Reviews (page 11 of 14)
Sind natürlich alle Klassiker drauf aber am Ende find ich’s nicht so spektakulär
good not the best 1st album better
Can't wait for the Kids needledrop in a post-college movie set in 2007 2.5
Never listened to the entire thing, But I recognized the hits. I really enjoyed the 60s/70s psychedelic influences. I can see why this album is popular, but not my thing.
Het materiaal op 'Oracular Spectacular' staat echt in m'n psyche gegrift. Een weird, psychedelic pop album uit 2007.. het kon ook niet anders dan dat dit album zou blijven kleven tijdens m'n jeugdige jaren. Ik zeg expliciet 'het materiaal op', en niet 'het album', omdat ik moet toegeven dat vooral kantje één zich diep in m'n muzikale bagage heeft genesteld. Door de jaren heen kreeg ik echter steeds meer middelen ter beschikking om deze 'jeugdplaat' te relativeren, door het te spiegelen aan ander werk in het genre en hun eigen latere albums, en daardoor ben ik wel íéts gematigder positief. Ik vind het bij vlagen kinderwerk vergeleken met later spul van ze, maar die onbevangenheid is natuurlijk ook wel echt de pull-factor van deze plaat. Los van dat ik er zelf fijne herinneringen van een zorgeloze jeugd bij heb, zijn songs als 'Time to Pretend' en 'Kids' wonderlijk nostalgisch, en zullen ze intergenerationeel warme gevoelens oproepen. Grappig dat ik nu bij een volledige luisterbeurt op volwassen leeftijd (ik moet zelfs toegeven dat ik - ondanks dat hij hier in de kast staat - 'Oracular Spectacular' mogelijk nog nooit in zijn totaliteit heb geluisterd sinds het bereiken van die volwassenheid) toch twee andere conclusies trek. Kantje één is - hoe warm, melancholisch en nostalgisch de emoties ook zijn - níét per se de enige 'star of the show', en kantje twee geeft veel meer weg over hun toekomstige pad naar een volwassen psychedelic/baroque pop sound. Met 'Electric Feel' en 'Kids' staan de meest pakkende en aantrekkelijke songs uit hun discografie op de eerste zijde, maar ik moet toch concluderen dat songs als '4th Dimensional Transition' en (vooral de outro van) 'Of Moons, Birds & Monsters' meer aanhaken bij de sound van de albums na deze, die ik bij vlagen toch ietsjes hoger heb zitten. Maar de consistentie van kant één is wel een stuk hoger, en zorgt blij vlagen voor een after diner dip tijdens de gezapige momenten op de achterzijde. Eindoordeel is dat de tijd deed leren dat dit misschien niet dat oppermachtige, megalomane album binnen de alternative pop scene was, wat ik wel een tijdje dacht, maar dat de tijd ook deed leren dat nostalgie een sterke emotie is. Heb genoten van andere momenten die me destijds zijn ontgaan, maar de verdomde 'overdraaide' earworms van kant één blijven toch weer het meest hangen. 7,5/10 Highlights: Weekend Wars Electric Feel Kids 4th Dimensional Transition
It sounds mainstream, I don't know how to explain it. Ant the sounds get repetitive after few tracks. Anyway is ok
Decent. 3/5
I just found this inoffensive. Nothing to annoy or inspire just a middle of the road something / nothing. I knew the first song well and that was the peak straight away so it just fell away after that. I dont even know what this is but to me just electro pop or something. Not my world. 2 would be harsh and 3 would be generous. So there we go!
Those three songs (I don’t need to name them, but just in case: time to pretend, electric feel, and kids) were inescapable in 2007-08. I think I even saw these guys at Lollapalooza around then. And, as I remembered, the rest of the album is just okay. Between a 3 and a 4 on the strength of those three songs and some scattered nice moments, but I think ultimately a 3 reflects the whole of the album more accurately.
Congratulations is better Will I listen to again: 50%
Solid album. 3 songs that are 5s but the rest doesn’t hold up to those 3. Great change of pace to everything else that was being released at the time. 3.75
👾
Nice pop-alternative listening.
Poppy electronic goodness, very synth very cool, and a whole bunch of guys on it, well done haha
The album's massive hits stick out like a thumb (for the better), compared with the rest of the album which is just decent indie rock with nice electronic elements.
The electronic more popular songs were great but everything else was mid
I'm fairly certain you could consider Electric Feel a disco song. I like the awkward vocal style of the lead singer, it adds an endearing, sincere quality to the music. The hits are very synth heavy, but alot of the other songs here are oddly folky.
The singles are undoubtedly stone cold classics of the time but always felt it more difficult to get into the rest of the record.
OK, didnt really catch my attention and was quite samey
I had this album and just got rid of it, oddly enough, a couple of weeks ago. I kept four tracks: "Time to Pretend", "Kids", "Electric Feel", Of Moons, Birds & Monsters". The rest just kind of left me 'meh'. I think the rest of this record and future records had them alternating between trying to recapture the magic of their hits, and experiment like their heroes did. Neither effort quite succeeded. These few songs, though, worked for me on many levels and pushed this record up to 3 stars.
Inte nåt särskilt. Trea
Oracular Spectacular boasts some of the biggest radio hits that effectively blend indie pop and electronica. Time To Pretend, Kids, and Electric Feel seemed to soundtrack the late 2000s with it's pretty electronic textures and modern psychedelic influence. Aside from the hits, the album doesn't do much to impress me. The back half especially feels like there isn't much going on.
Tiene 2 canciones nada mas en lo que a mi respecta
Familiar with the hits Kids but have never listened to their albums not a bad listen to be fair after several mediocre albums and worth adding to my Spotify for future can't believe its 2007 tho
There are a few tracks that I really enjoy, but not all.
The three hit singles are supremely annoying, mostly thanks to their repetitive, squeaky keyboard riffs. The rest is actually quite decent.
Good album
Was not sure if this was hard rock or synth pop depending on the song
Another completely unknown band for me. Nice tunes. Good album overall.
I remember the singles quite well from my youth. This really was a hot time for these indie/electronica acts, was it? The production and catchy electronic compositions stand out, but so too do the strange lyrics. I guess the latter was normal for this genre. Anyway, the singles (Time to Pretend, Electric Feel, Kids) absolutely carry this album, as the latter half doesn't reach nearly the same heights. What did impress me was the fact that the duo of VanWyngarden and Goldwasser pretty much did it all here, as both were the only personnel involved with the production & composition. That's worth something at least. Mid to high 3.
4th Dimensional Transition was a little anxiety-inducing for me, so I couldn't listen all the way through Pieces of What was the second song I didn't much care for Pretty good otherwise! 3.5
Не моё
songs i like: time to pretend, the youth, electric feels, kids
Album art:4
I love how this record captures a nostalgic sound and vibe. However, aside from the big hits, it didn’t connect with me all that much.
