Oracular Spectacular

MGMT - Oracular Spectacular
Critic Score
Based on 23 reviews
2007 Ratings: #181 / 717
User Score
2007 Rank: #85
Liked by 495 people
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CRITIC REVIEWS

90
Alternative Press

Oracular may be a complex effort, but the verdict is simple--it's brilliant.

80
Q Magazine

Oracular Spectacular is a triumph of conceptual ambition, a series of fantastic voyages that avoids any of the navel-gazing such notions normally provoke.

80
musicOMH
Hugely enjoyable and wonderfully disposable pop for the listener, who will turn round and return for more, no question. An auspicious debut.
80
The Observer
Key to the pair's charm, though, is their sincerity, whether they're crafting Hall and Oates-style rock'n'soul or psychedelia.
80
AllMusic

In typical Fridmann fashion, Oracular Spectacular is a glamorous mega-production through and through.

80
NME
For all its musical philandering, unbridled excess and shrouds of irony, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a record with more musical depth and warmth all year than this one.
80
Prefix
It's a confident debut, one that features two young musicians reveling in their abilities and perhaps discovering ones they didn't know they had.
80
Under the Radar
Though the record is slightly front-loaded, there's nary a dud to be found here.
80
DIY
It'd be a shame if 'Oracular Spectacular''s all-over-the-place pop was lost under the stampede of other New York buzz bands vying for your attention now we've reached 2008 - it's one of the best and most unexpectedly accomplished records the borough's produced in ages.
80
The Skinny

The competition for best debut album of 2008 has thus far been fierce, but with Oracular Spectacular MGMT have tossed their hat into the ring in extravagant style.

80
Uncut

A sugary feast for the senses.

80
The Guardian
Electric Feel is razor-sharp funk, Pieces of What sounds like the Pixies at their perkiest, and 4th Dimension Transition is the sound of Joe Meek spinning merrily in his grave. All this energy somehow comes together as one, making the whole package so radio-friendly it's practically kissing your aerial.
70
Sputnikmusic
The “IT” band of the moment creates an album that is as accessibly poppy as much as it is adventurously different. Too inconsistent and not enough standout tracks to come into ‘Album of the Year’ contention though.
70
God Is in the TV

Developing their noisy electronic live soundscapes into definable songs has taken them through various outfits and art projects until they finally felt comfortable to commit their work to tape. Their debut album Oracular Spectacular is the result: a swirling collage of ideas born on instruments and computers in their Brooklyn homes.

70
Rolling Stone
Lips producer Dave Fridmann helmed MGMT's debut disc, fluffing their glitchy daydream rock into an intergalactic odyssey.
70
Drowned in Sound

Oracular Spectacular is a fine record. A blissful blend of gurgling psychedelia, proggy synth and acid-fried ‘70s west coast hippiness, it’s as playful, uplifting and involving a record as you’d hope to hear this early into the year. What it doesn’t do though, is assure you that this is an essential album that demands long-term replays and loving care.

68
Pitchfork

MGMT find kindred spirits in Muse and Mew by dressing their melodies in the fanciful trappings of 1970s British prog, but unlike their contemporaries the duo also weaves in lessons from disco, new-wave synth-pop, and early 90s Britpop.

60
The Independent
Formerly known as The Management, the Brooklyn duo of Ben Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden deal in what they call "Future Seventies" music, by which one supposes they mean repossessing the sounds and styles of that decade within a loose fantasy/sci-fi framework.
60
Tiny Mix Tapes

It's about time electro-glam stopped taking itself seriously. So while hype sweethearts MGMT have made some unfortunate stylistic choices on their debut, Oracular Spectacular, at least they're charming about it.

50
PopMatters
It is dripping with irony and awfully self-aware.
45
Coke Machine Glow

The two Wesleyan graduates pick Dave Fridmann as their producer, put together a five-piece touring band, and then they make Oracular Spectacular and it is logically a bloated, uncomfortable, saturated throwback to no genre, time period, or movement in particular.

zachthesnack
77

This album is carried by Time To Pretend, Electric Feel and Kids

But honestly those songs are SO FUCKING AMAZING so do you really need any more than that!?

rguitar
100

One of my favorite albums of all time.
The kind of recordings that will stay here long after we're gone.

Gustavstone07
70

Some good stuff, but it does feel like the band's heart wasn't really in it when making this album.

The Time to Pretend EP caught the eye of Columbia Records, who signed MGMT onto the label in 2006. The label wanted more of the sounds featured on the EP, which was not the best news for the band. At this point in their career, MGMT started to grow tired of the satirical take on pop that they had been doing for the past few years. They never really wanted to be known for that kind of music, but ... read more

tompa
62

Time to pretend and kids carried, the rest of this is boring/nothing crazy (i can't take electric feel seriously bcs of that guy jumping)

denkirena
65

Thought it was pretty boring outside of the 3 huge singles.

SoupSlam
83

Electric Feel

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