Little Dark Age (MGMT)—Album Review
"Here we go, another pretentious nihilism album."
Album cover
That was my initial reaction to MGMT's gothic fourth studio album, Little Dark Age (2018), following a few skimmed-over listens to several of its offerings. But something intrigued me about this collection. The darkness had a dazzle, and more importantly, it had a point... so I reentered the shadows and took an honest stab at Little Dark Age in its entirety.
To my delight, I discovered that my initial recoil response gradually relaxed into a deep love for the album. Several songs required more thorough listening. Appreciation eventually met adjustment to and acceptance of the style at hand, and so I soon found, after a long walk with nothing but LDA in my ears, that it's one of the best albums I've ever heard.
My introduction to MGMT was through their fame-spiking debut singles, "Electric Feel" and "Kids." Coworkers repeatedly played them, drawing me to the magnetic instrumentation and time signatures. These pop songs had a special flavor I hadn't encountered before.
Andrew VanWyngarden (left) and Ben Goldwasser (right)—together, MGMT.
Unfortunately, once accustomed to MGMT sounding a certain way and having never been exposed to the style they much more frequently create, I didn't understand Little Dark Age. Why so bizarre? So needlessly edgy? The album echoes the uneasy atmosphere that has shrouded the West since 2016, infused with jabs of sardonic humor, melancholia, and existential crisis-like contemplations. Frankly, I was (and still am) exhausted from the culture's constant emphasis on darkness.
But then I ventured more into MGMT's first album, Oracular Spectacular (2007) and their controversial second album, Congratulations (2010), and acquainted myself with their philosophy and approach to music. Doing so enabled me to discover the exceptional musicianship initially hidden from me under layers of unfamiliarity and prejudice in all eras of their work. By the time the final song concluded on my complete play-through of Little Dark Age, I was shaking my head and muttering, "That was fantastic."
Oracular Spectacular (2007), the debut
2023 has been a year of palate sophistication and expansion. For once, I understand what "good music" truly is. Now I'd like to share the results of my latest findings.
The Album Breakdown
Little Dark Age elegantly weaves the retro elements of synth-pop with modern production quality and technology. It's writhing with energy and bursting with old-school flavor but remains centered around a futuristic, almost science-fiction sound.
It could be classified as dark synth-pop, alternative electronic pop, and psychedelic pop for its otherworldly qualities. Original to the core, it's a puzzling experience initially but will quickly carve a home in the hearts of those who respect its intriguing and relentlessly creative play. Love it or hate it—or whichever feeling you settle on after a few thoughtful listens—this weird little album isn't quite like anything else in its realm.
Little Dark Age promotional photo
Little Dark Age contains ten songs, each of which I'll briefly cover in this review:
1. She Works Out Too Much
2. Little Dark Age
3. When You Die
4. Me and Michael
5. TSLAMP
6. James
7. Days That Got Away
8. One Thing Left to Try
9. When You're Small
10. Hand It Over
Track #1: "She Works Out Too Much"
"The only reason it never worked out was he didn't work out... enough."
It's an immediate taste of the satirical flavor that coats portions of this album. The song blasts off in a cascade of off-tune synths, followed by a female voice saying, "Get ready to have some fun." Cue the amusing back and forth between an exasperated man and his exercise-obsessed girlfriend, whose workout selfies he confesses he's tired of liking on social media, and grab a comfortable seat to enjoy the unfolding narrative.
The man's frustration gradually grows as his girlfriend audibly conducts a workout routine until cleverly wrapping up both the exercise and the song—and presumably her relationship with her less-ambitious partner—with an, "Okay, we're done." These touches make for a charming gem of a piece with a groovy beat and bass line beneath some fresh (and strange-sounding) synth instruments. It captures the off-kilter sound permeating Little Dark Age, marking a lighthearted and entertaining beginning to an album with many more colorful surprises in store.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Track #2: "Little Dark Age"
"I grieve in stereo; the stereo sounds strange..."
The gothic titular track that shall not be trifled with, "Little Dark Age" harbors the deep, dark heart of its album. At once both glamorously modern and unnervingly nostalgic, it boasts a commanding presence and is just weird enough to warrant several more listens... after the first few leave you vaguely stupefied.
