Nicola Kiely<\/p>\n
Released February 9th <\/u><\/p>\n
American duo Andrew VanWyngarden and Benjamin Goldwasser, better known as MGMT<\/strong>, are back with a fourth studio album following a five year break away from the studio. They returned keen to impress listeners after previous albums Congratulations (2010<\/em>) and MGMT (2013)<\/em> failed to live up to expectations set from their debut Oracular Spectacular (2007). <\/em><\/p>\n Their latest release Little Dark Age (2018)<\/em> takes a stylistic turn from their previous indie sound, now tending towards a psychedelic pop sound which relies heavily on synthesizers and gives off a fun 80\u2019s vibe. You\u2019d be forgiven for confusing the intro to several songs with those from Tame Impala <\/strong>or Kraftwerk.<\/strong><\/p>\n The LP opens with the upbeat She Works Out Too Much<\/em>, a catchy number detailing todays obsession with our appearance and how others perceive us. The track is accompanied by a voiceover who is simultaneously coaching an exercise class. This self-obsession theme is explored again in the later track TSLAMP <\/em>(Time Spent Looking At My Phone) where our dependency on our mobile phones is the forefront of the lyrics.<\/p>\n Title track Little Dark Age<\/em> is the second song on the album, a detailed account of the gloomy world we live in, with the ever upsetting current affairs and news updates that we cannot escape from.<\/p>\n Later tracks One Thing Left To Try<\/em> and the Pink Floyd<\/strong> sounding When You\u2019re Small <\/em>both give a sense of the ups and downs of life. Despite the saddening nature of both songs, ultimately they provide a positive outlook by stating that there is a solution to the problem, it just has yet to be discovered.<\/p>\n The album closes with the calming, dream-like Hand It Over<\/em>, which sounds like a nod to their previous sound heard on their debut album.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Despite this album being a shift in the traditional MGMT <\/strong>sound we are familiar with (Electric Feel, Time To Pretend) <\/em>it seems that the band has taken some time away to reinvent their aesthetic for the better, as opposed to their \u201910 \/ \u201913<\/em> albums.<\/p>\n Tracks to listen to:<\/strong> TSLAMP \/ Little Dark Age \/ One Thing Left To Try<\/p>\n Rating:<\/strong> 3.5 \/ 5<\/p>\n <\/p>\n