Reviews (page 4 of 15)
MGMT - 오라큘러 스펙타큘러 총 10곡 수록, 40분. 와!!!! 타임 투 프리텐드!!!!!!!! 아는 노래 나와서 마음에 드네요 쟝르가 좋아 장르가 신스나오는 팝 얘네 왤케 팝 자주넣지 분위기도 마음에 들고 악기가 훌륭함 아아... 그래 음악은 좀 가볍거나 빠르거나 활기차야해.... 한줄평: 내가 아는 곡이 들어있다면 대중성은 증명된 것이겠지... 취향:★★★★☆ 재방문:★★★☆☆
Some great hits on this album. Particularly fond of moons, birds and monsters. Just falls short of 5 stars with a couple of weaker songs
melancolico, nostalgico, night vibes m encanta pop psicodelico
Love this record, first real pop/electronic record I really enjoyed as a kid. Still holds up, trippy fun and catchy. MGMT rules.
I feel like the sentiment of nostalgia will hit everyone at one point or another. I've certainly made mention of when an album or a song on my journey has brought back memories, and this is no different with the singles off of MGMT's debut. I distinctly remember "Time to Pretend" and "Kids" being everywhere in the late 2000s, which, for me, was a time of reaching adolescence, a very formative stage of growth and development that I think a lot of people can relate to. So naturally, I still enjoy those songs to this day, along with "Electric Feel," which I discovered earlier this year. That said, how does the rest of Oracular Spectacular stack up? Well, let me state that there are other strong songs besides the singles. The folk haze of "Weekend Wars", the Middle Eastern vibes of the polyrhythmic percussion and synth bounce of "4th Dimensional Transition", the Bowie-esque acoustic strum of "Pieces of What", and the frenetic psychedelic rock of "Of Moons, Birds & Monsters" turned out to be great bops. Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser do their best to combine upbeat melodies with darker lyrics and themes throughout the record. It's a formula that has stuck with the band throughout their sonic evolution, and it certainly works, albeit with diminishing returns in replay value. At the very least, Dave Fridmann did his best to make the most of it, modulating between blown-out, compressed production and cleaner, atmospheric soundscapes. That said, I cannot deny that this album feels front-loaded. Once "Kids" is done, there is a noticeable switch to more progressive psychedelic flourishes than the more marketable synthpop of the first half, and I don't find it as compelling. I wouldn't call it bad so much as the band getting lost within the weird textures and ideas they wish to explore. It would be nice to strike a greater balance between that exploration and maintaining the hooks, that's all. Still, I had a good time listening to Oracular Spectacular. As I mentioned, MGMT's sound would continue to evolve over the years, while still retaining some core elements to their songwriting. In a way, their debut does meaningfully set the tone for what's to come from them.
Meh. Bad songwriting. Occasionally all the elements come together to form something great but it’s as rare as a Nat 20
I imagine that if I were like 10 years older than I am, then this album would have absolutely blown my mind when it came out. I still love “Kids,” “Time to Pretend” and “Electric Feel”. But I just don’t like the other tracks enough to give it above a 4.
The three singles are the greatest indietronica songs ever written. The rest of the album is also good, but the singles well and truly steal the show. I mean: Time to Pretend... Electric Feel... Kids!!! (Kids has to be my favourite here and one of my favourite songs of all time) Low 5* (would happily listen at any moment, and have given too many mid-albums a 4* recently - this has to be set aside!)
I had some high hopes here, but nothing really came together
It's dance time! Millennial disco music. I like it.
Trending toward the washed-out style of 2000 and 2010 music that I don't like, but this isn't bad, especially if you think of it as music to dance to.
Good stuff...
Like many others, I dived into this album in 2007 because I heard 'Time To Pretend' in a movie or TV show or somesuch and loved it. Like many others, I was confused by 90% of the album and didn't take things any further. It's a bold step to follow up that electro-psych banger with Weekend Wars and if I was producing or promoting this album, I'd have serious sequencing suggestions. But given some time and patience, there's a great album in here. It just feels chaotic, random and jumbled. You genuinely never know what is coming around the corner. That's fine, if you're ready for it and in the right mood. It took me a few days (20 years later) to find that mood but I am glad I did. It's actually an engaging, varied and fantastic album.
Absolutely banging inclusion. Fave Track: Kids
Such a great inclusion - magical album and one of the greatest debuts of all time. The Time To Pretend inspired by praying mantis eggs hatching on a model pirate ship anecdote gets me every time. 4.5/5
Det er ikke mange låter som eier 00-tallet slik Time to Pretend og Kids gjør. (Honorable mention til Electric Feel som er omtrent like bra, men ikke fikk like mye spilletid på radiolistene.) Eneste jeg kan komme på i farta er Clint Eastwood og Feel Good Inc. (Honorable mention til DARE som er minst like bra, men ikke får like mye kjærlighet.) I lang tid trodde jeg resten av låtene på skiva som huser disse tidskapslene var ballast. Det stemmer ikke. Hvis man forventer at alt skal være som de poppy hitsa, skjønner jeg at man kan bli skuffa når flere av sporene er mye mer psych pop enn electrobop. På en måte er MGMT Animal Collective for mainstream radio; de dekker litt av det samme territoriet, men med andre ambisjoner.
Har egentlig hørt på dette albumet ganske jevnt og trutt i rundt 15 år. Jeg syntes "Kids" var fengende, men hadde egentlig avskrevet MGMT som et av mange band som lagde fengende synthpop på den tiden, og likte kanskje Junior av Röyksopp aller best på den tiden. Men ei i klassen min anbefalte meg "The Handshake" og etter å ha hørt den var det bare å sette på resten av plata. At plata kom ut på 40-årsjubileet til summer of love passer i grunn ganske godt. Oracular Spectacular låter slik band i 1967 knapt kunne drømt om å lage. Husker ikke om 2007 var noe summer of love for egen del, men plata har i alle fall vært med å lydlegge somrene til å høres mer idylliske ut. Det er vanskelig å velge seg en favoritt. Det er selvfølgelig kult med den "Jeg henger mye på Parkteatret"-aktige "Electric Feel", men "The Handshake" kan jeg ha på repeat. Synd de ikke bytta plass på den og "Future Reflections" for det hadde vært en helt king kong avslutning. "Pieces of What" og gitarsoloen på "Of Moons, Birds & Monsters" må også nevnes.
Denne skiva er jo tettpakka med hits. Og overraskende kul for å være en pop skive fra sin samtid. Nå er det jo strengt talt ikke så jækla mye pop her utenom hitsa
One of my personal favorites...
Can't connect with it. The music is okay, the electronic elements are catchy, don't like the voice. Time to Pretend is good though.
idk why i have never listened to this album in full - it slaps, big fan of The Handshake, Pieces of What and LOVED The Youth on first listen x
Pretty good, if a bit forgettable. 3.5 stars
Such a nostalgic album! Feels so summery, just such a good vibe! Fav song has to be ‘Kids’.
If you listened regularly to the radio during the naughties, it was hard to escape the sound of this band. There's a bit of Bowie bobbing around, some anti-war rhetoric and some relatively low-key prog composition. Overall, it's a bit lightweight for me, but decent enough. Heard before ✅️ Listened this time ✅️ Revisit ❌️ ★★★☆☆ (6/10) Total reviewed : 286 Already owned : 63 Purchased : 15 To buy : 3 Nope : 205
Estás viviendo tu main character moment
Top Songs: Time to Pretend Of Moons, Birds & Monsters
A fun debut album that I still like all these years later.
