Track Listing

1. Time To Pretend
2. Weekend Wars
3. Youth
4. Electric Feel
5. Kids
6. 4th Dimensional Transition
7. Pieces Of What
8. Of Moons Birds And Monsters
9. Handshake
10. Future Reflections
11. Electric Feel

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #351 in Music
• Released on: 2008-03-10
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Enhanced, Explicit Lyrics
• Dimensions: .12 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
The term Oracular Spectacular might not mean much, if anything, at all--it's essentially nonsensical--but that doesn't stop it feeling exactly right. Here is a band that treats dizzy cross-eyed awe and a vast bounding sense of sonic weightlessness as their yardstick, jostling to surpass themselves on a track-by-track basis and aiming for the musical equivalent of performing somersaults in tye-dye t-shirts off the rings of Jupiter. MGMT seemingly submit this debut album as an application to acquire and even supersede The Flaming Lips' previously uncontested mantle as spiritual leaders of over-sized Technicolor psychedelic-indie with a soul, weird but not so weird that swelling crowds and even flirtations with the charts aren't a foregone conclusion. "Time to Pretend" opens and sets a tone for the record, producer David Fridmann (Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev) providing a familiar expanse for them to riff across with bull's-eye synths, massive drums and their twist on the template--retro 80s electro and abstract shapes, see Suicide and the Talking Heads for reference. "The Youth" is centred around a hypnotically looping refrain that recalls Pink Floyd and David Bowie, as interpreted by a mellow Secret Machines and the brilliant "Pieces of What" is Ryan Adams spinning through cosmos with classic Neil Young on his headphones. "Future Reflections" meanwhile stand on its hands on a line somewhere in-between XTC and Ween. Thrillingly eclectic, endlessly colourful and never predictable. It's all a bit ridiculous, but indeed spectacularly so. --James Berry

CD Description
'Oracular Spectacular' is the debut full-length studio album from New York's MGMT. Taking influence from Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev and the Beach Boys amongst others, this is an infectious and uplifting, modern psychedelic indie rock recordfilled with stomping anthems and irresistible harmonies. Includes the single 'Time To Pretend'.

Customer Reviews

'we've got the vision, now let's have some fun'
Along with Vampire Weekend MGMT have been garnering plenty of praise and column inches for their debut album Oracular Spectacular. The music press seems to have it all sewn up at the moment, we're told at the beginning of the year which bands are going to be big and we dutifully go out and buy the albums and hey presto they're big (until the second album comes along usually) so do MGMT measure up?

Well the album gets off to a thumping start. Time to Pretend with its heavy synths and drums makes their intentions clear: to live fast and die young, 'Let's make some music/Make some money/Get some models for wives'. It's not just hedonistic excess though. The Youth is a call to arms filled with optimism about change which brings in strings to its arm waving chorus. As a Prince fan I was very pleased to hear his influence all over the funky Electric Feel.

The rest of the album is soaked in 1970's influences like Bowie, The Rolling Stones, prog rock and lots of others that I'm far too young to name accurately so your enjoyment of this album may depend on how much you liked them the first time around. Produced by Mercury Rev's Dave Fridmann it has a wide soundscape filled with warmth and depth. But most importantly it is filled with invention, humour and the vigour of youth ( having seem them on telly the other day they look about 15 years old, god I'm getting old).

synthesis
Completely agree with some of the other reviews, very strong influences from Bowie, Stranglers and perhaps even The Who. Awesome use of drums and bass which really complements some of the soft or subtle electro sounds.

Great band to start 2008 with, got the album the other day and can't stop listening to the songs. Every song on the album has something interesting about it.

Five Star Quality! Machine Gun Mountain!
What is it with all these four star reviews?
Shame on you. Unclog your ears and you'll see that if there is any justice at all these guys will be the Strokes/Franz Ferdinand of 2008 because they are better than either of them.
Unlike many other 'hot new things' these guys more than justify any attendant hype.

I saw them on 'Later' and ordered the album the next day. I hoped it would be good but didn't expect it to be this good. This is the first band in a while that truly manage to produce perfect pop and remain effortlessly cool. As other reviewers have stated, there are slew of discernible influences in their music, if you choose to go looking for them, but no particular artist or era stands out as a primary source.

This is that rare thing an album of potent musical quality that provides instantly catchy but durable pop music(I loved this album from the start and it's still getting better with every play).If you like music you should own this already.