Posted by kluster on May 20, 2009
In this Australian exclusive, (in your face Rolling Stone) Cat Juan talks to drummer Nate Donmoyer from Boston band Passion Pit about ‘80s influences, their new album, Chunk of Change (their EP) and how their sound is not intentionally trippy.
Cat Juan: Your songs have a distinct '80s pop influence. What draws you to create this type of music? What are your most distinct memories from the 80’s?
Nate Donmoyer: I was born in '87 so all I remember is when a microburst went over my house and a tree caught on fire. I like tons of 80's music: from new wave stuff like Tears for Fears and Duran Duran to bad hair metal. And all the hip hop was so much better then.
CJ: Name three artists you'd give your left foot to jam with:
ND: Jimi Hendrix, John Bonham, and John Lennon. Sorry, that was just too obvious.
CJ: What's the craziest thing a fan has ever done for your group?
ND: Someone drew a really good picture of Mike once. Sometimes people have driven really far to see a show. That’s about it. Hopefully our fans are curing AIDS and feeding starving children in their spare time.
CJ: The Chunk of Change EP was originally a belated Valentines present from Passion Pit's Michael Angelakos to his girlfriend? Is she still your/his muse?
ND: Muse? Maybe. They are not dating any more though... Just friends.
CJ: Tell us what went into making the video for ‘Sleepyhead’. How long did it take to put it all together?
ND: The Wilderness produced (the video). It took just an afternoon of photos and they did the rest.
CJ: You guys only formed in 2007 and yet you've already been cited as a "band to watch out for" by MTV. Why do you think Passion Pit has become so popular so fast?
ND: Luck. And what does MTV know? Have you watched that channel lately?
CJ: Touche. How's your full-length studio album coming along? What can your fans expect?
ND: It’s done and we are very happy with it; I really can’t wait for it to come out. People shouldn’t expect anything. This sound is so much more than what is on the EP: real drums, real grand pianos, real children’s choir, real string players, real studio.
CJ: How long have you all known each other? What's the hardest challenge about being a new band?
ND: I’m the newest to the band: I joined in August 2008. Jeff joined a month before that but I’ve been playing music with him for 3 years, and the rest of the guys over the past three years, around Boston. It’s quite a small town when you get out enough.
CJ: Let us in on how you guys collaborate to create your trippy songs?
ND: Mike does most of the song-writing; we kind of put it through our filter and add our imprint and opinion to it. If it’s trippy it’s not on purpose; maybe just because we are weird people.
CJ: Any plans to tour Australia this year?
ND: Yes! The end of the summer for festivals hopefully! We really want to.
passion pit