1001 Albums Vol. 0035: Oracular Spectacular ============================================================ Introduction: One day in 2007, two shirtless White men...even though one of them really doesn't look White...stand on...probably a beach...when in actuality...it is N-New York City...? How? Okay, doesn't matter. They pose for the camera. The moon rises behind them. One of them looks completely dumbfounded and completely stone-face serious. They look off into the distance, staring at what they themselves probably don't even remember considering we're going on 20 years. Then, there, they would take the photo for the cover of the legendary album...Oracular Spectacular. And yeah uh...these men were apparently shirtless and wearing decorated scarfs, and turbans, and other wear for a music video too...and I would try to make a joke here saying something along the lines of the fact that nobody cares about the music video, but as of currently it's sitting at over 100 million views on Youtube, holy shit.....BUT REGARDLESS, we're still here to solely tell the tale of the great Oracular Spectacular and not the various pieces of visual media it would produce with the sole exception of the cover photo we just discussed. The tale begins with a duo by the name of MGMT and them releasing their first full length commercial studio album in the year 2007. The dazzling duo had already released two extended plays, both of which achieved a fair level of success, but they were about to release something that would achieve something beyond their wildest dreams: mainstream success. The dismayed duo didn't even expect it themselves, but as we just stated a bit ago...100 million views...that's a lot whether you want to realize it or not. And this tale doesn't involve your typical mainstream success act of the time such as Emo Rock, Ms. Spears, or all the other huge acts of the time. No, this tale involves an intentionally bold and unintentionally beloved exploration of a fusion between various genres such as Psychedelic Rock, Indie Rock, and Synthpop. All of which was apparently mashed together by our diplomatic duo into something more akin to...let's say a Castro-era Cuban cigar than something like...you know what...mashed potatoes....Look, this is my review, just keep scrolling if you don't like my opinions. I mean, the entire point of this site is kinda meant to be opinions anyway, but you do you. Maybe mashed potatoes is your trigger, I don't know. THAT SAID, uhh...oh yeah right...the distinctive duo went mainstream with this new and exciting blend of genres. In fact, this album, while definitely not the first to mix these various genres together, is generally considered to be the VERY first that managed to bring its attention to a wider audience while still managing to apparently be both loved by a critical audience at the same time. Now, toning down the seer persona a bit to a more personable one....I won't lie, whether this is true or not is something that I...unfortunately...cannot attest to at all. This album was just ever so slightly before my time and memory and solidified themselves into existence. So basically what I remember as radio hits from my childhood are definitive, groundbreaking, and absolutely loved by everyone in existence songs like...Hey Soul Sister, California Gurls (which honestly isn't all THAT bad), and Just The Way You Are....which now that I think about it I still listen to radio quite often and haven't actually heard in a very long time...huh. Anyway, yeah, point is, this album is essentially going to serve more like historical exploration for me than rediscovering some lost part of my childhood. This isn't something I'm necessarily proud to admit as sometimes I do genuinely wish I was a bit older than I was because the decades before my time seem like the absolute peak of existence, but I digress. Does the folklore surrounding the magnetohydrodynamic MGMT hold any merit? Or is this album just another product of the time, something that people loved then but doesn't hold a candle to any other beloved album now? As always, let's dive in and see. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Track 1: Time To Pretend: 11/10 Track 2: Weekend Wars: 8/10 Track 3: The Youth: 7/10 Track 4: Electric Feel: 10/10 Track 5: Kids: 11/10 Track 6: 4th Dimensional Transition: 7/10 Track 7: Pieces Of What: 6/10 Track 8: Of Moons, Birds, & Monsters: 8/10 Track 9: The Handshake: 7/10 Track 10: Future Reflections: 6/10 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Conclusion: Well, after actually experiencing the great Oracular Spectacular for myself, I can say without a doubt that it is one of...well...it's one of the most mixed-bag albums I've ever listened to in my entire life. You know, there was one part of the tale of the great Oracular that I intentionally left out in the beginning because of the fact that I wanted the album to sound more like an untouchable God, but I'll go ahead and tell that part here....um...so yeah if you couldn't tell....the three big singles were generally seen as the only TRULY noteworthy things this album had to present while the rest of the material was just seen as pretty good but much more flawed in comparison. And yeah, if you couldn't already tell by my rankings, I couldn't agree more. So does this mean that the tale of the great Oracular doesn't have any true place in history? No, not by any means, but I'd maybe drop the title from Great to Good. Oracular the Good. That really does kinda remind of the whole James and James The Lesser thing in biblical lore which still makes me smirk and laugh to this day. You really can't help but feel bad for James The Lesser to a degree because...I mean...what the actual hell?...But anyway, James is lore from like 2000 years or something before this album and is for a completely other discussion. Anyway, yeah, like I said, there is some absolute gold and diamonds on this album. And...well...like any other diamond rank song, these three specific tracks do literally everything right in the given genre they were made for and push beyond that perfection as well. I mean like, the three greats here are just absolute late 2000s and early 2010s pop perfection. They're catchy of course, actually meaningful and invoke a genuine emotional reaction out of me at times, and just connect with me in a way that so many other huge songs of the era simply did not. Musically, the three huge hits, and the album as a whole really but we'll get to the other songs in a bit, have this very distinctive experimental and magical feel to them very akin to the general vibe that Funeral by Arcade Fire gives off. I mean, really the best way that I can describe these three songs in terms of their music is if Arcade Fire was still...you know...actually good at all when they made Everything Now. I mean, you basically have all of the same aspects in both: synths...of which Oracular is superior in terms of their use and performance, umm...they both have singers....but only Andrew on Oracular was actually great...and well...they both have lyrics too...but only Oracular was actually good. Yeah...basically Oracular is like 10x better than Everything Now. I don't think anyone will disagree with me on that one. There are some important distinctions from the two, however. Where Everything Now's instrumentation sounds WAY too clean and an overproduced mess, this album sounds...again with the three singles at least...we're still mostly talking about those for now...more raw and aggressive, PROgressive, Psychedelic and funky in certain parts, and have an actual general sense of direction that feels unpredictable yet sounds great and very memorable once you hear and understand it at the same time. And, very importantly as well, these three tracks, despite ending up as huge hits, all feel very bold and experimental at the same time. It's almost as if they were written without the intention of them being huge hits...which they weren't....The band literally still considered themselves more as a joke than anything serious at the time but that would make the tale of Oracular the Good seem less mystical so forget I said that....Anyway, It doesn't feel as if these songs were made for the charts or to sell and were made just for the hell of it. And while that might not be important to many listeners, it is important to take into context here because it makes the music itself feel much more genuine. It gives the music and lyrics presented here feel as if they were a genuine look into the artist's minds instead of some piece of slop made to be a huge radio hit or sell well. This single fact just creates a certain depth to the music that all good music should have. So, yes...while many consider the three singles from this album to be overplayed radio hits, the context surrounding said radio hits is very important to take into account when looking at an album critically....And yes...there are a good few people who consider the three huge songs on here to be bad and overplayed...but to be honest I think literally anyone in the world would take this over some of the slop we hear nowadays. I mean, there REALLY isn't anything all that good playing on radio stations that play popular music nowadays. The specific station in my area that does play currently popular music does this throwback thing on Halloween where they play older spooky songs like Thriller and stuff and that's really the only day worth tuning in....But with that said, yeah...let's just get into these three song's lyrics now....They're, to nobody's surprise, really good. These three specific songs all have these very nostalgic, depressing, and carefree lyrics that tie both deeply into your youth and into natural human nature that you really can't help but just...feel them. Electric Feel does this to a lesser extent than the other two but you get the point. They invoke that same sense of magic and carefreeness that the melodies present in these songs create and sound very similar to something that...you guessed it...Arcade Fire would have made back in their heyday. Now, these lyrics aren't any Neighborhood #1 by Arcade Fire, but they're still incredibly strong while invoking a stronger sense of nostalgia and emotional vulnerability than some of the weaker songs on Funeral regardless. They're just....really good...and really relatable whether you want to admit it or