Sure cool. This is already in my playlist gimme something NEW!!!!
Kids is a banger obviously. The rest are a little bit soulless…
This is #day166 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and… well, modern indie. I've heard "Time to Pretend," "Youth," and "Kids" at some point. Listening to this record begs the question: does this music have such lasting power to deserve a spot on the list? Yeah, it's kind of well put together, blending genres and styles from various decades, but there's nothing memorable aside from the three cuts I've mentioned. I was going to give this a 2, but let it be a 3 out of 5. Looking forward to #day167.
While not my favorite genre or band I can't deny how much this changed the sound of pop/electronic music in the US for a couple of years. Some good earworms in there, I think this album will stay enjoyable and relevant for a while.
Easy and fun listen, and the hits are nostalgic. A good project with a lot more layered production than I first imagined. Best song: Electric Feel Worst song: 4th Dimensional Transition Cover check: They dressed well for the party
Mediocre writing, would listen to once but not anything I feel I need to go back to
High and lows
3/5
Had heard the hits (which were the most enjoyable part of this for me) but the rest was still fun to listen to. Not jumping up to go listen to their next album
- hat mir ganz gut gefallen, mich aber nicht komplett umgehauen - Kids ist "witzigerweise" das zweite Lied, das ich jemals bei Spotify in meine Lieblingssongs aufgenommen habe (so früh, dass nicht mal ein Datum dransteht, aber es muss 2014 oder vorher gewesen sein, denn das dritte Lied ist "Wicked Ways" von Eminem und das wurde am 10. April 2014 hinzugefügt)
Only enjoyed the songs I know
Like Wikipedia says.
A really enjoyable album for my Sunday morning walk along the beach but for the rest of my life I doubt it would reappear
Bon petit album, rien de fou mais ça s'écoute gentiment
The big name songs are hard to enjoy at this point but the in-between songs are actually quite enjoyable, if a little lackluster
Not bad
I apparently know MGMT tracks already! But I can't stand this style of singing. The tracks tend to run together. Might be too gay for this.
To be fair I had to listen to this one twice. I have never heard of this band before. I can hear the Bowie influences here as well as funk. It was an enjoyable listen, although somewhat repetitive at times. I will listen to this again.
Meh
It was a middle of the road album. They are not bad, but not great either.
I had heard of them before. The lyrics were meh along with the style
The bridge between Millennial music and Gen Z music. Knew some of these songs from my childhood/middle school years. The album sounds nice well produced. Dude’s voice does not however so that dampens the enjoyability a bit. Also some of these song were super overplayed. Lyrics are kinda dumb too imo.
Has some classic songs. Glad I listened to it at least once the whole way through. They wrote it as young people with disdain for the world they live in. I wonder how they feel now? Weekend Wars was a standout with its David Bowie type vocals. The “hope then it all sucks” approach was a mixed bad. Some ideas landed and many didn’t. I like when they leaned into the fun musicality. They had better success with the dark lyrics and the levity of the music. The funky danceable stuff was nice.
Never really liked them
Ok Album, has 3 good songs others ok Best song : Kids
The gap between singles and album tracks has never been larger, makes the klaxon album look consistent. Time to pretend, electric feel and kids are so good, some of the best songs from that noughties electro-indie era. I don't think there was another song I actually enjoyed from this, let alone came close to those three. The other tracks almost sound like a different album, much more guitar focused but in a really drab way 2.5, but that is really based on the singles.
One amazing song. The rest is meh
I would have sworn that I hadn’t heard anything by this band, but then the track Kids kicked in with an infectious beat and hooked me in. This has a fun, glam, 70s vibe, reminding me somewhat of Sparks in it’s variety although the vocalist is nowhere near a match for Russell Mael when he attempts a falsetto on Of Moons, Birds and Monsters. A promising debut album that has put them on my listening radar.
I enjoyed this more than I was expecting to. Catchy tunes that manage to have a little depth. Solid album.
Overrated, overhyped and an outsized ‘impact’ on today’s music.
The tracks that incorporate electronic elements carry more intrigue than the more traditionally rock sounding songs. More of the former would benefit this album.
I was surprised how many songs I was familiar with. Not so much that I like them, but I don’t hate them, either. It’s an okay album and I didn’t mind too much listen to it, but I don’t see even intentionally listening to it again.
not the kind of music i usually listen to, but it was a solid album. time to pretend and kids were already on my regular rotation, and honestly, they were the only songs i enjoyed enough to keep listening to. the others were good too, just not my taste. i might’ve enjoyed electric feel if it weren’t for the electric feel incident….. these guys are talented though! 3/5 for me
3.5 stars
Some really good with a couple bleh songs. 3.5
3 out of 5. Middle of the road for me.
Gear: Meze 109 PRO Artwork: 🩳🏝️🩳 Production: 🎧😐🆗 Music: 🍄🎨🌈 Rating: 🩳🩳🩳(🩳)/5
Never listened to this before but somehow know all of the songs. Flaming Lips esque
Had 2 huge hits, rest of the album is pretty good, worth another listen
Songs i knew:2 Songs i like: 2 Decent album, starts well and tails off after about halfway through. Not a bad debut album at all from these lads. Low 3.
Early 2000’s indie bangers don’t come much more indie-y, banger-y or early 2000-y than this. Time to Pretend and Kids are incredible little pop tunes. Remind me of more carefree times. They’re the sound of walking past a wine bar at Glastonbury that’s blasting tunes and a crowd breaking into impromptu dance at 3 in the morning. Can’t honestly say I’ve ever actually listened to the rest of the album until now. It’s pretty different from those singles, more chamber pop-y on Weekend Wars and The Youth, then goes all 60’s prog rock in 4th Dimensional Transition and Of Birds, Moons and Monsters. To be fair, they had to be a bit proggy with titles like those. Enjoyed this overall, but it loses its way a bit in the latter half.
Don’t think I ever actually listened to this all the way through. Time to Pretend was inescapable in the mid 00’s and with good reason. It slaps and was nice to revisit. This album feels like they had a couple of smash hit singles which didn’t quite represent them fully so the rest of the album is a weird mix of poppy-proggy numbers which probably explains why they didn’t continue their rapid rise. Bit like other mid 00s indie also-rans like Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Foxygen, Cymbals Eat Guitars and many many others. Highlights: Time to Pretend Weekend Wars Electric Feel Kids 4th Dimensional Transition The Handshake Lowlights: Everything was fine, even if it does trail a bit towards the end (picks up with The Handshake) Didn’t hate anything which I kind of half expected to. Strange album. Feels like they had a poptastic hitmaker on board for their big singles but could only afford them for them and had to do the rest themselves. Made me listen to Foxygen - We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic again which I love so thats a good thing.
