4.2
A sincere and direct album influenced by Meatloaf’s piano balladry and the might of Elden Ring’s in-game soundtrack.
OVERVIEW
Thanks to popular culture, the likes of MGMT are coming back in conversation again due to the apt feature of Time to Pretend on popular Amazon picture Saltburn that has taken the world by storm. But many would know the name of MGMT already through their pinnacle first release, Oracular Spectacular. The duo’s name is more than just nostalgia fodder or a TikTok trend for the vacant. They were once a cornerstone unmoved. An album of the year from all corners of music and their critics alike, the approachable feel-good indie electronics of the album was classic 00’s indie and a youthful “the-world-is-your-oyster” summer soundtrack for many. Like with a lot of debuts, the album portrayed the bands’ best of the best – and it was an album that would be one in a million.
Flash forward ten plus years, and we see the duo piggyback off this with Little Dark Age in 2018 which was met with similar critical acclaim after the pair returned to more “label friendly” ideas; following a stint of ignoring the conformity and making the type of weird sh*t they wanted to make.
Now, the pairing are back this year with simmered 10-track Loss Of Life. A far cry from their previous four, the album is dowsed in yearning acoustics, power ballads and ’80s excess as the duo return with a slick prowess of dexterity and songwriting maturity.
SONG-TO-SONG
You could argue that their fifth successive record was the duo’s continual arc of fine form, certainly from Little Dark Age. No song better represents than the stalwart stand-outs of Mother Nature, Bubblegum Dog and Nothing to Declare. All three reprise their roles in reflecting MGMT’s MO: stalwart acoustics-turned-electric synth warbling. Mother Nature is a whimsical dream-fantasy frolic in the fields, Bubblegum Dog is a busy back-and-forth of sizzling synths as a looming sense of impending doom edges ever closer – despite avoiding it for so long. While Nothing to Declare is a lush break away, a Beatles-inflected acoustic – “The worlds my Fine de Claire / My Spanish castle in the sky / I can see it floating there / But still, there’s nothing to define.”
A surprise feature of Christine and the Queen is met on equally surprising Dancing in Babylon. A warped Elton John-esque ballad of gleaming Meatloaf-inspired piano breaks dispels the thought that their best ideas are far behind them. Nothing Changes is another glowing shift that has a compelling turnout in sound and instrumentation. A beautiful mark met with gut-punching lyrics on getting through the system of life, wondrous trumpet accompaniment and otherworldly synth markings – “This is what the birds must have been squawking about / Right before the dream was ending / And maybe you’d have heard if you’d stopped fucking around / When it was time to stop pretending / That I could change and I wouldn’t be here” – with some of the best worked lyrics on the record.
“On Little Dark Age, there are themes that deal with being on a major label and lyrics about feeling shitty in a world dominated by technology that makes everything cheap. This album, it feels like we both wanted to do something that was a new challenge to us, which is to be really direct and sincere and still be lighthearted and cheeky.”
Andrew VanWyngarden talking to Vulture on Loss Of Life
Of course however, with such expansive stand-outs, there may be some tracks here lost in the crowd. People in the Streets shows good promise but doesn’t seem to go anywhere further, while Phradie’s Song is empowering in an instrumental setting, but doesn’t stand tall as its own entity.
However, it ends just as strong as it did starting out with self-titled Loss of Life – a searing crescendo of dreamy operatic brilliance as the pair throw everything but the kitchen sink at it. A true reflection of the bands’ nature in it not being radio-friendly in the slightest, but a duo that are just as original as they are inquisitive in colour.
manvmusic.com 
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