not....AND NOW...with all that said...um...this is quickly becoming my longest review yet post dropping track-by-track. Seriously, I already have a whole wall of text on my screen and I actually have a lot more to say. Okay, ANYWAY, with ALL of that said about the three singles, let's actually talk about the rest of the album now, shall we? Well...you can basically take everything I had to say about the singles and just downgrade it to get the rest of the album....Again, the rest is not bad at all by any means, but it is noticeably weaker. The three big singles on here all have a very noticeable and good sense of progression throughout, yet most of the non-single tracks in comparison feature a little bit TOO MUCH progression to the point where the songs can feel a bit directionless at times. The Youth is the only lower rated track that manages to feel pretty consistent in terms of progression throughout and that track scored lower simply because it doesn't really carry the same energy or weight as the three big tracks did. The rest of the album definitely has a problem with progression though. And there really isn't anything wrong with progression in music either. I mean, I loved Happiness Is A Warm Gun by the Beatles when I listened to The White Album, so what's wrong here? Well...I guess the musical direction really just doesn't feel as intentionally jarring as it did in that specific song....And these tracks don't carry the influence that track had as well so there's that too. I guess it simply feels as if the lack of direction wasn't an intentional artistic choice and rather something that came as a result of lazy songwriting and editing. This does kinda make the tracks themselves not super memorable either after an initial listen...and yes, I know tracks should have a lot of depth to them and all so that you can listen more than once, but you as a listener really shouldn't be at a point where you struggle to recall a single notable or any moment at all from a track some time after listening to it. That's kinda the feel that most of the non-big tracks have. Of Moons and Weekend Wars had some pretty great moments and Weekend Wars as a whole is really the only song where the sense of progression feels great throughout, but that's about it. The best example I can give is saying that the weaker tracks have more of an Emerson, Lake, And Palmer type of progression than a King Crimson type.....And we've officially hit the point where text covers my entire screen. Like seriously, top to bottom text now. Yeah. This is the longest conclusion I have written by quite a bit and...well...I still have another kinda important and lengthy thing I want to say before I try to close it off quickly. Okay, I have to talk about production real quick. I'm going to try to limit this more since I'm kinda running out of writing steam here but I still want to talk about it regardless....and well...it's quite odd how despite being very early on in the project as a whole, I can still make many references to past albums and songs I've heard, but here I go again....This album reminds me of Melody A.M. in terms of...well a lot of things, but most similarly are the two album's production. Both have this very apparent encapsulating and engrossing feel to them that really...in an odd way...kinda makes me feel very close to the music itself. Kinda like it's pulling me into the world of the music kinda situation. It's really, really good and is one of the aspects of this album that kept me thoroughly engrossed all the way through. And...in a way...I kinda like to think that this is what Melody A.M. could have been with just a bit better songwriting and better lyrics...I mean, they sound similar in so many ways besides just production that the album generator could have convinced me the two albums were made by the same artist had they just swapped MGMT for Röyksopp just for shitties and gigglies...And to me, this album did make me feel in a way from just the production alone because of how much I loved the sound of Melody A.M. It's just...great...you can't change my mind about it...And yes I know I gave Melody A.M. a 7/10 and now here I am getting all boo-hooey and nostalgic about it but I don't give a damn! You know, I don't think I've said this anywhere before, but I was REALLY conflicted on giving that album an 8/10 and a 4/5 when I rated it almost a whole y-year ago at this point...jesus christ. I may very well go back and up the score someday, I don't know...but anyway. OKAY, FOR REAL THIS TIME, one last thing I have to mention before we're done. Let's briefly discuss the lyrics of the non-single songs. Well...they don't carry the same emotional weight or connection as the big songs do, but they still work well with the album as a whole. They're much more vaguely written and interpretable in a way that kinda fits with the Psychedelic melodies that the tracks have to provide. I mean, they're not like amazing or anything and won't make you think or feel too deeply, but they're still pretty solid regardless....OKAY, we're finally done. The screen of text has been scrolling up for a bit now and I'm scared to scroll up because I don't want to see the monstrosity of a review I've created. You know, when this website was made, I really don't think its creator had well...THIS in mind. Yeah, a notes section was provided for a reason, but it's also called a "notes" section for a reason as well....ahem...BUT REGARDLESS...the tale of Oracular the Good still remains an extremely strong tale engraved in late 2000s folklore regardless. The tale really only mentions the highs for a reason and leaves out the lows for the same reason, but a tale is best told whole regardless. Oracular the Good has cemented its place in my mind as a very important part of musical folklore history while seeming genuinely intriguing at the same time. And so...Finally...the seer brings his own wise tale to a close and provides his rating of the album below....But at the same time...the seer is kinda fucked...as I'm dropping this wise storytelling persona forever and leaving it here on the same beach, which I realized while writing this is most likely Coney Island, with a shirtless Andrew VanWyngarden and a similarly naked Ben Goldwasser. Goodbye oh wise one as we leave you in limbo in Oracular forever. Never to be seen again...(Except they were seen again here to lower the score of this album from an 8/10 to 7/10 and 4/5 to 3/5. Okay...they're gone for real this time...) ============================================================ Oracular Spectacular: 7/10 Song Average: 8.1/10
I'm sort of begrudgingly giving this one a four. This album came out around the time I stopped listening to new mainstream bands. They're also one of the first huge bands whose members were younger than me, so at the time I wanted them to get off my lawn, but listening now I have to admit that this is pretty good.
Creo que prefiero 'Congratulations' o 'Loss of life', lo digo con respeto, desde el punto de vista de una persona que raramente mirará las palabras.
Es interesante conocer artistas que yo generalmente no escucharía
Alright album, a few songs that I know well but have never known who wrote them, so nice to find out that!
Feels like the kind of music that a dj would use, i personally wouldnt listen to it again and it didnt really hit me. Kind of plain and the flow stayed the same most of the way through, some popular songs i recognise but even then they weren't very appealing.
On its surface, a good chunk of the album reads like yolo shit. But having never listened to MGMT, I'm happy to say that I was able to dig a little deeper and find that below that initial knee jerk is an album that is surprisingly poignant and well-arranged most of the time. It feels like it was made by people who were in their prime and realized it for commentating purposes before it was too late, and based on their age at the time of release that seems to be the case. The first 5 tracks are outstanding. Time to Pretend, again, reads on the surface like "tonight we are young so let's set the world on fire" type crap, but pushes past it as a call to specific action instead. That action, I assume, being to start the band and find new success while sacrificing some old stuff and comfort of mundanity. Love the last repeating stanza of Weekend Wars. The Youth has a killer chorus melody and modulation later. Electric Feel is a great "if you don't count it like a nerd" tune. I hear the band ended up hating Kids, but I don't get it. It's avg pop as far as progression goes, but I love it lyrically. Unfortunately, that track is the climax of the album for sure and things cool down rather quickly from there. The back half isn't bad, but it is kinda forgettable. I'd give it a 3.5 or so.
Albums like this are strange to review because they are so engrained in a particular moment in time, for better or worse. The line between nostalgia and dated blurs here, but it's still a super fun album to listen to for the first or hundredth time, but not really in between.
Just sounds like college and captures the millennial spirit. It's still fun...vocals are a little goofy but the tunes are solid and it fits a vibe. I'll go 3.5 and round up because I am the perfect age and have the nostalgic connection.
molto scorrevole. mi piacciono le basi e i riffs di molte della canzoni dell’album.
Awesome neo-psychadelic pop vibes. Some songs much stronger than others. Incredible debut album.
Fantastic singles but surprisingly great outside of them. Very psychedelic.
Decent hidden gems on the album
Ei halv god plate. Hadde vært en bunnsolid EP.
Hørt på to ganger! Syns congratulations e bedre men fortsatt 10/10 svak for det meste av MGMT
Masse hits!
Helt fantastisk på sitt beste. Siste halvdel av platen er preget av litt for mye fyll-stoff. Så de på Roskilde i 08, var litt samme greier der. Dritkjedelig før hittene kom på rekke og rad.
Det e så friskt. Ster girer. Favoritt: Weelekexs første kamp
Hørt på solsenga på Granka. Føles litt som en tidskapsel til the naughts. Husker jeg elsket dette i sånn 2008, men det sitter ikke like godt i dag dessverre. Mange hits, og det er et semilykkelig gjenhør. Om jeg hadde vært festivalsjef på rakettnatt, hadde dette vært en åpenbar booking. Heldigvis for dere er jeg ikke det.
Partypop som går tom for hooks halvveis. Bunnsolid første halvdel sikrer fireren.
