MGMT "oracular spectacular"

engineered by my homie dave fridmann

this is pretty good,this MANAGEMENT band.on first listen at least.
they toured with Of Montreal on their latest tour.
very hooky poppy 80's sort of indie stuff.
like something in between lcd soundsystem and early new pornographers (?!)though im not sure they are as good as those 2 bands.time will tell.

ILE missing persons dept.

anyway these dudes are really good. singer is great. same kinda swirly reverbed-out shit i liked on those black kids songs. would v much like to see mgmt/yeasayer tour.

also this type of thread is exactly what rolling indie '08 is made for.

"same kinda swirly reverbed-out shit i liked on those black kids songs"

yep

whoa whoa whoa

the songwriting here is so much better than black kids! "electric feel" and "kids" are a one-two punch that cannot be reckoned with

wow it took two months for other people to show interest :/

"other people " = onle me..

only

what about the other guy in the thread

yeah right.
but with the new "rolling indie thread" expect a minimum of new other ilxors to show interest in the future..

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51PeEn1PTyL._SS500_.jpg

dude on the right looks eerily like mickey avalon

ftr ive only heard this album 2 or 3 times and i wasn't blown away i just remember thinking that it was a pretty good indie recrod.

w/r/t/ black kids i was strictly talking about the way the vocals sound even tho the synths on "time to pretend" (for example) really do sound like black kids.

on letterman tomorrow (tues 1/7)

gah, 1/8 make that

So, this is pretty much music for people for whom Ariel Pink is just a little too darn weird, right?

I will say that I love "Electric Feel" in spite of myself. Pretty infectious tune, that...

Good record, I don't get the New Pornogarphers or LCD Soundsystem influences - just beautiful mix of psych- and synth-pop, and indie prog.

They also toured with Of Montreal in 2005, which is when I saw them and they were just a 2-piece and my friend bought their EP and started playing it as drinking music all the time and now they've put out this album with some of the same songs on it and it's pretty cool.

i am lovin' "time to pretend" so much....totally sums up everything for me right now

"go to paris shoot some heroin and fuck with the stars"?
btw,great song.
reminds me of that dandy warhols "heroin is so passe" song

one of those dudes is the local alt-weekly editor's kid. i kind of like what I've heard of it. even odds that single will be tapped for a ford fusion spot by the end of the year.

Weekend Wars is the best song there.

i surprisingly love this album, yes, love. actually i only love the first half, the second half is a bit zzz

i agree the first half is better.
anyway, not seeing the lcd soundsystem influence as someone posted above is weird...
they have the hooks, they have the slicky production, and the album is fun.im happy this record doesnt get the hype treatment of "vampire weekend" - (it's not ground-breaking but so what)in this quiet, way it will take for me longer to get tired of it

im about half way through this album and im loving it. i guess it doesnt keep this pace up the whole time according to previous posts but the first half was still great and i see myself listening to it a lot more after this.

also where is this cover http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/2a/MGMT_Oracular_Spectacular.jpg ive only seen the other one that has been posted in stores

http://bp3.blogger.com/_ZAraSxOWlLw/R5-2GNLWvpI/AAAAAAAAAgE/T5oQdQykzLs/s1600-h/battlessxsw.jpg

http://bp3.blogger.com/_ZAraSxOWlLw/R5-2GNLWvpI/AAAAAAAAAgE/T5oQdQykzLs/s1600-h/battlessxsw.jpg

i had "time to pretend" in my head this morning and for a while i couldn't think of what it was and i was thinking "it's something like night ranger" and then i remembered.

MP3s have been in rotation all month and many of the songs are really growing on me. I was buying Vampire Weekend at Borders yesterday and found a couple MGMT cds buried deep in the misc M section. Trying not to spend too much so I didn't get it, but I did put the two they had on the New Releases display where they belonged. I'm seeing them on Friday with Yeasayer. If they impress me at the show I'll probably buy it there.

i've been told to check this out

LOL @ popjustice review:

Boring boring boring
Story filed Wednesday, 27 February 2008

We went to see MGMT last night and were treated to the (in some ways) impressive sight of several men taking a very listenable album and, via the magic of live musicianship, making it seem terrible.

Christ on a bike they were boring. There were several lengthy muso spag-outs and they didn't play 'Kids', one of the handful of songs they are currently using to make people think they are good.

Also one of them was wearing a gold blouse.