"Little Dark Age" has many intriguing moments that distinguish it from a typical pop song, and its use of detuned synths and phasers amplifies its morbid yet dreamy ambience. It's like a gentle lull to surrender to the inevitable, an ode to the silent acceptance of suffering we could never adequately explain, making for a bewitching, fever dream-like listening experience and an exceptional highlight on LDA.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Track #3: "When You Die"
"I've got some work to do... I'm gonna eat your heart out..."
Herein lies an additional nugget of nihilism and the "shock and dismay" factor central to LDA. The protagonist juggles self-loathing with heated insistence that they're "not nice" while contemplating their death: complete with gunshots and disturbing, clown-like laugh tracks that seem to echo the protagonist's flippant self-regard.
This made for another surprising initial listen, but I quickly warmed to the impeccable placement of specific phrases and the overall unique craftsmanship. It's a fun song, if not a bit depressing, and the snappy lyrics button up the deep sense of disdain the protagonist feels toward themselves and the person they're conversing with. They seem to be arguing with themselves in lyrics like, "I've got some work to do," which are immediately followed by, "I'm gonna eat your heart out." Mood swings much? It's a great snapshot of just how torn and double-minded the protagonist really is.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Track #4: "Me and Michael"
"Me and Michael, solid as they come..."
Wonderful and refreshingly sweet, "Me and Michael" is one of MGMT's loveliest songs and a testament to their skill for turning a simple pop concept into an engrossing and majestic masterpiece. The rich ballad atmosphere, breezy, reverberating vocals, synths, and underlying guitars capture an experience—whether romantic or platonic—that we each only enjoy once or perhaps a handful of times in a lifetime. It's the kind of song that may remind us of someone we've never meant but always dreamed of finding—someone who connects with us on an incomparably intimate level—or someone we already know who feels just like that.
"Me and Michael" feels like home, just like the special people in our lives, past, present, and future, who exist on the same "frequency" as us. People whose presence feels like a constant safe embrace. Relationships that are "solid as they come." This is the perfect late night drive or summer evening stroll song for reconnecting with the sweeter memories in bygone moments that make life worthwhile.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Track #5: "TSLAMP"
"Passing strangers on the street spending every moment looking at their phones..."
This delightfully witty track's title stands for "Time Spent Looking At My Phone." Creative and satirical, with a touch of genuine regret, "TSLAMP" is another distinctive entry in MGMT's discography. It's rife with enticing and eccentric instrument play, and the vocals tread a line between sorrow and vague amusement at the mind and time-consuming properties of this third generation of idiot boxes (and the people addicted to them).
The lyrics make frank, striking observations. Present-day ennui soaks the entire track in its aimless glaze. It's both a commentary and a confession, and it's one of the more obvious social statements on the album.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Track #6: "James"
"If you need a friend, come right over..."
The modest and gently beautiful "James" serves as a good buffer between the commentary piece that is "TSLAMP" and the deeply relaxing "Days That Got Away." It's a straightforward song with nothing particularly grandiose to offer, but its simplicity doesn't negate its quiet loveliness. It's far from my favorite track and required some getting used to when I first listened to it, but it's not a bad song and still adequately showcases MGMT's ability to make small ideas larger than they might have ever been in less competent hands.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Track #7: "Days That Got Away"
This is a strong contender for my favorite track on the album. Largely lyric-less, its personality blooms in ridiculously groovy rhythm switches and infectiously smooth percussion. When the synths combine with the drums, it's delicious. I replayed certain sections to enjoy them again my first few times listening and was blown away by how these simple creative choices gave this tranquil little song such an assertive bounce.
This piece is sure of itself but it's in no hurry. It's possibly one of the most calming songs I've heard and really does sound like a restful passage of time. It suggests Southern California in the summer or an evening walk along some sunset-soaked beach. "Days That Got Away" made it apparent to me that MGMT has a notable talent for percussion.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Track #8: "One Thing Left to Try"
"There's one thing left to try if you want to save your life..."
My original first place pick was this instant-love joyride. Had I not listened to it, I might not have explored the rest of the album. But "One Thing Left To Try," bustling with a restless creative energy and haunting underlying angst, immediately grabbed my heart and ran away with it.
