MGMT - KSCR Review

Album reviewed for the studio.

Oracular Spectacular - MGMT

This is some cocained-out, hipster shit. So, it’s pretty much awesome. Thrillingly catchy synths and fuzzy guitar lines dominate, but MGMT also flesh out a few pop-acoustic moments. There are tracks that swirl; there are tracks that bounce, and Oracular Spectacular is best when it pulls off both. The music is somewhere between 1977 and 2067, so feel free to float along, but make sure you bob your head and chant accordingly.

Oh, and to help the DJ in you, I’m highlighting my recs:

“Time to Pretend” is their first punch and their best one. See how these kids can capture the anthemic futurism of the 80s through the art of electro-glam rock. It’s the single that’s given them all their buzz, but watch out for that “fuck” 51 seconds in. Play it anyway - it’s solid gold.

“Weekend Wars” back pedals into some Steely Dan, Zeppelin, and Yes, only to then swerve ahead through the electric eccentricities of today’s indie-pop a la Of Montreal.

This leads us to “Electric Feel” - straight-up disco, and I mean Bee Gees and Abba, so dance already.

“Kids” is pretty bass heavy, and totally synth soaked. It feels like a swimming pool of electricity where all the children are singing that catchy hook over and over again. I guess that makes the title fairly fitting.

“The Handshake” is sung from within the same swimming pool, this time through bubbling murky waters and shafts of starlight. Haunting and… well, cool.

On every track, Dave Fridmann’s production sparkles with slick reverb and welcomed grandiosity. That only adds to the drugginess of the album, but instead of making you shy away, a trip with these guys should have you begging for your next fix. MGMT can sound like the Rolling Stones one second (“Pieces of What”) and like Evangelicals the next (“The Handshake” and “Future Reflections”), which basically means it’s a 40 minute substitute for all that crazy shit you’ve been smoking these last few days. But if you aren’t into the laced sounds of Oracular, it can completely estrange you, or worse, wash right over your head.

I’m forgetting something… oh yeah, the lyrics are good too…

RIYL:
Flaming Lips, Evangelicals, David Bowie, Of Montreal