IMPARTIAL ADVICE TO MGMT
1. Get a drum machine
2. Sort out some sort of laser show or glitter cannon
3. Etc

One of the people we were with is a fan of Proper Music and liked the big muso spag-out at the end so if you like Proper Music maybe you too will enjoy the MGMT live experience.

For political reasons we would like to point out that last night's event, an NME-sponsored show put on in the run-up to tomorrow's NME Awards, was otherwise extremely well organised and enjoyable.

Everything I've read about them just makes me assume they sound like Mercury Rev or the Flaming Lips? Is this a reasonable assumption?

Please tell me a 'muso spag-out' is something artistically inspired that involves pasta. I can't read British.

Interesting to learn about Fridmann's involvement, I hear Mercury Rev in this for sure. Am I the only one slightly reminded of Len's "Steal My Sunshine" by the first song?

am i the only one who loves this album, but hates the mastering/compression which makes some songs sound very harsh.

Haha, I was just gonna ask if Fridmann had squashed it like he does everything else.

its pretty fucking painful to be honest.
which is a real shame as i would love to play this really loud, but increased volume just kills it.

i think this is weak

Had to do this in the Plan B singles club last month. Made one of the eds sputter so hard they turned it off after 30 seconds. I made them put it back on.

Sounds nothing like Flaming Lips or Mercury Rev. Sounds like a somewhat polite, boring, Canadian version of the Dandy Warhols.

Weekend Wars is the best song there.

-- zeus, Monday, January 28, 2008 3:10 AM (1 month ago) Bookmark Link

zeus and cutty OTM.

I like this record. The other artist comparisons are really song to song I think. Weekend Wars sounds kind of Bowie to me. I also hear Mercury Rev (circa Deserter's Songs) in the vocals on Time to Pretend but not others.

and don't forget Grandaddy's sophomore slump

Heard "Time To Pretend" on the radio at Jimmy John's today and was like, hey, this is pretty all right. Googled it and discovered it was MGMT, a band that some friends of mine in Georgia were obsessed with about a year and a half or two years ago. Went to their shows seemingly on a biweekly basis, never heard anything but good things about them.

A week or so ago Facebook informed me that one of these women had "removed 'MGMT' from their favorite music."

I don't know how any of this hangs together. Need to listen to the song again, maybe.

I do hear a little "Tribulations" by LCD Soundsystem, (very downtempo), in "Time to Pretend" and "Kids."

We went to see MGMT last night and were treated to the (in some ways) impressive sight of several men taking a very listenable album and, via the magic of live musicianship, making it seem terrible. Christ on a bike they were boring.

Popjustice OTM. I hot-footed it from the end of the (great) Menomena gig 10 minutes' walk away, blagged it in... and was utterly underwhelmed, along with most people in the audience.

They were totally under-whelming at the ICA in London last night as well - exactly as described above. A great pop album turned into dull stoner rock and very little sense of style or performance (quite unlike the cd or videos) until the second encore when they dumped the band and did a truly fantastic and slightly pissed disco PA style performance of 'kids'. For the first time they sounded and looked great. Dump the band and go shopping for some better clothes would be my advice. They're sort of on the cusp between Tyrannosaurus and T-Rex and if were them I'd go for the glitter.

Bit of further digging suggests they began with disco PAs and are now going authentic. Shame.

Just bought this album and am surprised to find that it's stronger than I was expecting it to be. My head hasn't really been in an uptempo/dance place lately but I am digging this. Someone upthread said the last half loses it but I actually think it gains depth as it goes on. "Of Moons, Birds & Monsters" and "The Handshake" are both terrific, especially the former.

Kids > Time to Pretend

Everything I've read about them just makes me assume they sound like Mercury Rev or the Flaming Lips? Is this a reasonable assumption?

Took me this long to actually play the whole record till the end. First few listens I hated it, but now I'm definitely loving Elec. and Kids. Especially Electric Feel really does it for me. Mainly because of the Merc. Rev similarity. I love the production, yep, I love myself some compression. I'll probably get bored of it once summer closes its door though. Ah well.

the first 5 on the album + fuck'in great.. the cover = fuck'in great... while it lasted..

Man, I love the one that goes "A family of treeeeees wanted / to beeeeeee haunted"...

aeroplane remix of electric feel is nice..

I wrote a piece on the lyrics of Oracular Spectacular for themorningnews.org. Totally pimping for myself here, but I'd be curious to hear feedback from some fans.

Cheers,

I go back to this album about every two months and like it more each time after completely shrugging it off in the beginning. It's destined to land in my year-end list.

here's some feedback: you're a moron

pretend-sexy children of privilege

I wrote a piece on the lyrics of Oracular Spectacular for themorningnews.org. Totally pimping for myself here, but I'd be curious to hear feedback from some fans.