Of it's time but a great album - nice vibe and reminds me of being a teenageer.
8/10
Me gustó, no le pude prestar la atención que deseaba pero ya conocía -y tenía guardadas- algunas canciones. Siento que vibré más con las melodías que con el significado de las letras...
The right mix of pop and psych
This is a generational album that I never listened to at the time, though I definitely always heard the massive singles. The rest of the album holds up quite well to these--it's not just three singles and filler. Listens great. 5/5
Solid album. I liked it when it first came out... Before they took an even more interesting turn.
This was great and over much too fast.
teenpop of 00s
Nice
This was peak around my college and clubbing days. Catchy and innovative. Was never a huge fan though. 3/5.
Liked time to pretend, kids and electric feel. Very nostalgic but I don’t have much of a connection with the rest of the album
4.5 stars. The phrase "a college-dorm experiment gone horribly right" is one of my favorite descriptions of an album and is so fitting. The hits are timeless with catchy melodies that bring me back to such a fun time in life. The second half fades a bit and is more generic space rock but it still such a strong record overall.
Total classic. This was a pretty foundational album for me and revisiting it was awesome. There are so many flavors to these songs and they still sound (to me) pretty fresh and creative. I didn't grow up listening to The Beatles and now that I am more familiar I hear the influence front to back on this record alongside bits of Prince and Bowie combined with some really catchy hooks and synth instrumentation. This album is striking for being "electronic" but also featuring a ton of really standard instrumentation. Magic happened in the mixing room and it's crazy that two college students were responsible for this. I think this is a really excellent example of the sort of indie lo-fi pop that exploded in the early 2000s and 2010s. 5/5 all the way.
Solid. Didn’t expect to like it but it’s good vibes
Very familiar music. Will defo give this another shot
8/10 Best songs: Electric Feel, Kids, 4th Dimensional Transition, Of Moons, Birds & Monsters, The Handshake, Future Reflections The second this album popped up I just knew it was going to be a banger - I listened to the singles (especially Electric Feel) on repeat for years, and I knew it was unlikely the album would be bad. That being said, I find this to be an album that shifts between incredible innovation and incredible mediocrity. When the album is good, it's very, very good. When it's not, it's... fine. It's never actively bad. I do think the brilliance outweighs the dullness, hence the rating, but I was half-thinking this was going to be one of my favorite albums off this list. Oh well.
Great vibes, super creative and cool compositions. It’s a shame I never bothered to listen before today.
“Time to Pretend,” “Kids,” and “Electric Feel” all are great songs on MGMT’s debut.
This is very 2007. To be honest, I wonder if there's any album from this era I'd rate highly. Just not my time. However, I think this is tuneful and accomplished. Instruments and voices well used to create an enjoyable enough sound.
An absolute classic album of the early 2000s. The three monster singles Time to Pretend, Electric Feel, and Kids more than make up for some of the weaker tracks here.
Creatively produced indeed - very wide and sharp Earworms every song and 60ties vibes The définition of psych pop rock
enjoyed it. will listen to it again
Ok turns out i know this band from the radio. First song is pretty good but either not my style or was overplayed. Feels like this album was made out of or with the goal of money, not passion
MGMT my goat
Pretty good, it had a few radio bangers and other songs I liked but nothing astounding. 4 / 5
Beaucoup de plaisir. Il y a des hits et des chansons qui annoncent le prochain album que j'adore. Je suis surement biaisé parce que j'ai beaucoup écouté cet album dans des moments de ma vie.
J'ai jamais vraiment trippé mais ça mérite certainement une écoute.
I really thought I would like this album more. I remember it making a splash when it first came out, but I guess it's never been my style. I liked "Weekend Wars" the best.
Classic
Really enjoyed.
Its like alright.
Okay...learning there are lots of styles of musics i dont know and its ok id I don't like.
Mildly disappointed by this one, sadly. MGMT seems/is right up my alley but they're definitely a band that shines best in their singles and suffers in everything else, giving this entire album an uneven tilt. It's definitely an ambitious album with an iconic soundscape, you can't deny that. it's just very mid-2000s Burning Man I guess. fav tracks: Time To Pretend, Kids, Electric Feel, Of Moons, Birds & Monsters
A solid album with good vibes. Strong synths and catchy hooks throughout. It’s quite simple, but that works well.
Interesting listen. Sits well alongside early Flaming Lips, understandably with the production of Dave Fridmann. Passed me by on original release but glad I got to hear this. A revelation. 4
Loved this one, it was a good listen since I'd heard a couple of the songs a million times but never heard others before.
Solid, hits hit, off-hits pretty good
this really surprised me, I loved it top to bottom. There was a lot of unique and engaging poppy things going on and those hits deserve their status
Ho voglia di birra e d’estate e di andare in giro con Mirka, vorrei dare 3 stelle e mezzo ma non si può, 4 causerebbe inflazione perciò teniamo a bada il portafogli ed elargiamo un modesto ma piu che meritato 3
Paved the way for others. Some decent uni memories thanks to these chaps.
Mi è piaciuto come album, l’ho ascoltato durante una giornata di sole e mi ha fatto ricordare l’estate. Punto bonus per la canzone di fifa (non mi ricordo quale).
Better than I expected by a fair amount. Kids is a classic track.
Álbum imperdible
I wasn’t looking forward to this as I really don’t like the two big hit singles from it. It’s actually pretty decent - musically interesting and bags of ideas
Not much to say. It wasn't awful, but it's also nothing I would listen to again. Music was alright. Vocals were meh.
It wasn't horrible, but it is definitely something I will never listen to again.
A couple of bangers and interesting lyrics. Dunno if I would listen to me whole thing again.
Finally, I hadn’t been excited about listening to a new album on here in weeks. This was fresh and fun. It was not a chore to listen to as much as some of the other albums have been. These guys brought a new sound to the 2000s that was much needed in that era.
This is fine. It illustrates the eras maximalist sound. There are a few good singles but there is nothing groundbreaking here. Its pop music, its well done but no one is going to war for it.
okay
Really original synth pop and the first half/side is outstanding. Fell away a bit for me on the second side but I still had a repeat listen.
i know this album very well lol
Nice album, have really top songs and songs that are in the clima of the album but don’t say any different.
i’ve listened to mgmt before, specifically songs from this album. i loved them, and several of the songs on this one have very special places in my heart due to the times in my life that i loved them. fantastic album.
Not an album i would've picked to listen to myself. But, oh, how happy that i am that I ended up listening to this. I knew the hits like Time To Pretend, Kids and Electric Feel. But, the deep cuts like Weekend Wars, The Youth, Of Moons, Birds & Monsters and Pieces of What are also really good! It was a very easy album to get into, for me atleast. All I have to say is that this is a great introduction to MGMT.
The soundtrack to my college years
The hits are the hits the rest is good
Most of the album is just fine. I like Time to Pretend and Kids, both are great songs. But Electric Feel? Banger, absolutely a great song and easily worth an extra star on it's own.
I remember when this came out and a guy I used to jam with turned me on to them. They hold a place in my heart with vampire weekend and animal collective.
Quite upbeat
RYM 2.5
I knew the singles but never really paid this band much attention A few weeks ago I heard someone on the radio talking about the lyrics to Time To Pretend and how dark they are, I listened to them lyrics properly for the first time and they were right. I really like Kids too but plenty of the other tracks didn't do much for me. I think they pull from w lot of influences that just don't do much for me. It feels a bit like The Flaming Lips but less interesting and with less heart.