I've gone through the stages of hating MGMT because they're new and everywhere, being ambivalent towards them because of their continued success, and finally, accepting them as a good alt pop band. "Time to Pretend", has somehow gotten better as years go by. I'm starting to notice touches of Bowie and Burne, disco and country, oh so many influences, all packaged into a 2000's hipster duo's debut. I'm glad I came around to them eventually. While I wouldn't say it's one of my favorites, this album absolutely deserves to be on this list.
7/10 Highlights: Kids Time to Pretend The Youth
Pretty good just not that monumental to me.
This is not good, and it's not bad, it's just OK. Time to Pretend is the absolute stand-out, and as the opener it just means everything else is not as good. Also, I can never not hear "That's a lovely bit of cheese, Grommit" in the chorus of Kids. This may or may not be a good thing.
Reminded me of Sparks. Enjoyed listening to the album. Favourite track Electric Feel
Heidän pyrkimyksensä kirjoittaa hitti tai pari suojelee heitä heidän luontaiselta progemaisuudeltaan.
3. Not my bag but decent album.
Liked this album. New band for me.
Boogies i Odense
første 5 numre, fine nok. taber kraftigt pulsen. Unge priviligerede boys
The hits are great (especially "Kids"), but the album feels like it's pulling in two different directions. Sometimes it works, but a lot of the non-hits are mediocre imitations of better bands, and that sort of thing isn't in MGMT's wheelhouse. I know they didn't like the hits and wanted to do something else, but this ain't it.
I don't know if I'd use the word "spectacular" but this album was pretty good.
I like some of it but there’s a disparity between what was commercially successful and the rest of the album (kids vs. the youth, imo). It does feel out of place though. There was a lot of this more electro-alternative coming up around this time, and I’m not sure MGMT is quite so formative for that genre
I enjoyed this a lot more than I expected to! I was a bit glum and it was just the right combination of upbeat vibes and familiar hits. Just goes to show that I should stop judging albums by their covers because this cover is shit!
The album is ok, but the singles have been so overplayed over the years that I didn't really enjoy the album. I think it deserves to be on the list, but not a huge fan on the full listen through personally
Pleasant electronic pop music. Pretty slick. Good debut album but lacking any real feeling.
It’s ok
I didn't realize I hadn't listened to this whole album before. It's not bad. I'm still not a huge fan though.
Indie pop, but still just pop. Three songs I obviously already knew. It's alright, but nothing too remarkable for me.
Good pop lines - does not talk to me
An interesting sound, but it feels very dated.
There are a couple songs I adore on this album, but other than that it feels pretty mid. Disjointed, even.
Had never heard this happen before It's a good one
78 kg... huhhuh.. aamutuimaan ja alasti. kannattaa varoa... kylillä kulkee tankki... päästäkää tämä hirmu läpi... väistäkää tai metalli mötkö painaa päälle.. rautaritarin eteen ei kannata jäädä nuokkumaan.. 2024 sykähdyttävimmät urheiluhetket: jättihirviö body builder pistää juoksuksi keskellä toria, täysillä vetoja vaam.. miten on mahdollista olla tuommoinen , atleetti... albumi meediumi. 2000 luvun lörppäilyä kivaliva.. hittejä hittejä... peliservuilla kuultu kids duu du du du duuuduuduuduu daaaaaa daaaaaa... increbile melody. melodical concept, ideas out of the wazoo... ja omg niin true lyriikat myös 4thndimensional transu
22/10/24 The album was nothing special, bang average and slow.
This one is melancholic; electro music with futuristic yet retro vibes. Favorite songs were Time to Pretend and Kids.
As the kids would say, this is mid
Not entirely what I was expecting from the cover image, but pleasantly surprised. The opening track is quite psychedelic, a theme that is maintained. However, this isn't your traditional 60's psychedelia, while it still gives a nod to the past, the sounds are still pretty much of the present utilising modern synths and production. In parts their sound is occassionally reminiscent of the Amorphorous Androgynous and Seeds of love era Tears for Fears also springs to mind, although there's definitely some 70's funkiness going on (Electric Feel) and "The Handshake" has a bit of a Sparks sort of fell to it. overall not an unpleasant album and I will give it a second listen. If there is one criticism is that there's not really out and out banger of a track. Overall 7/10
Time to Pretend is a fantastic opener and Electric Feel and Kids makes this a really impressive debut, but overall nothing too moving for me
You can hear Dave Fridman's production. It's like a synthy poppy junior Flaming Lips.
this album is kinda wild. Almost half of the songs off this album were massive radio hits / bangers. That being said... the other songs on the album fell very flat. I loved the songs I recognized, but didn't enjoy the other songs on the album. Definitely wouldn't do a full listen through of this album again, but am glad I listened to it.
I thought I had never heard of these guys, but there were several super famous absolute bangers on here. There was some variety which was good, but some of the songs were kind of snoozers.
No song takes me right back to high school like Time to Pretend, and there aren’t many songs that hit close to home like it does in adulthood. This album wasn’t bad but it wasn’t great either, the hits standout well above the rest. I definitely see the influence this album has though, I would even guess we don’t get Gambino’s Awaken, My Love without this album being made.
yeah, i always meant to listen to more MGMT than just little dark age over and over again. my one qualm is i think it would sound better if they sang in a more serious way more of the time. less frivolity!
This is pretty good and creative music, but it also gives me terrible flashbacks of wandering through department stores with my mom back in the late 2000s. (I tried to ignore that when listening.) I like the modern pop take on the "wall of sound" technique. A chorus of vocalists and light synths that, individually, aren't anything impressive – but as a group, they sound bright, heroic, unified. It's hard to describe. But the best tracks are the ones that embrace this fresh, modern sound, including Time to Pretend, Kids, and Of Moons, Birds & Monsters. There were exactly two tracks – Pieces of What and Future Reflections – that were noticeably worse than the others simply because they stopped committing to this "choral"/wall-of-sound technique, and it became more obvious that these musicians aren't nearly as good as their smokescreening might suggest. This was especially noticeable in the vocal, which was wavery and technically bad when it was by itself. In other tracks, like Weekend Wars, the instrumental was uplifting and well-mixed enough to mitigate the poor solo singing. (Is this being a little harsh? Maybe.) 3/5 Key tracks: Kids, Time to Pretend, Electric Feel, Of Moons Birds & Monsters
Couple og good tracks Kids and Time to Pretend otherwise sub arcade fire. Just okay.