Cheers,

― Wordsworth, Tuesday, 23 September 2008 17:22 (2 hours ago)

http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/7/2008/09/custom_1222184456199_20080923__82875236AW011_SENATE_HOLDS_fail_p1.jpg

Speaking of FAIL, I saw MGMT open for Beck on Saturday. I'd love to see them rock a house party, but any venue larger than that seems beyond their abilities to engage.

they played the TV Guide after-emmys party i went to. last year they got kanye lollll

"fans"

I still haven't heard this band, but I get the impression that their words aren't really what's so spectacular about them, or worth, say, the attention of an entire piece like this.

wow what a waste of your innate journalistic prowess

Wordsworth, I didn't read your piece, but my honest advice would be to get away from this forum while you can still summon the enthusiasm to create an article like that. Hanging around this bunch of brutal dicks is not going to help you with your writing or your life.

Brave new "fuck off newbie"-free ILx not.

Some survive, Wordsworth. Some survive. But they suffer.

"These are just simple people. People of the land. You know...morons."

i like their words a good bit. however, i don't think 'wordsworth' understands them.

If rock 'n' roll is the sound of rebellious youth, a split between generations

Rock n roll hasn't been the sound of rebellious youth for at least 10 years

10?

Oh I remember the days...back in '98...that was REAL music, nothing like these kids today

I'm talking specifically about rock and roll as an expression of generational difference / something to upset your parents with

Oh I remember the days...back in '98...that was REAL music, nothing like these kids today

lol, how old are all the people on here commenting on the rock n' roll music of the last decade and the rebellious youth?

run forrest, run

Cheers to Savannah Smiles, to LBC's for the Blazing Saddles quote, and to everyone else who took time to read the piece. It's heartening to find diamonds amongst the trolls and lols.

I'm talking specifically about rock and roll as an expression of gen

YAAAH TRICK YAAHH

MGMT ft. Jim Jones - Electric Feel (Remix)

oh lord

haha you opened this thread

to be honest if you don't pay attention to jim it's not half-bad

sounds like some puffy/mase type shit

it is surreal to hear jim jones saying "MGMT" though

lol i already posted in this thread
real real tired of that song though

i like jones' punch-ins - "EHHH!" "Splashhhhhh..."

by 'like' i mean lol wtf obviously this is pretty stupid

i hope jim was in urban outfitters shopping for shawls when he heard this song and decided to remix it

ok i'm an official sucker for "time to pretend".

however i agree with the comments above about the production. it would be 10x better if it actually was mercury rev singing and playing and producing it.

in any case "time to pretend" is a towering accomplishment. you start off thinking that we, us office drones, are the ones pretending. and by the end it seems like the putative rock star heroes are the ones pretending - to have a happy life, a fulfilling marriage, etc. - and then you realize this message is being conveyed by rock musicians to fans, in whose brains the message gets reconstituted and flows back to the musicians in some weird way. and the song itself sounds vast, enormous, encompassing, anthemic - if you heard it live it might self-detonate into some kind of mid-period seterolab squall of fuzztone drone. (so it's disappointing to hear they're not so good live. like, really disappointing.)

ONE OF US

now go and listen to Late of the Pier

ok i think i will

do you pronounce this band "management" or what cause i sure ain't goin around saying each letter

"Mid-period Mercury Rev meets corny indie stadium rock" describes how I now think of these guys. Don't Stop Fritterin'?

x-post: you would rather say management than em gee em tea?

em gee em tea for me

First Kids cover I've heard that it's actually worth listening to:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgpsXURZFo4&

Me watching the Netflix Trainwreck episode last night during an early montage sequence set back around those 2006 to 2008 years, remember them?:

"Oh, so they licensed "Kids" for this."

"Wait that's not the actual keyboard part in full."

"They got a soundalike track?"

Posted a note to this effect on social media, and per my friend Ben, a former board denizen:

"If you watch the scene with the subtitles on, they show the lyrics to “Kids”! So they clearly had it in the edit and then couldn’t afford it and threw in a soundalike!"

It's kinda amazing how it is almost the song, and then it isn't.

Was it the version from the Time to Pretend EP?

If that has a same-but-different version of the keyboard hook...

yeah, it's a bit different. the choruses drop a note in the middle.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTagSe82WBQ

woops, that's meant to start at 22 minute mark. assuming it's this version, probably cheaper to license.