I never really listened all the way but damn these fools kinda fuck
Really not a very good record
pretty good! 4/5
I'm an MGMT fan so there is a bit of bias in this review I've listened to this album multiple times, and wouldn't even consider it the band's best musically out of their discography (that would be Congratulations), however upon a fresh listen I will say that, in terms of message/cohesiveness, this is easily #1. Covering the theme of growing up/looking back on childhood, while including some fantastic beats/mixes along the way, is impressive for a debut album
Liked this a lot more than I thought I would
solid
Fine, the singles are still great but the rest is mainly filler
There’s some decent tunes. Overall, this isn’t quite my vibe but I can understand the loveFor this album.
cool
Time to Pretend Electric Feel Kids
hello years of functional Alcoholism lol
В 2000-х я слушал совсем другую музыку, поэтому внимание на них я обратил значительно позднее. Да и целиком альбом никогда не слушал. Первая часть и правда более сильная, вторая - словно шлейф. The Youth - любимая.
toujours bon à réécouter
Every few years I try and find new music to listen to. Sometime in the 2010s, that led me to MGMT, probably from a list like this. It wasn’t for me then and it still isn’t now.
This really did feel like mid 2000's and took me back to that time. I'll always think of my friend Ben when I listen to MGMT as he introduced me to them way back when. I never had them on regular rotation but knew more of the songs here than I expected. This isn't really my genre of choice but there are a few songs on here that I wouldn't turn off if they came on the radio.
3.25 - Several bangers. Better than their other albums.
Eh
My first listen, it does have nostalgic tones. Two obvious standouts: Kids and Electric Feel, otherwise technically well produced. However, I would only go back for the two standout songs.
Enjoy the song writing, and crafty pop interplay along with the political themes; but can’t say I felt particularly moved by the music as a whole.
got such good vibes of nostalgia from this one. added a few tunes to my favourites. spectacular listen! someone mentioned some david bowie sounds. i definitely hear it. considering bowie is in my top 5 artists of all time, there's no reason for me to not like Oracular Spectacular.
Not bad, reminds me of playing NHL 15
Interesting and off beat but not too quirky
I think this album is really sort of tragic. It starts with maybe one of the most incredible pop songs ever recorded, and then it really just doesn't get close to that height again. And obviously having 10 Time to Pretends on here might be tough, but really there's very few songs that even try. Kids is great (obviously), and Of Moons Birds and Monsters is surprisingly good, but it really just doesn't hit those heights. It's a great showcase of potential though. Favorites: Time to Pretend, Kids, Of Moons Birds and Monsters
What a classic. I've always liked how half the songs in here have a mid-2010's sound, despite being an album from 2007.
Very nostalgic! Super funky and vibey! Makes me appreciate electronic music more! Kind of a banger album ngl
The singles are pretty good, and Kids in particular has a massive nostalgic place in my heart, but overall it's pretty meh. I get that at the time it was kind of fresh and exciting and important in the dancey/indie/synth thing, but there just aren't that many good songs on it
It is difficult to find all that much wrong with this album. It’s wonderful, playful production has aged brilliantly since its release in the 2000s. The bigger tracks, that I knew going into this listen, (Time To Pretend, Electric Feel, Kids) are only strengthened by the excellent ensemble of album cuts. Weekend Wars is a favourite of mine, with the wobbly, spacey instrumentation giving way to a dramatic crescendo. I know MGMT claim that they didn’t take this album all that seriously, but I don’t buy it. This is expertly, deliberately crafted. I hope to hear “Little Dark Age”, another great MGMT album, on this generator one day!!
This is really good. Already liked a lot of their singles but it’s very good as an album too. What’s even more impressive is that this was written as a parody of pop, but ends up being actually great music. Best songs are Time to Pretend, The Youth, Electro Feel, Kids, and The Handshake.
It's MGMT, a classic of my high school years. It's electronic rock, kind of like an 80's revival - but with much more modern drums, synth, and heavy bass. Mostly it's his voice and heavy synth that gives it the 80's electronic vibes. This is a solid album all the way through. The sound is very similar overall, so it feels a bit like the same song all the way through - but their sound is so polished that it doesn't feel boring. I think this might be the first 5 in this project so far.
An enjoyable album of music. Had a great time. I feel like these songs feel more at home as singles on a playlist rather than in a full album like this. Something about the full unit here just didn't coalesce for me in a way I can't really explain.
4.5 - there are some bangerssss on here that i knew, and some bangers i didn't. i liked most of it, but some songs fell through the cracks. high rating bc the ones that go hard go REALLY hard!
3 fantastic songs and a lot of meh
An undeniable note of sadness rings through the whole album, even in it's highest moments. Beautiful album.
The album isn’t great, and the headlining songs that hit for nostalgia reasons are still good, but the overall album does not sound like those songs, which is unfortunate because it was their best sound imo.
For me it’s an okay album overall, probably in the low-mid range. The feeling I got from it was strange but interesting. It almost sounded like the songs were being sung by the kids from Lord of the Flies after they found themselves on that island. There’s this rebellious energy, chaotic and a bit wild. Some of the lyrics are actually pretty interesting, but musically the album feels weak to me. The sound gets repetitive and doesn’t really develop much from track to track. Still, a few songs stood out. The Youth, Pieces of What, and The Handshake were the ones I enjoyed the most.
ASS
so many good ones. a fun album.
A classic album I listened to a lot growing up. Still holds up. 3.5/5.
Good
оч интереснчй, крутой, свежий по заучаниб альбом, немного зафоршен, но есть за что.
Is there a word for the opposite of nostalgia? The overwhelming revulsion at a point in time. A feeling of discomfort at its signifiers. There are some undeniably strong melodies and hooks here. The arrangements are propulsive and neatly engineered. The keyboard timbres make me queasy. The voices are whiny. And the lyrics to Time to Pretend are such a cynically vapid pastiche of the vapid mid-00s culture as to be barely amusing - two years after Nickleback had hit the killing blow with Rockstar. It feels like smugness too late. Indie had lost all credibility when The Shins did a McDonald's ad in 2002. It's just clever boys writing clever music with all the horrible tools at their disposal: plug-ins, pro-tools, some musical education. But no purpose. Nothing to stand for. Perhaps, under different circumstances, these pleasant tunes and catchy hooks could have been put to a better use. But the times were against them. And the times were against Animal Collective. And LCD Soundsystem. And Grizzly Bear. And Panda Bear. And Bon Iver. I don't even think I had a particularly bad time in 2007. It wasn't just me. It couldn't just be me. It was the time's fault. Nobody wants to be reminded of it, right? The opposite of nostalgia is post-traumatic stress. 1.5 Well I like MGMT very much and having said that it feels inadmissible to criticise their debut album as a mess because several of the albums I wish were here instead of their debut, are also a mess. A mess Oracular Spectacular is surely, but its failure, for me, to coalesce into a sympathetic record is even more fundamental than its confusions of style and ambition. It doesn’t have many good songs on it. Kids and Electric Feel, for all their instant, addictive appeal, do not stand up to scrutiny - or being catastrophically overplayed in those first years. RIP Electric Feel and Kids 2007-2010. OS is sometimes simply hard for the ear to tolerate - particular Andrew’s gurning Mick Jagger impressions on Weekend Wars and Pieces of What. Time to Pretend, however, is superb and one of the best things Dave Fridmann ever did - strange then that here, in his pomp as a producer it feels like he is for the most part led, perhaps overruled, by a couple of novices in love with the reverb filters (as we all are the first time we record) and not sure what they sound like. Good for Dave. Of course they dropped him for their next (superb) album and got one of Spacemen 3 in. Good for them. I like MGMT very much. I’ll probably never listen to this album again. 1.5/5
Fantastic album from start to finish.
It didn’t surprise me, but the most popular songs on here were for sure my favorites. The others simply seemed less inspired and less my speed. I do like what they’re doing throughout and see a lot of consistent effort but the most groovy and enjoyable tracks are for sure Time to Pretend, Electric Feel, and Kids. I didn’t particularly dislike any other songs either, simple thought they were good enough in comparison.
Me gusto. Tiene canciones conocidas.
These songs are totally forgetable for me, they contain some catchy melodies but thats it. The most annoying thing for me is the vocal, i dont know how to describe it exactly but every Indie/alternative hipsters music have this; it contains echoing effect and singers are whispering and talk more than sing often.
It's like sunshine indoors
Very nice indie psych-pop record that pays great homage to the psych of decades ago while still sounding fresh and new. There are a few truly excellent pop songs here, while the backhalf forays into weirder territory and a more folky/rock approach. Well-produced, luscious record that’s just a pleasure to listen to.
falopa.
