Polaroids # 43 (MGMT)

(Picture taken on the 18th of December 2010 in Campo Pequeno, Lisbon, Portugal)

MGMT's new video It's Working for me

My god, their videos keep getting better and better, don't they? The second single from Congratulations is the album's opening track, and the video treatment this time around comes to prove that MGMT do put a lot of effort in the band's visuals. The video (directed by artist SO-ME) is their most fun effort to date and can I point out that the boys are looking mighty fine on this one? LOVE all the technicolor effects.

MGMT - Congratulations

Read any article about MGMT's sophomore album and they will all mention how the band has turned their backs on commercial success and fans expectations, making a record on their own terms, with music that supposedly sounds very difficult to assimilate. "Career suicide", I've even read somewhere...
Truth to be told, they would never have it easy anyways, what with all the success that they achieved with Oracular Spectacular (a success based on 3 songs that actually didn't represent the whole album); in these days, when everyone is a bit of a hype-slave, all that goes up has eventually to come down, fairly or not...
But to all true MGMT fans out there: fear not, because Congratulations is actually what you could expect from this band: a deep dive into an unknown world, and even if it's less immediate than what they did in the past, everything is still done with a genuine ambition to produce life-changing statements.
So there may not be any generational anthems like Time To Pretend or Kids, but the celebratory mood is still here, only the drugs have changed. This time it's all about hallucinating with sounds that recall many different references, which are assumed and proudly displayed: Kinks, Syd Barrett, Electric Prunes, Television Personalities, The Monochrome Set, Beach Boys... All assimilated and regurgitated in frenetic doses, sometimes not in the most subtle way, but always with loads of unexpected twists around the corner. The ambition was clearly to build an epic of cosmic digressions, using everything and more to reach the desired effect, be it flutes, organs, choirs full of reverb, hawaiian guitars or indian sitars.
With all the complex arrangements and apparently chaotic song structures, does Congratulations sometimes sound like a mess? Maybe so, at least on first listen. But, when immersing yourself more and more into this world, it never ceases from being an increasingly overwhelming place to discover new things. So this may have become one of the most divisive records of recent times, but for me there's no question: with an album that only makes sense as a whole, and with no stand-out songs to promote as singles, MGMT have created a psychedelic monument for our age. (8,5/10)

MGMT - Congratulations (mp3 via MFR)



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MGMT's new video: Flash Delirium

In case you missed it, the new video from MGMT (called Flash Delirium) is already streaming at the band's official website. It comes out of the mind of Swedish director Andreas Nilsson and it's so out of reality that it actually works! The song itself is a mix-mash of different musical ideas, ambitious in its construction but, in the end, quite rare and interesting (loving the californian surf vibe in the sound). And now, the new video brings up the strangeness of the track into a whole new level! I could try to interpret a meaning behind it but, really, why should I? Enjoy here.

Best Of 2008: Top 35 songs

2008 had a lot of songs to remember, so much so that I expanded this list to 35 entries and still had to leave out many other great ones. Each song comes with a stream, or when not possible, with an external link where you can hear it. Ready? Enjoy...

35. Grace Jones - Corporate Cannibal






34. Guillemots - Get Over It



(audio)


33. The Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition






32. Madonna feat. Justin Timberlake - 4 Minutes






31. Boy Crisis - Dressed To Digress






30. Grammatics - The Vague Archive



(video)


29. Goldfrapp - A&E



(video)


28. Mystery Jets - Two Doors Down



(audio)


27. Empire Of The Sun - Walking On A Dream






26. Britney Spears - If U Seek Amy



(audio)


25. The Tough Alliance - Lucky






24. Pictureplane - Flashion (You Designed My Mind)






23. Deerhunter - Little Kids



(audio)


22. Kleerup feat. Lykke Li - Until We Bleed






21. Kanye West - Love Lockdown






20. Cut Copy - So Haunted



(audio)


19. Lil Wayne - A Milli






18. The Pan I Am - Young God / Bad Thing






17. Kanye West - RoboCop






16. Los Campesinos! - Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks

15. Frankmusik - Done Done






14. Little Boots - Stuck On Repeat






13. Dan Black - HYPNTZ



(video)


12. Passion Pit - Sleepyhead






11. Pacific! - Sunset Blvd



(audio)


10. The Honeydrips - Trying Something New






9. MGMT - Kids






8. Matt & Kim - Daylight






7. Britney Spears - Amnesia






6. frYars - Benedict Arnold



(audio)


5. Usher feat. Young Jeezy - Love In This Club






4. Friendly Fires - Paris (Aeroplane Remix)






3. MGMT - Time To Pretend



Generational anthems don't come that often, but "Time To Pretend" had it all and even made it look like doing one was the simplest thing in the world, from the most amazing synth line ever to the inspirational lyrics so easy to relate to. Celebratory? Yes, but with two sides of the same coin: "I'm feeling rough, I'm feeling raw, I'm in the prime of my life"..."I'll miss the boredom and the freedom and the time spent alone."




