MGMT debuted with ‘Oracular Spectacular’ in 2008, a mostly commercially viable indie pop record, that spawned a multitude of hits that you’ll no doubt have heard played at literally any indie club night you’ve been to. Despite the level of critical acclaim for the album, it was clear that MGMT weren’t the most fond of being forced into making pop music to achieve success, as evidenced by the ironic lyrics of some of their biggest songs. Two years later, they released their answer to this: Congratulations, an electronic, psychedelic journey where no song could be picked for commercial airplay.
One thing MGMT nailed in their ever-growing quest to denounce their pop origins, is the ability to take you on a ride through multi-faceted songs. Some of the most popular songs on this album, such as Flash Delirium and Siberian Breaks, rely on multi-segmented structures. For the former, it almost sounds as if the band members are becoming more psychotic with each layer introduced. The song takes you through some recognisable psych-pop soundscapes, before holding things back with a choir vocal section, before finally pushing the song even further into interstellar overdrive in it’s frantic ending the likes of which you can only picture the band members' heads exploding as they finish.
Siberian Breaks on the other hand, is the perfect twelve-minute, multi-faceted example of the commercially-viable rejection that appears on Congratulations. Getting through the track feels like a journey. It introduces you with familiar territory - a folky chord progression before alleviating into a gentle, swaying psychedelic melody. Soon enough you’ll be thrust into an adventure with its dreamy highs and slower, melancholic lows. At times the music progresses through some sections with colder acoustic guitars and other sections with warmer synths that warp through the instrumentation. The song makes me feel like I’m sludging through the Siberian Alps on acid. Before you finally leave this adventure, the band gives you an outro that consists entirely of synthesisers, which only helps to emphasise and place importance upon the wide range of instrumentation and sounds that this song uses to take you on it’s adventure.
One aspect that greatly benefits the sound of Congratulations was the introduction of Spacemen 3 synthesiser maestro Pete “Sonic Boom” Kember in the production role. Almost 20 years after the success of his work with shoegaze pioneers Spacemen 3, and Kember has proved that he never really did kick the shroom addiction. Congratulations is complete with Kember’s use of tremolo, delay and layered synths that really give the album it’s warbling and colourful synthesiser setup. The glittering synths and dreamy soundscape of the title track is a definite standout for his work.
It’s elements like the introduction of Kember that really make Congratulations what it is. MGMT wanted to shrug off their electronic pop roots and make an album that embraced their influences, so it’s no surprise that the Spacemen 3 member was placed in the production role. Adding to this are songs such as Brian Eno, and Song For Dan Treacy, both of which pay tribute to the musical icons in their title, who are evidently massive influences for the band’s mix of post-punk, psychedelia and electronic music.
As an album, Congratulations doesn’t really do anything wrong. It takes the sound of the band’s debut and pushes it in a direction that seeks to explore it. However, that exploration didn’t lead to MGMT seeking another set of smash indie-pop hits. Instead it takes risks with its attempts to take you on a psychedelic journey through MGMT’s influences, madness and attention to detail.
One thing MGMT nailed in their ever-growing quest to denounce their pop origins, is the ability to take you on a ride through multi-faceted songs. Some of the most popular songs on this album, such as Flash Delirium and Siberian Breaks, rely on multi-segmented structures. For the former, it almost sounds as if the band members are becoming more psychotic with each layer introduced. The song takes you through some recognisable psych-pop soundscapes, before holding things back with a choir vocal section, before finally pushing the song even further into interstellar overdrive in it’s frantic ending the likes of which you can only picture the band members' heads exploding as they finish.
Siberian Breaks on the other hand, is the perfect twelve-minute, multi-faceted example of the commercially-viable rejection that appears on Congratulations. Getting through the track feels like a journey. It introduces you with familiar territory - a folky chord progression before alleviating into a gentle, swaying psychedelic melody. Soon enough you’ll be thrust into an adventure with its dreamy highs and slower, melancholic lows. At times the music progresses through some sections with colder acoustic guitars and other sections with warmer synths that warp through the instrumentation. The song makes me feel like I’m sludging through the Siberian Alps on acid. Before you finally leave this adventure, the band gives you an outro that consists entirely of synthesisers, which only helps to emphasise and place importance upon the wide range of instrumentation and sounds that this song uses to take you on it’s adventure.
One aspect that greatly benefits the sound of Congratulations was the introduction of Spacemen 3 synthesiser maestro Pete “Sonic Boom” Kember in the production role. Almost 20 years after the success of his work with shoegaze pioneers Spacemen 3, and Kember has proved that he never really did kick the shroom addiction. Congratulations is complete with Kember’s use of tremolo, delay and layered synths that really give the album it’s warbling and colourful synthesiser setup. The glittering synths and dreamy soundscape of the title track is a definite standout for his work.
It’s elements like the introduction of Kember that really make Congratulations what it is. MGMT wanted to shrug off their electronic pop roots and make an album that embraced their influences, so it’s no surprise that the Spacemen 3 member was placed in the production role. Adding to this are songs such as Brian Eno, and Song For Dan Treacy, both of which pay tribute to the musical icons in their title, who are evidently massive influences for the band’s mix of post-punk, psychedelia and electronic music.
As an album, Congratulations doesn’t really do anything wrong. It takes the sound of the band’s debut and pushes it in a direction that seeks to explore it. However, that exploration didn’t lead to MGMT seeking another set of smash indie-pop hits. Instead it takes risks with its attempts to take you on a psychedelic journey through MGMT’s influences, madness and attention to detail.
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