Top heavy. The hits are recognizable, but the rest of the album falls a little flat. 3/5 Probably won't listen again
Strong debut album from a band mocking the idea of fame
Filled with 2000s hipster anthems this album is both a fun and easy listen. Also, lots of nostalgia for me.
A strange album that isn't really great. It has three great songs that I have heard many times over the years and the rest are kinda eh. The 2nd half is pretty mediocre and the lyrics aren't great. Listening to MGMT is for the beats and mood.
Noice
This felt very familiar although I didn’t think I had heard the album before. It’s probably because certain tracks have been sampled to death on TV and in adverts, but also because they sound similar to The Flaming Lips, so I might just be getting confused.
Album #1,067 I don’t know who these guys are, but I feel like I’m supposed to hate this. I didn’t hate it. It was punchy and beat heavy with some unique sounds and melodies. Maybe it won’t hold up to repeat listenings, but I’ll give it at least one more spin.
This wasn't really for me I fear. I felt like a lot of the songs didn't really go anywhere, and while it may have been well-produced, nothing stuck with me enough to go back for a second time.
Another HORRIBLE synth pop electronica piece of trash. 0 stars really needs to be an option.
4+ Stars (12/15)
Overall a good album but some songs weren’t that good
Really great album! Loved it when it came out and still love it. 4.50
iznenađujuće zabavan ima jedna luda stvar
i'm feeling rough, i'm feeling raw, i'm in the prime of my life
Ahh electronica! Some banger hits here but the rest of the album is filler. More of a proof of principle than a real advance in the music. This album = transformative for a certain generation of kids at the time; not transformative for me
Nostalgic for those who were exposed to this at a very impressionable time in their lives (me being one of them). It still gives me the impression to just throw up a bunch of middle fingers to the world while I pretend that I'm growing up while missing the good times.
Bangers abound on this psych pop beauty. Favorite track: Electric Feel
Solid
This was terrible. Unoriginal, vacuous and annoying. I’ve tried to be objective - it’s executed well enough, but for me it can’t be more than a 1.
I thoroughly enjoyed this one. I know a few of the singles but nothing else. 4 stars.
Buenas canciones, muchas las había escuchado pero no sabia de donde eran 8/10
Banger after banger on this one. Feels like a self-discovery journey whilst maintaining an upbeat attitude.
I actually liked this album; I already knew a few of the tracks before listening to it on TikTok. Otherwise, it’s okay.
Not a top 1000 album. Cool songs and shit but just a normal album.
There’s a reason Time to Pretend and Kids are the most popular songs on this album, but there truly are no bad songs. Lots of fun! 8/10
Goeie debuutplaat, paar classics, 3,5
An interesting listen. Fun arrangements. A few hooks. 40 minutes, which is an ideal album length. A good entry on the list.
No skips. Nostalgic. Album of a generation
Time to pretend och kids känns såklart igen! Visste inte att det var MGMT och har inte hört dom i övrigt. Härlig ljudbild med alla synthar. Inte jätteupphetsande i övrigt men dom starka låtarna gör att det blir en 3a.
It's a defently no for me, it doesn't my taste... the sound it's too show for me
Loved this. It felt very nostalgic.
Very fun. Still feels fresh. A bit same-y at times maybe.
Magnificent, what a treat listening to this on a sunny walk in the early evening. Semi-psychedelic in some parts, banging indie anthems in others, very well crafted, what's not to like?
Love this album, so good to hear it again.
The 3 track that’s elevate this are the obvious stand outs and to be honest that isn’t helped by the track ordering but there’s some hidden gems outside of singles to be enjoyed here too. Pretty great album, would have been an outstanding ep
Taken by extreme surprise with this album. I need a second listen but in all this album was way better than its two hits that everyone knows.
Half the songs I loved. Half the others I didn’t care for
2007 comes roaring back with MGMT's "Electric Feel" and "Kids." Great hits. The rest of the album had that enjoyable funky sound.
Pop? Electronic? Dance? What a mongrel sound. That's not a slight and the light, bouncy opening tracks are off to a good start. I'm only familiar with the band's name and I don't have any experience with their music. A contemporary of Arcade Fire's Neon Bible -- which is personal favorite -- it shares some DNA. Complex, competent arrangements and an "epic" & dreamy feel. MGMT is buried behind some vocal effects, has less ennui, and layered in more sounds, but is still as knowledgeable and steeped in their influences. (4/5) A few of the later tracks seem to lose some focus and went from dreamy to forgetful... I will forgive it on the strength of the first half of the album and overall, I like it.
I'd heard of but not listened to MGMT, and what I took to be a club album at first glance evolved into a genre-bending surprise of an album that wore all of its musical influences on both sleeves (despite the cover having none). Shades of The Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel, The Beach Boys, Velvet Underground, Bob Dylan (parts of Pieces of What totally reminded me of The Man in Me), David Bowie, Pink Floyd and Porno for Pyros laid over with the melodic (and sometimes unmelodic) synth pop that stormed to popularity in the early 2000s. More mellow than Matt and Kim or Two Door Cinema Club, and maybe closer to the Flaming Lips (who I always really wanted to like but still don't) or Modest Mouse, I can recognize just as much if not more of the bands that came AFTER them (Capital Cities, Owl City, Temples, Walk the Moon, Ghost of a Sabre Tooth Tiger and Tame Impala) in here. The most played songs per Spotify are certainly highlights (Electric Feel is one of my favs), but 4th Dimensional Transition (a nod to Perry Ferrell?) and Of Moons, Birds and Monsters gave a great addition of psychadelia that I was impressed to see by that point in the album. All of that to say that this one kinda hit me where I am, and I liked it quite a damn sight better than I thought I was going to. For the first time in this list I started an album over as soon as it was finished, and I look forward to exploring some more of their stuff. Definitely worthy of a 4.25/5 to me.