2. Air France - Collapsing At Your Doorstep



We all know by now that the Swedes are the best in making luminous pop music. But this? This piece of aural fantasy not only beat real sunshine at its game but it was even able to transport us to the most amazing places. The best to do was just to let ourselves go while the song's lyrics translated our thoughts: "This place is amazing"..."Sort of like a dream? No. Better."




1. Bag Raiders - Shooting Stars



What can I say? I'm a sucker for songs based upon involving keyboards and delayed gratification, something this one does so perfectly that it really seems like, hum, riding a shooting star. And nothing beats the feeling of euphoria induced when the best chorus of the year finally kicks in at more than two thirds into the song. "I'm in love with a shooting star, but she moves so fast, when she falls here, I'll be waiting."

Polaroids # 19

MGMT at the Alive!08 Festival







(Pictures taken on the 10th of July 2008 in Algés, Lisbon)

Home Videos # 11

MGMT - Of Moons, Birds & Monsters (live)



Apart from a couple of more immediate songs, the atmosphere of Oracular Spectacular could be difficult to translate into a live concert, but MGMT did not disappoint at all. Playing with a full live band, no concessions were made as they reinforced the psychedelic elements heard in their music, with an hypnotic set full of 70's progressive rock influences. Still, the best moment came in the end when the rest of the band left the stage, leaving Andrew and Ben alone to perform the infectious "Kids" like there was no tomorrow, on top of a pre-recorded instrumental track.


Vampire Weekend - Campus (live)



Late afternoon, sunny and warm weather, smaller tent, it was the perfect set for these guys catchy african-influenced indie pop songs. Visibly having as much fun as the rest of us, their energy and positive vibes were absolutely contagious, making it completely impossible for the audience to stand still and not starting to jump like maniacs.


(filmed on the 10-07-2008 at the Alive!08 Festival in Algés, Lisbon)

Music Videos # 72

MGMT - Electric Feel (interactive video)



Keeping on with the MGMT moment that I've totally been living lately, here's the video for "Electric Feel", a crazy song that is some sort of reinterpretation of Beck circa "Midnight Vultures", which itself was a reinterpretation of many things but mostly vintage Prince. Never ones to do it the simple way, the clip shown above is actually just one out its "625 to the 229th power" possible versions. How come? Interactivity, kids! You too can play with all the psychedelic colors and badass effects, letting your creativity flow, hum, randomly. To do so, just download the interactive video music game here and start pushing those buttons.

MGMT - Oracular Spectacular

Signed to Sony/Columbia Records, MGMT (diminutive for Management) are a rare case of risk-taking in a time when most major-labels have given up and are just making safe-bets to survive. And how did they get here? Two young Brooklyn guys, a home-made record ("Time To Pretend EP", out in 2005) and, all of a sudden, being in the studio to record their first full-length album accompanied by Flaming Lips music producer Dave Fridmann and becoming everyone's new favourite band (as they're about to). It must have been exciting for them and, thankfully, we can also totally feel it when hearing this album, full of that contagious and sincere enthusiasm that is so special. An amalgamation of disparate references and influences (glam-rock, electro, psych-folk, funk, 1970's prog...), "Oracular Spectacular" has an intense and epic feeling from start to end that is, quite simply, breathtaking. Full of catchy pop melodies as rarely-heard before and loaded with vicious hooks and intricate structures, the rule must have basically been "everything goes!" to create a brand-new universe inspired in mythological figures and the eternal-youth potion. And finally, an extra bonus: amongst all the wonderful melodic bricolage and risky experimentation, there are at least two songs that have everything to become generational anthems (no kidding here!). Have a listen to the synth-loaded "Kids" and the intense hello-we're-here moment that is "Time To Pretend" and feel the goosebumps. Blinding! (9/10)

MGMT - Time To Pretend (video)



"This is our decision, to live fast and die young / We've got the vision, now let's have some fun."

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