Il y a des albums, dans cette liste infernale des "1001", qui se présentent comme des évidences. Des monuments intouchables, des piliers sur lesquels des chapelles entières de la musique se sont construites. Et puis, il y a les autres, les phénomènes de mode, les étoiles filantes, les coqueluches d'une époque précise qui, une fois le soufflé retombé, vous laissent avec un goût étrange dans la bouche. Un goût de "tout ça pour ça ?". MGMT et leur "Oracular Spectacular" se rangent sans l'ombre d'un doute dans cette seconde catégorie. Que celui qui a réussi à passer à côté du tsunami MGMT en 2008 lève la main. Personne ? C'est bien ce que je pensais. C'était impossible car de la radio de supermarché au blog du hipster le plus pointu de Brooklyn, ces deux-là étaient partout. On nous les a vendus comme les nouveaux sauveurs de la pop, les héritiers de Bowie et de Prince, les porte-étendards d'une jeunesse décomplexée qui avait enfin trouvé sa bande-son. Un buzz, un vrai, comme seul l'Internet naissant savait en fabriquer. Et moi, vieux con né en 1970, qui ai découvert mes groupes sur des fanzines photocopiés et des radios pirates qui crachotaient, je regardais ça avec la méfiance d'un chat face à une porte automatique. La machine à hype était en marche, et elle tournait à plein régime. Alors, j'ai posé le disque sur la platine, enfin, j'ai cliqué sur "play", on est en 2008 après tout. Et la première chose qui frappe, il faut bien le reconnaître, c'est l'efficacité. Une efficacité redoutable, chirurgicale. "Time to Pretend" déboule avec son arrogance adolescente et sa mélodie synthétique qui s'incruste dans le cerveau pour ne plus jamais en sortir. C'est l'hymne parfait pour une génération qui rêve de gloire facile et de mort prématurée, le tout sur un ton faussement ironique. Le cahier des charges est rempli à la perfection. Puis vient "Electric Feel", autre tube interplanétaire, avec sa ligne de basse funky et son refrain qui sent bon les soirées d'été un peu trop arrosées. Et bien sûr, "Kids". Ah, "Kids"... Ce riff de synthé, si simple, si évident, si... putain d'agaçant à force de l'entendre partout. C'est le genre de mélodie qui aurait pu être composée par un enfant de cinq ans sur un Casio, et c'est probablement là que réside son génie commercial. Le problème, c'est que derrière cette façade de tubes imparables, j'ai eu du mal à trouver une substance, une âme. Tout me semble calculé, calibré pour plaire. C'est de la pop psychédélique, nous dit-on. Psychédélique ? Vraiment ? Je ne veux pas être méchant, mais le psychédélisme de MGMT ressemble plus à un filtre Instagram qu'à une véritable exploration des tréfonds de la conscience. C'est coloré, c'est rigolo, ça fait des petites vagues, mais ça ne retourne jamais le cerveau. On sent les influences, bien sûr. Un peu de glam par-ci, une pincée de disco-funk par-là, un soupçon de pop baroque à la Flaming Lips... C'est un melting-pot bien exécuté, mais qui manque cruellement de danger, de folie, de cette étincelle qui fait qu'un album vous marque au fer rouge. Passé le trio de tête des singles, l'album s'égare un peu. On sent que les deux branleurs de Brooklyn ont des idées, qu'ils tentent des trucs comme sur "The Youth" ou "Of Moons, Birds & Monsters", mais ça manque de colonne vertébrale. On passe d'une ambiance à l'autre sans véritable fil conducteur, comme si on zappait entre différentes playlists. C'est un album qui a été conçu pour l'ère du mp3, du "shuffle". On picore les tubes, on oublie le reste. Où est la cohérence d'un "Disintegration" ? Où est l'urgence d'un "Unknown Pleasures" ? Nulle part. On est dans le divertissement pur, la bande-son d'une époque qui a peur du silence et de l'ennui. Et puis, il y a ce ton, cette distance ironique, ce cynisme cool qui parcourt tout le disque. C'est peut-être ça qui me dérange le plus. La musique que j'aime, celle qui me fait vibrer, elle est viscérale. Chez MGMT, tout est sous contrôle, on fait semblant d'être des rock stars décadentes ("Time to Pretend"), mais on sent bien que c'est une posture, un jeu. Il n'y a pas de sang sur les murs, pas de larmes sur la console de mixage. Juste deux types très malins qui ont compris comment fabriquer la pop parfaite pour 2008. En fin de compte, "Oracular Spectacular" est un album qui porte bien son nom : il est spectaculaire en surface, mais son contenu reste un oracle difficile à déchiffrer, peut-être parce qu'il n'y a pas grand-chose à y lire. C'est le reflet parfait d'une génération : talentueuse, hyper-référencée, douée pour la synthèse, mais qui a parfois du mal à trouver sa propre voix, sa propre vérité. C'est un disque brillant, mais froid. Un feu d'artifice qui illumine le ciel un instant avant de s'éteindre sans laisser de traces, si ce n'est le souvenir de quelques belles couleurs. Pour la jeunesse de 2008, c'est sans doute un 5/5. Pour le vieux disquaire que je suis, qui a vu passer des centaines de "prochains grands trucs", ça ne vaut pas plus qu'un petit 3/5. Un album pour son époque, mais pas pour la mienne.
Never heard this before. The music is fine with a good variety throughout the album. But nothing resonates with me.
This disappointed me. I remember MGMT bursting onto the scene when I was a teenager and, while it's still decent, it hasn't really stood the test of time. "Time to Pretend" and "Kids" are still impressive, but the album as a whole didn't.
Oracular Spectacular is undeniably a singles-driven album, with some standout bangers like Time to Pretend, Kids, and Electric Feel that quickly became iconic. These tracks are infectious and captivating, showcasing the duo's knack for catchy hooks and vivid production. However, as a whole piece of work, the album doesn’t quite maintain the same momentum. Some of the deeper tracks feel less cohesive and lack the immediate impact of the singles. While there’s plenty of creativity and experimentation throughout, the album can feel a bit uneven in its pacing and direction. That said, the high points are strong enough to make Oracular Spectacular memorable, even if it doesn't fully hit its stride from start to finish. It’s an album with flashes of brilliance, best appreciated for its standout moments. NUMBER OF BANGERS - 3 STAND OUT TRACK - Time to Pretend
The singles are great, but everything else really isn't. Also this reminds me of all the annoying stoners I know that dress like the album art.
Somebody listened to a lot of David Bowie.
A fun laidback vibe beginning to end. Kids was one of those songs I’ve heard a million times but now finally know the name of. Good stuff here.
Cool...I guess... doesn't really do it for me...3
Best Song: Electric Feel. A bit overplayed, but the rolling rhythm is really nice. Worst Song: Pieces of What. This album absolutely did not need an acoustic Brit-rock song in the middle. Overall: Really feels like (at least) two incompatible albums here. You've got the pop-electronic first half that's decently catchy, but then it just kind of devolves into random, more experimental directions that never feel all that purposeful. Would have preferred that they had stuck with what worked in the first half.
