MGMT concert in Leeds..[1] [2]
[3] [4]
electro
and psychedelic pop which entwine around each other perfectly. Played
live the song is mesmerising and if the rest of the gig carries on
like this, we’re all in for a good night.
‘4th Dimensional
Transition’ is one
of the more alternative tracks on the album, falling into the psychedelic rock
genre of one of the many flavours of ‘Oracular Spectacular’. A strange
song etched on MGMT’s debut album, can they do it any justice tonight?
It doesn’t work as well as ‘Future Reflections’, but it still
manages to get the audience singing along and pushing ever closer towards the
stage. It doesn’t compare to ‘The Youth’, however. It is the
slow melodies and the smooth chorus which get the audience singing along to this
one, and played live it almost brings a magical element in to the room. It provides
a soothing break from the fast pace of what the gig has been so far, and perfectly
depicts what MGMT’s music is all about: a fast whirl through all sorts
of genres, before placing you gently back down on your feet to recover for a
few moments, and suddenly speeding you off on your musical journey once again.
‘The
Youth’ finished,
it is ‘Electric Feel’ which brings us back into the fantasy world
of MGMT, and as one of the most well known tracks and one of the only tracks
on the album that you are able to “dance” to, the crowd soon begin
moving on the dance floor. Similar to the ‘The Youth’, ‘Electric
Feel’ has that element of romance about it, but it is almost hailing its
hippy ancestors with the slight drum beat and relaxed, almost summery feel. Laidback
and sublime, it is only towards the end of the song that the band suddenly breaks
loose of the hippy vibe and you can truly hear the influences of David Bowie,
circa ‘The Man Who Sold The World’, nestled among the chords.
‘Weekend
Wars’ throws us once again head on into
the warp of musical genres and fantasy. Indeed, all the songs have an element
of fantasy in them and by rushing us, pacing us and then throwing ideas our way,
it makes us question whether we too should live our lives through imagination
and playacting. This certainly is the question on ‘Time to Pretend’,
which sends the crowd into a frenzy, jumping about and crushing together. To
add to this sense of hype and fun, MGMT play out the opening chords for at least
a minute longer than on the album, whilst people begin chanting along. There
are cheers as the first lyrics are sung and since it’s the song which was
played on the finalé of teen drama ‘Skins’, everyone here
tonight under the age of 25 is bound to know it, and know it they do, singing
along to every word. As the opener of the debut album, the chorus tells us that
we are “fated to pretend”, and it is the playacting of MGMT which
creates much of ‘Oracular Spectacular’. Depicting the rock n’ roll
lifestyle here on ‘Time to Pretend’, they shy away from it on further
tracks but always keep that element of fantasy and imagination, inviting us to
do the same.
Again, the pace slows down to ‘Pieces
of What’, MGMT’s best ballad (even more so than ‘The
Youth’) with its poignant moments of nostalgic reminiscing. It
almost seems like a coming of age for the album, with Andrew Van Wyn
Garden singing about “pieces of what we used to call home”.
This is a moment where MGMT draws back from their world of fantasy
and playacting to question the reality of events been and gone. There
is certainly a hint again of David Bowie....
Gallivanting in the Lake District >