This is the pinnacle of pop music. It's fresh, inventive, and still thrillingly catchy: 1980s sentiments with seductive contemporary polish. Edgy vocals performed in a punky style pair seamlessly with the lively melody, punchy beat, and vibrant synths. I can't rave enough about this one. I love the dark lyrics and the dance-worthy nature of the presented existential crisis. One of my favorite parts about it is its multiple implied or false endings. Just when you think it's over, it picks back up again and surprises you with a new round of instrumentation.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Track #9: "When You're Small"
"When you’re small, you don’t have very far to fall…"
Like with "James," I didn't connect very strongly with this piece, but that doesn't mean it's a bad song. "When You're Small" makes some powerful statements with few and grounded lyrics, such as, "When you're low, you reach a certain point where you don't really see the point." The instruments bloom beautifully in the track's latter half, with several moments that feel cinematic.
My ambivalence toward it has shifted from what was originally dislike, as I (perhaps correctly) had labeled the song in my mind as a "mid-life crisis high track." Is it about drugs? Well, the mention of what happens "when you're high," and the song's overall disjointed feel, suggests it might be. Though MGMT has been (ha) instrumental in altering and broadening some of my taste in music, I can't say that I enjoy songs that sound very clearly like they were written and recorded under the influence of something. That's not my style, despite my burgeoning love for psychedelic music, as I draw the line at content that goes from sounding "trippy" to sounding like an actual trip. Either way, "When You're Small" is by no means a detriment to this already bizarre and excellent album. It's pretty in its own right, but it's not for me.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Track #10: "Hand It Over"
“The joke's worn thin, the king stepped in; now we'll see who is who…”
Welcome to the melancholic album-closer. Yet another supremely soothing piece, "Hand It Over" concludes Little Dark Age on a semi-sweet note. The harmonic background vocals will recall '60s and '70s music to mind. For an album of the late 2010s, at nostalgia's peak—and an album of this definitive flavor—it's fitting and very lovely. I especially like how it finishes an overall somber album on a relatively high or at least accepting note, even if it's not triumphant. Little Dark Age isn't a feel-good collection, so it's perfect.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Album Inspiration and MGMT's Evolution
Little Dark Age, loosely inspired by MGMT's disappointment in the election of former president Donald Trump and the condition of the modern United States, seems to have bottled the air of unrest and nihilistic melancholy constantly pumped into our social climate and compressed it into music form. It takes inspiration from Soviet-era synth pop, according to one half of the MGMT duo, Andrew VanWyngarden, which influenced the creation of "Little Dark Age" and "Me and Michael."
MGMT's fourth album marks a decisive departure from their relatively ill-received and convoluted prior albums—specifically, Congratulations (2010) and MGMT (2013)—swooping instead into full-blown synthetic psychedelia.
The subversive Congratulations (2010)
While Congratulations was void of singles, Little Dark Age supplies several hook-heavy, pop-style tracks to give the people what they wanted. After having listened to three of MGMT's albums (Oracular Spectacular, Congratulations, and LDA), I'm impressed and intrigued by their evolution, experimentation, and genuine commitment to crafting art as opposed to settling for the sellout success that they believe tainted their first singles from the Oracular days ("Time to Pretend", "Electric Feel", and "Kids").
LDA is definitely more accessible than an album like Congratulations—one of the more amusing "What the heck?" moments in my musical branching-out journey, whilst nonetheless proving to be an awesome and thoughtful collection of songs—so it's a better choice for dipping in the proverbial toes than taking a direct plunge into MGMT's other work. But, hey, if diving straight in is your thing, fill your mind and ears with the chaos of songs like "4th Dimensional Transition" from Oracular, or the twelve plus-minute underrated jewel that is "Siberian Breaks" (Congratulations). Don't let my slow and careful approach to developing musical love affairs dissuade you from peeling back the curtain on this excellent group with a few swift yanks.
From the "Little Dark Age" music video
I'm just glad to say that I took the plunge at all. MGMT has been an unexpected treat and a group whose music now frequents my headphones. It wasn't always like this... but I do confess that I wholeheartedly love what these two men are doing and look forward to exploring their final untouched album, MGMT, and their future releases. MGMT's creativity, innovation, and devil-may-care, individualistic music-making adventure is inspiring and positively electric.
And at the end of the day, as VanWyngarden and Goldwasser said, isn't making electricity what the world is for?
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (94%)
Listen to Little Dark Age:
