Missy Scheinberg, Contributing Photographer
Passion Pit headlined at the Main Street Armory with support from real-life couple Matt & Kim and Swedish duo Icona Pop. Monday night marked what was probably the best show caught in Rochester in the last three years.
After waiting in line outside the venue for a whopping 45 minutes, the audience witnessed Icona Pop take the stage and win over plenty of new fans with their unique brand of electro pop bangers — most notably closing with the anthem-like “I Love It” that has recently skyrocketed onto the iTunes charts due to its infectious musical hook and girl-power air.
After the Icona Pop’s all too-short set, Matt & Kim took the stage for 30-or-so-minutes packing enough energy to fill the entire evening. This was the best performance by the pop-rockers so far; they had more energy than ever (Kim spent more time atop her drum kit than sitting down) translating into a super tight set. Although they relied heavily on their latest release “Lightening,” which most believe to be their weakest, they managed to sprinkle in hits like “Good Old Fashioned Nightmare,” “Cameras,” and, of course, “Daylight,” which made the crowd go bonkers.
In typical Matt & Kim fashion, they also threw in a few short instrumental covers in between songs such as “Better Off Alone” and “N*****s in Paris.” This elicited an even greater response from fans and non-fans alike. Every Matt & Kim set packed more energy than the previous. It was not surprising to see Kim walking on top of audience members’ hands for a good few minutes, giving crowd-surfing a whole new meaning. Some think that if you’ve seen Matt & Kim once you’ve seen them a hundred times, but this killer set proved otherwise.
Matt & Kim’s supporting slot proved tough to beat, but Passion Pit succeeded in doing so, as per their usual. I was a bit skeptical about how they’d measure up to previous shows, but as soon as they stepped onstage, it was clear that they would only get better and better. Probably still running on the high from headlining the iconic Madison Square Garden the week before, Passion Pit proved that they crossed the fine line between club band and arena rockers with their elaborate stage production. Frontman Michael Angelakos was as animated as ever. He didn’t stand still for entire headlining set as the rest of the band proved their skills as instrumentalists. The band had the entirety of the 6,500-seated Armory dancing all throughout their set. Relying heavily on their newest release from 2012 titled “Gossamer,” the band cranked out hit after hit while still playing fan favorites like “Moth’s Wings,” “Little Secrets,” and, of course, “Sleepyhead.”
Passion Pit’s latest Rochester concert proved why they have become such a touring machine -— their high-energy sets appeal to the indie rockers, the “electronica” heads, and your average high school or college kid. It’s only a matter of time before they become one of our generation’s musical figureheads.
Scheinberg is a member of
the class of 2014.