"Everybody's got a bomb/ We could all die any day, oh/ But before I'll let that happen/ I'll dance my life away, oh" Variety: 2 Adequacy: 3 Listenability: 3 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 1 = 2.2 rounded down to 2.0 I very much associate this one with the beginnings of my iPod listening days. For several years my work day was a constant back and forth between podcasts and playlists, and the hits from this featured quite heavily. This is also maybe one of the first albums I went through and cannibalized for the cream of the crop, dropping the rest. yes, I did my part to kill the album as a format. My old iPod still works (technically - screen is barely visible through all the cracks and it has to constantly stay on the charger) and a look-see reveals that I only saved two songs. We'll see if you can guess which two. THE TRACKS "Time to Pretend" - This one is way more memorable than I recall. Not sure why this one got deleted. Hooky, bit funny, and seems like the perfect mission statement for the album. Fun, danceable energy with some light sarcasm and melancholic "we're fucked, but we might as well have a good time" vibes. The repeated childlike synth melody, the rising near the end and the nostalgia-tinged lyrics give this one a deceptive heft. "Weekend Wars" - Turn into a downbeat indie rock here immediately adds some variety, and brings to mind some later bands who would seem to make this song their whole vibe, with the choral up vocals. "The Youth" - Effects laden, quiet bit of jangly twee is step up from the previous track, but in the same mode. These guys got vocal hooks for miles though. This sounds like they may have listened to Beck's Mutations album and taken some good notes. "Electric Feel" - All time classic. If you don't find yourself tapping toes to this, I'm not sure what to say except... my condolences. No surprise this was a radio hit and continues to get heavy play. It's a bit downbeat despite the catchiness. "Kids"- Wow, two in a row. Definition of an ear-worm. Also digging hard into that "sad content/ bouncy melody" dichotomy. The music video for this one is tied heavily into my memory of this one. I've seen this one live and funny to see a giant crowd chanting and jumping up and down to this weirdly dark song while the band has some sort of bargain bin Flaming Lips-ish style stage stuff happening with dozen people throwing stuff around and dancing. "4th Dimensional Transition" - Ooohhh trippy, maaan. I can't tell if these guys are fans of psychedelia or if this is some sort of send up, but this one runs the gamut of influences from the Doorsy organ, to surf rock ( dig that "Wipeout" beat). And yet it all blends well. But does it amount to much? That strumming ending started to get on my nerves though... "Pieces of What" - Throwaway track here. 60's era Rolling Stones seem to be the target here, and while the sound was somewhat successfully evoked, the feeling was most definitely not. Feels unfinished. "Of Moons, Birds & Monsters" - More 60's pastiche stuff going on here, but harder to pin down what the influences are. Not sure this one knows what it wants to be either. "The Handshake" - More of the same, but even less energy somehow. Phenobarbital Rock. "Future Reflections" - Still on the floor here, but at least it's got a bit of a groove to it, and some dynamics. Weak statement to end on though. HIGHLIGHTS - "Electric Feel" and "Kids" are both all time classics in my opinion, and will forever have a place on my 5 star playlist. - "Time to Pretend" LOWLIGHTS - Latter half of this disappoints in comparison with the energy of the first half - Also lacks the synthy hooks of the first half FINAL THOUGHTS I was 27 when this came out, but I think it's one of the first things I remember listening to that made me feel old. This is also around the time I remember it starting to feel like genres were disappearing and everything, even the good stuff, sounded like a collection of influences from the last several decades, but had no identity in and of itself. This one certainly fits the bill. You got electronic, indie rock, folk, psychedelia, baroque pop, maybe a dozen other microgenres represented here. And while it doesn't feel like a complete mess, at least for the first half, the last half is shambling and not as distinct, and suffers wildly in comparison. I read somewhere a while back that the impetus of this album was a more or less cynical attempt to write something that would be intensely radio-friendly, hence all the hooks and upbeat synth pop stuff here. Several of the songs were originally conceived as parodies of what these dudes thought a hit song was. And the dumb throwaway jokes became their biggest hits. Right after they veered far away into more experimental, difficult material. I do distinctly not enjoying the follow up. Mission accomplished I guess, but wish they had further developed in the direction this album points. Seems like maybe a ton of other artists took the ball and ran with it though. Guess my initial thoughts on this one did not change too much. Was hoping this would be a whole album built around the energetic synth pop jams, but those just seem like anomalies dispersed amongst the other tracks. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Drop everything but "Electric Feel", "Kids", and "Time to Pretend"
MGMT missed me. Completely. Their sound. There timing. I’d never heard of this band until last year (2025). Now I know that probably says more about me and my disconnect from popular music at the time than anything else. They hit at a time when I was not listening to anything new and most of my music listening time was given to things like audiobooks. To my ears, this is an unfocused mess. Just a mishmash of influences being tried out to see what sticks. I can see the appeal in the approach but it does not work for me. One intriguing track and the rest sounds like an EA Sports Menu screen . I’ll find my chill music elsewhere. How? How is this included on Rolling Stones 500 greatest albums of all time? Now, I feel like I’m the one being punked.
10/10.
album sounded like summer
Peak indie sleaze. Time to Pretend is great, but the other two big singles haven’t aged super well. Album cuts are just ok in my opinion. Perhaps this is the perspective of someone who lived through this era of synth tone and would be fine never hearing it again, though.
I still jam this album on the treadmill. Fun and fresh, interesting sounds and lyrics.
It's the summer of 2007, I'm sitting in a field that usually houses four softball diamonds in Grant Park, Chicago, drinking a nine-dollar beer at Lollapalooza. Mid-afternoon at a small stage in the Northeast corner, Toadies come on. It's forgettable, mostly, but we huddle close to hear "Possum Kingdom." We make our way to a decent but not perilously close distance to the main stage at the South end of the field. Lupe Fiasco enters doing a backflip and plays an amazing set (IIRC, this is around the time Food & Liquor had come out). After one more set at the small stage, it will be time for the headliner at the main stage, Rage Against the Machine. The undercard at the small stage is a band I'd never heard of and which upon reading its name I called "Management." A few rave-y looking kids went over and huddled around the stage, but mostly people stayed where they were to keep their spots for Rage. Maybe 100 people crowd the small stage, while thousands of others pivot and look across the softball-field sized gap to these two dudes dressed like Steven Tyler playing keyboards. We were right to stay put. The show was underwhelming, sounded whack, and involved a bubble machine. Fuck you, I'm not a child. I mean, the singles on this are fine, but I've heard them a billion times on XRT and am not, like, excited to hear them again. Beyond that, all sound same, boring indie pop. Also, the album title is stupid.
awful.
the second half of the album is missing one or two stronger tracks to really bring the whole album into one massive banger. but damn, i could listen to the first half of the album nonstop, it's perfect.
peak summer music
Favorite youth Beat 8/10 Flow 7.4/10 Start to finish the albums goes from high energy to the end slowing down getting to a sad feel The albums doesn’t really change up on sound until the last 4 songs and stays on the same sound. Night / day Standouts prices of what (slow) guitar instead of synths Of moons birds and monsters. Outro crazy futuristic feel Overall 8.2
holy nostalgie 3.5 tho
Reminds me of getting trampled watching them at Leeds. 7.5
Quelques classiques, c'est cool
Ouais ca c cool
En vrai très sympa tah l’époque
A modern day homage to wish you were here by pink floyd. Some songs I was already familiar with. All in all great album!
Muy bueno y muy bien hecho, es entretenido
Kids has a memorable hook. Other than that, this is pretty forgettable.
Album was pretty good, I already knew about it and enjoyed the songs. It's funny, I really love Electric Feel, but I always thought a remix could make it even better. Fun songs and hold up even today.
Not as good an album as I remember but Time to Pretend, Electric Feel, and Kids obvious bangers.
Kind of merges together, the songs all feel very similar. Not really my type of music, but I can appreciate it’s vibe and it’s hits are indeed bangers
I've never heard of this band. The music on the album was okay, although I'm not quite sure why it's on the list. I might listen to it again, but I'm not sure. 3/5
Great first half, a bit bored by the b-side.
Got lost between the songs. Loved i heard some songs from old fifa games
The album is fine - short, lots of similar songs. Plenty of memories listening to this when it was new. I mean the idea of MGMT is cool - the two kids in school making tunes - and they are amazing tunes, no doubt there. Weekend Wars is cool - I like them, never loved, but they have their place
Me gustó mucho, tiene vibras cage the elephant (social cues más que nada)
A vibe a great time. What classic.
i loved this album a lot when i was like 14, i think it’s maybe not as good as i thought it was. but i do still like it
This has never been my favorite band, but I'm glad they stopped trying to do things like 'Electric Feel' and 'Kids,' because I don't think those songs are very good. This whole album is patchy but Fridmann's production is really good, I adore 'Time to Pretend.' 'Of Moons, Birds & Monsters' was the one that stood out to me this time around. WEIRD ONE!!!!
Lot of iconic melodies, however other songs feels a bit bland
Some good stuff, however became tiresome after the first two or three tunes.
Me hace sentir solo.
Lo escuché millones de veces. Le tengo mucho cariño.
Good highs, some hits, most of the rest are like mid
Kids is a 5 star banger. Rest of album - including the other singles is not as good as I remembered. Feels a bit soulless and formulaic.
Three bangers and a good one on the album, but the rest isn't as magical as I remembered. Still solid and a good listen.
It's funny when people were surprised that these two weirdo's second album wasn't all pop hits. Won't lie that I'm also here for the bangers but they're also doing some interesting stuff in the more psych areas.
A four for nostalgia.
Joya millenial
It’s giving commercial background music
Time to Pretend and Kids feature some of the most iconic synth riffs this side of 2000. Beyond those hits and the catchy Electric Feel, there's not much that stands out besides lyrics that range from inane (The Youth) to cringeworthy. According to MGMT, childhood consists of picking bugs or worms from their natural habitat, and an attractive girl is best compared to an electric eel. Clearly, we're best off not thinking this through too deeply. The music has some interesting points - the percussion on 4th Dimensional Transition calls Vampire Weekend to mind, and the dreamlike backing instrumentals of The Youth are pleasant, though the song begins to annoy by the finish. However, this is an altogether uneven effort held afloat by the inescapable synth hits.