Some good tracks for sure. Each track, however, was so different from the others. At times it was a bit disorienting, like “Who am I actually listening to?” Enjoyed it for the most part
Three big singles here, but a lot of the rest of this just washed over me. I had higher hopes. I'd revisit this, but sometimes the hits are the hits for a reason. The closer was pretty decent though. Best tracks: Time to Pretend and Kids.
have a really hot and cold relationship with this band... i liked them when i was a kid and then HATED them, when I was dating rowan she was a really big fan and I never got it but then their Little Dark Age album reallllly connected with me.. and I still think its a really wonderful album, but that might be sorta where my fandom starts and ends... altho there are some really great tracks on this album and Congratulations.. none really connect or reach the heights of LDA...
Famous songs: Kids Time to Pretend
Some highlights and bright bits musically but overall I found this tepid. Cognitively I can see this may be important in the transition through the 90s-today, but it leaves my soul asking me to get back to music with feeling, please (my soul has good manners). I’ll post this in my conversational brain under “music to pull out so that my decade(s) younger friends think I’m still relevant”. And how the fu k do these guys have 80x more listeners than Ozomatli?! If there was a “2.5” rating, but 3 it is
Listened to this quite a bit when it first came out and is an album that I always forget about. When I remember and put it on I always enjoy it- just positive sounding, upbeat great songs. Definitely captures the 2007 vibe.
I had no idea this was considered such an important album in music history but sure. It's hard to hear this for what it is since it's so strongly associated with a very specific Vibe from being a tween/teen during the time following its release but I can totally see how Music Appreciators could've found this to be a really interesting and pioneering album. I've listened to a lot of 60s psychedelic rock lately for one of my other ~listening challenges~ (specifically Jefferson Airplane, Love, 13th Floor Elevators, etc.) and hearing this album after those definitely makes me appreciate the evolution (or maybe even reinvention) of that sound for the digital age, and for a totally different audience. None of the non-singles particularly stood out to me. I think that's partially because it's hard to truly assess those songs when they're up against ones with which I have such a strong familiarity, but I also think the singles just had that oomph factor that made them so iconic that the others, despite being interesting, didn't quite have. Fav tracks: kids, electric feel
Enjoyable elctro pop with a hint of chart ready weirdness.
I enjoyed both halves in different ways.
Only the hits are good
Easy and fun listen, and the hits are nostalgic! A good project with a lot more layered production than I first imagined.
High 3 or low 4
While I quite like some of the tracks on this, it's not exactly a faultless album. Could do with maybe 3 fewer tracks. On the plus side, it's a direction in the mid-late 2000s away from the godawful pap that was dominant at the time, so it has that in its favour.
Repeat. Nothing about the album, but the algorithm messed up ~80 albums in.
Stand out tracks - TTP, kids and electric feel. Three really good tunes. The rest were fillers.
Oracular Spectacular? More like Oracular Just Pretty Good. I say as the gates of hell swallow me up.
Just ok
Not bad for a pair from CT. Never been into their music but the album is decent. They do have their own style with some good electrobeats mixes. It just doesn't strike a chord with me overall. I like the non-radio tracks like "Weekend Wars" better than the hits that just got too played out. I want to see a where are they now of the kid from the "Kids" music video...2.65.
I hear these guys every other time I turn on Sirius XMU. I always thought -- "this is pretty decent, catchy stuff." So giving a whole album a listen -- my thought was "this is pretty decent, catchy stuff." Good upbeat background stuff. Quite a bit of filler -- but the highs (largely the hits -- Time to Pretend, Electric Feel, Kids) are better than average. Unexpected bangers: The Handshake, The Youth
Pleasing overall. I didn't really have the mental space to give it the attention it deserves.
Even though this felt like something that would play on an alternative rock radio station, I didn't hate it.
What I liked most about this album was the production. The layers and vocals make for a great feel. Even when talking about somewhat dark material as in Time to Pretend the music comes out upbeat and fresh.
Not bad! I enjoyed some of this.
Familiar even though I never listened much to them.
I recognized a couple tracks on here - original stuff, interesting, very listenable. Not great, but good stuff.
Some nice songs
2000s fifa soundtrack: the album
A very pleasant, original and danceable album. It put me in a happy, relaxed mood and my work definitely went much better ;-) And that's why I consider it very positive - as I've been listening to this list while working, it's very important how much an album helps me (or not!) get through the day :-)
Not bad, didn’t rly listen closely, maybe I’ll give it another rhn
I remember when this album came out, these guys were lauded as musical geniuses the likes of which we had never seen before. While that's definitely not true, the album isn't bad. It's kind of middle of the road mid-2000s pop alt. Kids is a good song although I kind of got sick of it from hearing it so much. Time to Pretend is solid as well. I feel like more than being musical geniuses, MGMT were better at knowing what kind of sound would sell at the time. The lyrics are pretty bad for the most part, but the songs are catchy in a 2007 kind of way. The second half of this album falls away and is completely forgettable. I feel like MGMT kind of came and went as the sound that they capitalized on faded away. Apparently they came out with a new album about 5 months ago (Feb 2024) and it only has a few million plays on Spotify. I've not heard any of it so can't really comment but I would imagine that true musical geniuses would get more than a couple million plays in 5 months. For this album, 3/5 is generous I suppose.
I think I would give this a 3.5 if possible, but I can't, so 3 it is. I was really excited to see this album on the list, seeing as I love thesingles from it. Time to Pretend, Kids, and Electric Feel absolutely slap, and, in my opinion, they carry the rest of the album. The second half of the album is unremarkable. Not terrible, but quite forgettable. TLDR; the singles will forever be in my rotation, but I'm skipping on the remainder of the album.
I generally like the MGMT songs I hear on the radio or in bars/restaurants. I think they have a pretty unique sound without being inaccessible. With that said, I think maybe I just only like their big hits. Time to Pretend, Electric Feel, Kids and maaaaaaybe Of Moons, Birds & Monsters were all good songs. I've heard the first three before and I like them. The last one was just "heavy" enough for me to like it. The songs on this album that are moodier or quiet don't really appeal to me. They turn the interesting voices and instruments that are their hallmark in to whines. It sort of makes me want to listen to some of their later stuff to see if it's the same. I like a few tracks off of "Little Dark Age" but if it's more of the same filler as this album then maybe it's not worth the time. This album is here for the uniqueness of the sound (which spawned a lot of garbage copies, I'm sure), which is good. It's an excellent combo of indie, electronic, disco, pop and lots of others. I can’t personally have a whole album of this though.
A mixed bag
Forgettable probs a inoffensive 3.75
Flash back! Summer vibes.
Some great songs on here but they don't hit the same at 40. I feel old.
This was fine. I was surprised I knew more of the songs than I thought I would from hearing them on the radio. The singles were probably my favorite songs, but I also enjoyed “Of Moons, Birds & Monsters.” Not sure if this really belongs on the list, but it was alright and enjoyable enough to listen to.
