MGMT
Climbing to New Lows

THE REVIEW

Year 2005.

The unknown MGMT (known at the time by the "proto"-name "The Management") release under an independent label their first work, entirely curated by the two founding members (and the cover), from the fertile and creative minds of this sweet musical surprise, namely the androgynous handsome Andrew VanWyngarden and the "nerd with a bookish air" Ben Goldwasser (surely he is the "mind" behind the group's works).

Listening carefully to the debut album in question, we can notice how in the sound and atmospheres, today's two "hipsters" are musically far removed from the surf rock reality mixed with the acid psychedelic folk that, in 2012, represents the scene in the States: exclusively electronic sounds and very "80s" synth bases, and then their trademark, found in every EP, B-Sides, etc., refreshingly witty lyrics, catchy non-sense choruses, and anthemic.

Youth alienation, rejection of pre-imposed societal models, desire for a "return to nature" and constant invocation of the famous motto "Living Fast Dying Young" (which in the end represents their whole "manifesto", identifiable in their most famous song Time to Pretend).

This CD is to be listened to in one breath, such is the ease of absorbing the tunes and appreciating its danceability, with its good half-hour of fresh and energetic pop it will be impossible not to start tapping your feet, unless you are a punkabbestia and hate pop by default.

In any case, the evolution of these guys is curious: a first album entirely electronic, an album (the one that introduced them to the masses) chart-topping pop, and a last one dated 2010 that evokes a lot of the 1960s Californian atmospheres, those in which something (and more than something) was moving and giving signs of innovation, creativity, and purity of sound, and who knows if these two might reveal themselves to be truly more than just a surprise in this aspect.

Considering the way things are going, it would have been more logical for them to debut with a refined album (the last one they published), move on to the electronic album, and finally to the chart-topper, however they chose to rightly go against the current (and indeed now few pay attention to them, there are those who only know Kids): very courageous.

Their fourth work will be out in a few months (we're talking about scorching psychedelia): I will await them at the crossing..