oracular spectacular (mgmt)
This is a stylistically interesting album- some of the songs sound like electronic indie rock anthems; many other tracks strongly evoke various influences and classic musicians- particularly in the vocals. In certain songs the singer adopts the vocal style of Bowie, the Rolling Stones, and CSNY. Other thant that, some standouts: the drippy, anthemic, hedonistic opener, “Time to Pretend,” and the cool, intriguing “Of Moons, Birds and Monsters” which I'm still trying to figure out, in a good way.
The album is generally all right but absolutely maxes out in the middle with back-to-back huge singles. “Electric Feel” is my favorite, the song that introduced me to this band. Sexy, sultry, tropical disco, with a real forcefulness to it. “Kids” immediately follow. An alternate version of this song appears on Climbing to New Lows, but I prefer this version- there's more of a unity, a synthetic surge to it. I remember hearing this one at night, in a car full of friends on a fast highway, and that feels like the ideal circumstance to experience this song.
Overall a good record. I don't think I'd really listen to the album again- those two huge singles are great, the rest of the record can't hold up to them. But there are a few tracks that are certainly worth some more listens, and across the board they're good at their sound.
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