Passion Pit, re-interpretations of the track continue to surface.

The latest version comes fromGoldsmith, AKA singer Ellie Goulding and producer Starsmith. Both collectively and individually, the pair have gone from strength to strength since I first fell for their work back in January and their midas touch certainly hasn't failed them on this occasion. This track sees Starsmith making his first appearance on backing vocals and you can hear the results here.

Also great is the version by alt-pop purveyors, The Mummers. This borrows samples from the original track, teaming them with funky brass backing and new lyrics. The lovely Matt from Stay Loose has given me permission to share the track.

Click here to listen and/or download.

Finally, Run Toto Run's mandolin-and-fiddle-driven cover, which I've previously mentioned, remains great. This seems to have gained the band more attention than any of their own great tunes but hopefully they can capitalise on the exposure.



[Image: Swedish Leon's Disko Club]