Congratulations
Three years after their 2007 debut, MGMT subtly reinvent themselves. *Congratulations* still bursts with color, but the antic edges have been sanded down—well, save for the garage-rock freak-out of “Brian Eno,” a hyperactive tribute to the ambient icon. “It’s Working” crisply revamps Phil Spector’s wall of sound; “Song for Dan Treacy” plays nimble cat-and-mouse with ‘60s organ and falsetto vocals. “Congratulations” wraps up with a wry take on the perils of stardom—the spiritual flip side to their debut’s fanciful “Time to Pretend.”
MGMT follow the surprise hit Oracular Spectacular by teaming with Spacemen 3's Sonic Boom for a leftfield psych-pop LP bereft of obvious singles.
A deep plunge into murky waters, MGMT’s follow-up to its breakout 2007 album, Oracular Spectacular, will turn away listeners expecting a string of soundtrack-friendly sort-of hits like “Kids” and “Time To Pretend.” That’s almost certainly by design, since nobody makes an album as dense and immersive as Congratulations…
Career suicide, heinous art, and no regard for their fanbase. Those have been the three themes bandied about in early appraisals of Congratulations.
The album is a mildly interesting listen, but proves to be nothing less than a regression into ennui-drenched acid folk mimicry.
“I hope I die before I get sold,” quips MGMT towards the end of Congratulations.
MGMT's second album offeres diamonds lurking amid the distractions, reckons <strong>Dave Simpson</strong>
MGMT's Congratulations sounds like a deliberate attempt to shake off casual listeners. Rating: * * *
And for their next trick... Lovably weird adventures in psychedelia from the shape-shifting Brooklynites.