3.4 stars
Some big hits and a very certain vibe - this isn't an album held up by the 2 songs we all know
I know 3 of the songs here (Time to Pretend, Electric Feel and Kids) pretty well! They were unavoidable around the time and I dare say they were used in some snowboarding movies, which I was watching a fair few of at the time and I think all 3 of them are great and undeniably catchy! They help to make up quite a strong first half to the album, even though the other 2 tracks aren't at that level. But because of that, it's very front-loaded, and the second half drops off quite a bit with nothing really to anchor it, it really just drifts until the end.
I really like this album. I love the three mega-hit singles which are still heard constantly, and the rest of the album is made up of more experimental stuff which doesnt stick with you as much but is still great fun to listen to. 8/10
3.5 or something but gets a boost to 4 stars rather than 3 for “kids” alone
Monia tiesin, ne mitä en niin oli hyviä. Kuuntelin salilla.
They had quite a few hits off this album. The ones that ended up being popular make sense because the rest are just a bit too repetitive and not as interesting. Overall fine album
Fun album! You can't really do better than KIDS (well they arguably would, with My Little Dark Age but that's another story). Lots of great ideas, and great hooks, it's just that Kids does it better really. It's the soundtrack of a specific and nostalgic time for many people, but it really does encapsulate those freshman years, the feeling of it; partying, discovering and feeling a little weird sometimes maybe, even if, it wasn't part of yours. Kids Youth (might be my number two!)
Great album. Very creative. Brings back good memories
lol what the hell
There were a couple huge hits and a lot of synth noodling without purpose
Truthfully a 3.5. I feel like a lot of the songs sound the same but when there's a banger, you know its a banger. Anything outside of Time to Pretend, Electric Feel, and Kids is just kinda mid but still enjoyable though.
Очень вайбово и легко. Но скорее не мой жанр, чем мой
A waste of a few catchy riffs.
Not super interesting, did what it needed to and was nice for some ambient background though
Love these guys and this album!
4 out of 5 I like the guys and this was a really good album. Excellent newish Alternative rock. EDIT: I did not realize this album is 19 years old! Jane's Addiction, the Cure, and 89X are old AltRock; this is newer. I am so old haha.
The first half of this album (through Kids) is incredible and then it falls off. All filler in the second half, but the first half of the album is nothing but perfect pop hooks.
Nope. Radio friendly bull shit.
Альбом с хорошими вайбами, под такую долгую поездку вечернюю или прогулку, напоминают детство, но не прям мое, не слушала бы на постоянке, поэтому 3.5/5
I know a bunch of the songs there all nice
Heard part of it before but it was nice to hear the rest
A few of these songs have been in such heavy rotation for the past decade that I never gave the rest of the album a chance. Solid album all the way through. I’m glad to spend some time with it.
ностальгия со светлой грустью. место, которое ты не можешь описать словами, чтобы передать то, как оно ощущается. 9,2/10
3 mocne single - reszta to po prostu okej album.
I like it. Sounds like every band in the 2000's and 2010's, but it's good.
А это не так плохо на самом деле, несмотря на одну заебавшую в свое время песню отсюда
Very chill, loved it, had an annoying case of indie voice every once in a while.
4/5 So refreshing and fun. It sounds way more modern than it is. Good album.
good vibes only
Pretty fun album at just the perfect length.
Great album with electric-feeling like songs. Irregular sound for me
fifa classic
got sum bangrs
This indie pop/rock duo busted through in the late 2000s with a number of distinct and quirky singles ("Time To Pretend", most notably) but the remainder of this record also contains other terrific variations on their unique psychedelia-infused vision. The tracks on this album are full of melodic hooks, unique synthesizer tones and oddball lyrics. (The double-tracked vocals do get a little tiring after a while, but that's a minor complaint.) Not every song sticks the landing, but there are more hits than misses here.
Loved this when it first came out, still sounds great. 2nd album was even better I thought
Another album that I know most of the songs off of. it is absolutely a moment in time. The lead singer sounds exactly like an old friend of mine which increases the nostalgia. I revisit this album occasionally.
4 stars Music drenched in the aughts.
Pretty fire teenage rock Feels familiar but fresh at the same time, very nostalgic even though it was released before I was born. Diverse listening experience, kinda experimental at times.
songs from this album have been playing on the radio my entire life and I was born in 2008...pretty impressive idk
A true gem of 2000s pop. Three absolute bangers with Kids, Electric Feel, and Time to Pretend, which are fully good enough to carry the album even if the other tracks aren't quite as good. It's just a fun time. 4/5
Fun electro-pop album that takes me back to simpler times. Unfortunately none of the lesser known tracks come close to the big hits, but the most well-known songs are some of the most fun you'll ever hear. Some of the best singles you can listen to. Top tracks: Time To Pretend, Electric Feel, Kids
I enjoy a bit of MGMT from time to time, although I tend to go for their second album rather than Oracular Spectacular. I enjoyed this. The singles are poppy and upbeat. The rest of the album is a bit more downtempo, but worth listening to. It's not quite enough to get a five, but it's a strong four.
i have listened to this already it was fun
Weird to find this on the list. Not sure I needed to revisit this but giving it a passing score for nostalgia.
Honestly, I did not enjoy this album. While I am by no means saying it's not good, because it is, I could just never relate to MGMT sound. Maybe it was too artsy for my taste, maybe too experimental in some ways, or maybe it's the keyboard and the electric parts, which I have not loved even in the bands I absolutely adore, such as The Who and The Doors. All in all, I have to give credit where credit is due - sound on Oracular Spectacular sounds innovative, brazen and even fun at times. I obviously knew Kids even before this listen, and that intro sequence is just a vibe. Vocals on this are just not my thing. While I have no knowledge of music in any sense other than my limited subjective enjoyment, the vocal is kinda grinding my ears, and the same goes for higher notes throught the songs. Overall, I would say that there is no doubt this album was influential and spectacularly produced. While I don't enjoy the vocal or the melodies, I respect the innovation and understand this is a question of taste, not quality. With that in mind, I will be rating this album purely on how much I enjoyed it, not on any more objective criteria.
I know this band already, but they're already getting me with the first song. I know I'm gonna like this album. Ok listening to the whole album...YES. THIS WAS SO NICE TO LISTEN TO!
Drei Superhits, eine von denen hat man eigentlich in jeder Indie Disko zwischen 2007 und 2017 gehört. Der Rest ist auch noch ziemlich okay gealtert.
Flashy ride to the past. Habs damals rauf und runter gehört. Weiß jetzt wieder warum.
Enjoyable fluff. 3.5
I couldn’t get into this. There were a few tracks I mildly enjoyed but nothing really grabbed my attention.
Meh, couldn't finish it.
This album is a cavalcade of ideas both musically and in terms of production. It stands up well in 2026. Truly front loaded but a solid set of songs. It’s crazy for a band to have three genuinely generational hits on their debut album. The hype was real, it didn't expand too much beyond this and the follow up but that’s not the band’s fault. People are fickle and it’s hard to sustain a vibe like this for long. This is a very good pop record and well worth revisiting if you were there in 2007 or whatever. Best: Time to Pretend, Electric Feel, Future Reflections Worst: (I can’t fault this record, it’s watertight)
what the hell sure...... pieces of what??? pieces of WHAT??????????? 3.5
That second half drop off should be studied
You could call this modern classic, some elite elite songs, also some weak parts at the end. Wouldn’t give it 5 stars partially cause it’s not really my taste, but I wouldn’t balked at the idea
Classic
An unexpected delight. Great hooks.
Most of it isn’t really my jam but “Electric Feel” is a great song.
I didn’t hate it but it was nothing special. 2.5
im gonna be honest i was trying to buy a pair of airpods with a shit ton of gift cards during the first half of this album, and it took more of my cognitive power than i expected. but i know the 3 most famous songs from this album so it's not far from what i expected. but yeah good vibes