Was cool. Wouldn’t listen to it under other circumstances as I found it a bit repetitive at points and got bored but I still really liked it
If judged on the ear-worminess of their synth hooks this would be 5 stars, but the back half of the album is pretty boring.
irgendwie schon mal gehört?! kannte Time To Pretend, und der rest tönt schon ähnlich - aber ok. trotzdem/gerade deshalb nur 3/5.
I was familiar with a number of the singles, from KEXP, but never really put together that they were the same band. There were times it felt too Animal Collective for me, and sort of annoyed me. But, other times it reminded me of, say, The Pixies and it sort of clicks
Given this has 3 of the great tracks of that era on it I was looking forward to listening to the rest of it. I shouldn't have been, but the Electric Feel remains an all time great
for fun I let AI write my review: MGMT's "Oracular Spectacular" is a vibrant, psychedelic journey that seamlessly blends indie rock with electronic influences. Its standout tracks like "Time to Pretend" and "Kids" showcase the band's knack for catchy hooks and thought-provoking lyrics, making it a defining album of the late 2000s indie scene.
I luv this album sm Time to pretend makes me so nostalgic
I like some of this , not too crazy about the vocals. Has a kind of prog/ psychedelic feel
This is quite good. I tried to pretend I've never heard of them. (Tbh I didn't listen to 2000's pop). But found it quite enjoyable. Lots of progressive and psych elements
The album tracks are wildly different to the single tracks, which just gives it a 'filler' vibe
3.5/5
3.5 stars. "Kids" was featured in a FIFA game at some point, which has immortalized it in the consciousness of people who were kids or teens in the 2010s. It's crazy to think that this album came out in 2008, as it seemed to influence the indie rock sound for the next several years. I never really listened to the lyrics, amd they seem pretty abstract that I still don't understand these songs better. "Pieces of What" I feel like I almost get it. "The Handshake" is an interesting song that describes how making a deal, presumably with a record label, results in unfortunate outcomes. It's an interesting piece of indie rock music history.
I was excited to get this album because I already had a few songs downloaded from it that I love and was hoping to hear more good music but unfortunately I already had the only good ones downloaded
Although I didn't recognize the band's name, I realized as soon as I heard "Time to Pretend" that I'd heard (and enjoyed) them before, but not much more than their three hits ("Time to Pretend", "Electric Feel" and "Kids"). Sadly, the video for "Time to Pretend" is really painful and awkward, and almost makes me like the song less, until I read about how the inspiration for the song and video was from watching baby praying mantises crawl up this model ship in their dorm room while The Clash was playing.... Thankfully, the other two videos aren't as cringe-worthy, although what's with their lost-world-style gang of young white jungle people? "Kids" is by far the best song on the album, and almost gives them a 4-star rating by itself. Otherwise, though, a good/entertaining album, although not as distinctive as I'd hoped after hearing songs other than their hits. I *am* impressed that the album was created by just two guys, kind of like a 21st-century version of Pet Shop Boys (kind of).
3.5
skemmtilegt. slagararnir góðir. 3,5.
The big songs are big for a reason, but outside of those it’s a mid to bad album with some really low moments. The big 3 is really what saves this from being lower.
3 stars for Time to Pretend being a certified banger. The rest is mid
Cool poppy album with some huge hits on it
Carino, fruity, elettronico, pop, giovane, divertente. Mi irrita molto però il suono (non so come definirlo) della prima canzone. Sento solo quello, sarà per colpa di tiktok. Tra un 3 e un 4 per un pelo non darò un 4. Riconosco la bravura nel crearlo, ma non me la sento di dare un 4, non mi prende troppo.
The hits hit but everything else is forgetful.
Clearly some level of songwriting prowess on display, some great moments, absolutely REEKS of high school for me
paar goeie nummers, maar niet genoeg... enkele deden me denken aan syd barrett, wat altijd een plus is, maar deze kunnen de plaat niet redden
Wow, really good! I didn't fully appreciate MGMT when they first came out, but going back now is surprisingly delightful.
This is a good example of why you shouldn’t judge an album by its cover art. Looking at this, I was expecting “millennial bros make music whining about first world problems.” The end result was actually far more tolerable, albeit ordinary. Seriously, nothing here I haven’t heard before.
Fun for background dance music, but none of the songs stood out to me. 3.5
This is a good example of a popular sounding album. Good album, nice sound, easy to listen to. I wasn't overly blown away but they clearly know what they're doing. I wish I could have picked out a specific moment or song but most of it weaved together.
Some interesting choices. Has it's moments. Bowie influence is in here. Prince influence is in here. No longer on the list.
Good album knew quite a few songs, surprisingly
Time to pretend- sounds like a new 'hip and cool' Old Navy advertisement. weekend wars - dip can core. early bowie years sound. sounds like teeth melting but in a pleasant way (i love it) the youth - this isn't a song it's strangely whimsical video game bgm electric feel - i fuck with this song but only for like a minute. like im not gonna go look for it i will enjoy the vibes while its on kids - it's a classic and technically incredible however i am never happy to hear it 4th dimensional transmission - very art very cool but not great for just jamming to pieces of what - beautiful and jarring in like a violent femmes kinda way of moons, birds and monsters - this song sounds like it was made on and for psychedelics. plays like a smooth rollercoaster. fucking incredible guitar. the handshake - giving pink floyd the wall vibes. final act of an opera vibes. future reflections - sounds like a song that would play on the ending credits of a movie which is a super cool way to wrap up an album. This album really felt like it was calling back to the psychedelic 70's rock opera albums where it tells a story from start to finish. The experimental signature 'MGMT' sound tapers off toward the end so the last half of the album is less interesting. A great listen overall as an artistic experience, but not what i would just sit around and jam to. Favs: Of moons birds and monsters, weekend wars Least fav: 4th dimensional transmission
Album doesnt hit the same after you turn 30
Correcto.
A classic album from the 2000s. Found a couple of new songs I liked - 4th Dimensonal Transition and Of Moons, Birds & Monsters 365 Days has ruined Electric Feel for me a bit...I can't hear 'babygirl' without thinking of Massimo 🤢
75/100 Favourite Song: Electric Feel
The tracks that are well known off this album are well known for good reason, unfortunately the rest of the album is a bit uninspiring.
The 2 singles are interesting, but the rest is a a little meh.
Made writing a hit song look easy on some of these. Some songs are so-so though 3*
Pretty good
Too cool for school. Synth pop with a swagger. Nothing I'll come back to.
i understand the appeal, it’s just not totally my thing
Fun even though it’s kinda amateurish sometimes. I’m quite surprised how highly it’s rated on this site(well above the average album) when its merits are weaker than many of the albums rated below it.
Oh hey this one.
This album had some great tracks. This is pretty synth-heavy stuff, which works for them. However, the vocals were not for me. Maybe the singer has one of those voices that needs to grow on you — in fact, by the end of the album I had become accustomed to it, which made it a bit better. Like I said though, I really liked a few of the songs; I’ll have to check out more of their music.
Pretty much what I expected. Other tracks weren’t special.
fallan las canciones pese a su gran producción
I wanted to get give it a 2 at first. But wow, it's too good for that. A really strong 3. It's such a good album.
Good album. Has a couple of brilliant tracks.
I almost like Time to Pretend and Electric Feel
There are a couple good songs on here. Not a bad listen.
3 overly produced and I absolutely hated the vocal effect they used every song. But with all that they still wrote some catchy songs
Fun album with some nice songs on it, kids especially.
meh
Wow the first track on this album did something to me. Forgot I knew that. Rest of the album didn’t really interest me.
I hate to say this. But I know why only three songs were hits.
Listened Before? N Pretty good. I'm familiar with their hits. The album is kind of all over the place but the sound is fairly consistent. Don't think I'd put it on my shelf but I didn't hate listening to it. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: Electric Feel
znane elektroniczne z radia, spoko ale nie moje klimaty
Not a fan, but went in with an open mind. Standouts: Time To Pretend 3.5
Not my genre.
I don’t know who needs to hear this album that already hasn’t heard this album? How on earth did anyone escape this album when it was released?
Not too bad, I knew a fair number of the tracks but wouldn't have known who they were by.
Fairly interesting mid-range rock. Enjoyable if not inspiring
6.5/10
One trick ponies with a pretty fun trick - blending high energy electroclash with a chilled out psychedelic sensibly. Some of the best hooks of the decade to go with some fun beats and synth sounds and top tier melodic bass work. The drop on electric feel is so damn good. Kids is destined to be on every millennial nostalgia playlist for eternity. Starts to drag on the 2nd half when they switch from synths to guitars and become a Bowie tribute act - of moons has a cool freakout solo bit and post rock outro though.
Ah, teenage angst, 2007 style: “I’m feeling rough I’m feeling raw, I’m in the prime of my life / Let’s make some music, make some money, get some models for wives / I’ll move to Paris, shoot some heroin and f#$k with the stars / you man, the island, the cocaine and the elegant cars”…. Blah blah blah. Musically it’s pretty decent, there’s some good hooks here and there. But there is too much of a RadioShack/Casio “synthesizer” sound. The vocals are mediocre, annd often sound excessively echo-y. And the whole “rich, bored and looking for cheap thrills” thing is just trite. But the music is pretty decent. “In a couple of years / tides have turned from boos to cheers / and in spite of the weather / we can learn to make it together” …. Faux deep, but frankly dumb. It’s all listenable, but doesn’t connect (with me at least). And by the end, I was getting a bit bored. 3/5
I expected to hate this. I really didn't. It wasn't spectacular but it was a decent enough listen.
Shortening to MGMT is the kind of out of the box efficiency move that has MGMT written all over it.
Great little debut album. Couple of classic tracks that totally sum up that moment in time.
C'était cool.
Ok 3/5
LOVE the singles on this album. Remind me a ton of my high school days (which weren't very long ago LOL). Was hoping for the songs I didn't know all that well to be better. Singles carry this one to 3 stars.
Like it.
“Kids” tainted my taste in this album at release. Certified bangers exist across the album and have allowed me to open more to it as I age. Struggling with a rank.
I fake pride myself into being a 90s kid, but I am really a very, very late 90s kid. My teenage dream was orchestrated by (no pun intended) a very bubblegum-poppy Katy Perry, the kitsch eccentricity of Lady Gaga, and the trashy dance-pop of the early 2010s. I really looked at the Black Eyed Peas and said, non-ironically, that 2009 was the golden era of pop. And somehow, deep in my kid self, there is still a rotten gold tooth in my pre-adolescent memories that still gets excited when he sees a Kesha music video on television. Most 90s kids, though, checked out when I checked in. To them, their years of driving to the sunset with your friend's second-hand car, all windows down, was right at the rise of indie music throughout the 00s, when electropop started infiltrating the mutiverse of rock bands. And the first album that would pop up in a lot of minds when thinking of that feeling would be MGMT's larger-than-life, anthemic-injected "Oracular Spectacular". Released in 2007 and produced by Flaming Lips' man-in-the-box Dave Fridmann, this album is a nostalgia touchstone, and everyone who loves this album has been into (at least!) three music festivals throughout their twenties, which are most surely finished. With distorted strings, childlike vocals and legendary synth hooks, MGMT captured the quintessential sound of a very sunny beer ad, or a holi festival 10 kilometres away from your nearest big city. Songs like 'Time To Pretend' encapsulates in their lyrics that fake glamurous lifestyle dressed in Y2K plastic-bejeweled belts and chains. 'Electric Feel' takes funk into another dimension and dares to strip down a little. Centerpiece 'Kids''s instantly recognizable synth obstinate and engulfing production makes the perfect song to scream lyrics, bounce around under festival lights and live in the moment. But while the highs are very high, the lows also go nowhere. "Oracle Spectacular" works better the more they lean intro electropop, reverbed vocals and catchy hooks. There is just a sensation of carelessness and youth carried into these singles than the rest of the album doesn't possess. The album doesn't know what it wants to be at times, and when the synth curtain falls, its issues become incredibly visible. Half of this album falls, unfortunately, into unmemorable or even grating. But "Oracular Spectacular" still holds strong, fueled by the nostalgia and the singles that we all remember love and cherish. And god damn are these singles good. 6.6/10 Favorite songs: Kids, Electric Feel, Time to Pretend
A deeply boring Nu-Psychedelia album that sounds like a mess of howls, organ, and twangy guitars. Thank God they also wrote three of the most important Electro-Pop songs of the late 00s that, frankly speaking, stick out like a sore thumb compared to every other song on here.
This album is a psychedelic journey. It has funky electronic melodies, lyrics that have hidden meanings (or seemingly no meaning at all), and the occasional guitar. This is not something I would usually listen to. Nonetheless, it was still a good album with popular songs that I recognized and had heard many other places before.
pretty good, some iconic songs, i checked this band out before they were on this list (couple songs), didnt realise this album had these iconic songs pretty good some real stinkers here and there tho YYM
Heard a few songs from this. Catchy pop music. The sound of advertising.
Underwhelming, 3 pretty good, ubiquitous singles, lots of Arcade Fire-ish waffling. Mid, as they say
Overall liked it. Kids is the standout song. Good vibe for working out.
Ok album with a couple of recognisable tracks
Was okay
Fun album to listen to.
Didn't know I have heard a few of these songs. Some are catchy, but a little more pop'ish than I generally listen to.
So so
Pretty good.
64 / 100 Time to Pretend 7 / 10 Weekend Wars 8 / 10 The Youth 8 / 10 Electric Feel 6 / 10 Kids 9 / 10 4th Dimensional Transition 5 / 10 Pieces of What 6 / 10 Of Moons, Birds & Monsters 6 / 10 The Handshake 5 / 10 Future Reflections 4 / 10
Turns out the songs I know from the albums are also the only songs I like... but I do REALLY love those songs.
Already listened on other list
Like their sound, and the layers within the songs.
I’ve never listed to this album in it’s entirety, and it’s pretty good! Perfect at home chill music to have going in the background. Some upbeat songs in there too which keeps the album moving. Listen again: yes Purchase for my collection: possibly Favourite Song: Time To Pretend
I was pleasantly surprised and recognized quite a few of the songs but was unfamiliar with the groups name.
"Kids" blasts. The rest sounds more like a wannabe. Very ambitious - but failed for me.
Top class of Synthie.
I bought and listened to this a lot when it came out and then I just stopped. So it was nice to listen couple times through again. Think I’m torn between a 3 and 4, but there’s quite a few classics on this album so I’ll go 4. Best song: Kids, electric feel Worst song: 4th Dimensional Transition, and second half of album generally weaker.
Not really a fan, I don’t really like synths. Some tracks were alright like 4th dimensional something
This album has a few very memorable songs and the rest are more or less forgettable. Sounds like 2 potheads that had to write 7 filler songs
An ok album
Synth-pop but with depth. This album is probably not a cabdidate for the best 1001 of all time, but it's different enough that you should hear it
Some good tracks- time to pretend, weekend wars, electric feel, kids, of moons birds and monsters
Tempted to remove a star for the production engineer who thought it was a good idea to use over-amplification in parts of the wall of sound. For me, that ruins what otherwise would be done very enjoyable songs to listen to.
naw
Three great records and the rest filler. Those songs shaped the electronic dance Era of the early 2000s, they're great for sure, but they fell short elsewhere. Tried to be Foxygen and didn't hang the songwriting or producing chops.
I can’t hear this without being transported back to watching Veronica Mars. It’s a solid pop album, though if I want to listen to Time To Pretend again, I’ll probably just listen to my VM soundtrack.
3/5. I have to give credit to thus album for clearly revitalizing a certain genre while also topping the charts with multiple songs on this album. While not my taste of music, I can remember almost 2 decades ago, these songs playing on the radio and being used in YouTube videos.
"Time to Pretend" made me kind of nostalgic, for that reason 3 stars.
MGMT's another one of those pop adjacent groups that everyone swears is great but I just don't see what's special about them. Barely a 3.
Can’t imagine being more cognizant when this dropped lol 3.5
I’ll pull some songs from it. It definitely aged well and has some bangers but also some snoozers.
Interesting album. I give it 3 stars.
Hm, das war ja mal gemischtes Ohrenfutter. Genre? Keine Ahnung, irgendwie Pop. Einige starke Songs dabei, die bestimmt vor 15 Jahren überall im Radio liefen. Meine Ohren konnten sich jedenfalls damit vom vorherigen Album (Postpräprotoalternativerock oder so) gut erholen.
I can't make up my mind about this album. It's sound is both unique and derivative at the same time - just when I think it's quirky and different, it reminds me of other bands but I just can't say who. The vocals are certainly marmite - you either love them or hate them.
This album is so… ok. Like I think I’ve just heard nearly every single song so many times that it’s made me numb to the fact that this was once genre-pushing. Still a solid 7/10 but was definitely once a 10/10 for me. Also the reverb on “The Handshake” is nauseating.
Electronic rock normally isn't for me. I was surprised that I enjoyed the first few tracks of this album, but then I lost interest and got bored for a little while. I liked "4th Dimensional Transition" and "Pieces of What". The coolest song title is "Of Moons, Birds, and Monsters", but I didn't love the song itself, except for the cool instrumentals in the last minute or two.
I’ve heard the song ‘Kids’ but overall a totally new artist.
Strong start but weak ending
I have heard a few of these songs before, which I really like, but the others are mediocre. Not bad overall.
A pretty good album overall, sprinkled with some of the best singles of the era
5/10
Some certified dance with your friends hits that are truly classic for a generation. As an album it doesn't hold me in. A few tracks feel like demos. I think I want to like the album as a whole more than I do. There's potential though and this re-listen made me wonder if I should give their whole discography a try, something I never did. But for me this an album to pull tracks off for playlists.
Entertaining rock n roll record. Better than I expected from the genre and era.
already know this album and love it!! :D
2-3 bangers, otherwise meh
Decent
Vivid mid-2000s flashback. I forgot the hitsingle "Kids" completely. It was on the radio back then all the time, it was practically the soudtrack of my life back then. I stopped listening to that album after this song to revel in the feeling of...memories. I'm glad I found this song again. I cannot believe how much you can forget and how much you can remember once a certain song plays. I never even paid much attention to this song back then.
its ok.
..
Some BANGERS. Rest is so so
Fine all around. I heard Time to Pretend and Kids way too often growing up. Electric Feel still goes hard as fuck though. I totally thought this album was from like 2013 but it's from 2007?
MGMT’s ‘Oracular Spectacular’ is a mixed bag for me. The trio of “Time to Pretend”, “Electric Feel” and “Kids” delivers a burst of electrifying energy that instantly captivates. However, beyond these hits, the album tends to plateau, with the remaining tracks feeling somewhat unremarkable. The standout songs make it worth a listen, but the overall consistency might leave you wanting more
Ok I know the 3 singles from this album way too well. But there are sections from Weekend Wars and The Youth that are surprisingly beautiful harmony, and the production slaps. What a pleasant surprise.
Kids, Time to Pretend, and Electric Feel are all bangers, and were the only MGMT songs I really knew before this. That probably won’t change as nothing else really stood out.
It felt poppy but I could tolerate it. I liked it but didn’t love it
Not my type of music & can barely hear the lyrics which is a big deal for me. I don’t wanna look up lyrics to enjoy a song. 2.5 stars
It was okay. Not really my style but could be good background music
This album is pretty good. The first half is definitely stronger and more fun.
A good pop album, but that's about it. Nothing outstanding.
Ich mag das Album danach mehr, das hier ist mir zu viel pop. Aber ok.
Is what it is. Couple bangers
I was surprised to see that this came out in 2007. I don’t remember hearing MGMT until 2012 and then it was all over the place on campus. Can’t say I’m a loyal fan and nothing here stood out as excellent. Getting a little tired of the hits from this album by this point, but it did bring back some 2012 nostalgia and I had to chase this down with “Somebody That You Used To Know” by Goyte to finish out the session, haha. Three stars, probably more like two and a half.
Smooth and quite easy listening. But for me, it's not one of the 100 albums I would take with me to a desert island
Great example of why the hits are the hits. These guys were all over the place when I first moved to Chicago, and I've always enjoyed their well-known songs. However, their extented library is just OK. It was fun to revisit MGMT, but a deep dive wasn't needed.