American indie rock/synth-pop duo MGMT released their fourth full-length studio album last weekend. Following their poorly received self-titled studio release, the group took a hiatus from making music for a while. Little Dark Age is their first album release in over four years, and fortunately, it is well worth the wait. Musically, this album strikes a perfect balance between creativity, experimentation, and accessibility. This is definitely their most pop-centric and accessible release since their debut album Oracular Spectacular. Lyrically, this album tackles an incredibly wide range of topics: relationships, depression, death, friendship, phone addiction, political climate, and more. However, the way they approach these sorts of topics is refreshingly unconventional.
The album begins with the witty masterpiece "She Works Out Too Much," which is my favorite track ever released by MGMT. As the title suggests, this song chronicles a relationship that failed because the girlfriend worked out a lot and the boyfriend didn't. However, it's chock-full of double entendres. As the first verse suggests, the boyfriend not working out enough can be interpreted as a metaphor for the boyfriend being out of touch with what's popular. MGMT confirmed that this was intended in an interview with Uproxx. The song is structured like an 80s dance workout video, and the girlfriend (portrayed by Alle Norton of Cellars) is depicted as the workout trainer. She appears throughout the song to say things like, "Let's move on to the first step," and "Remember to drink a glass of water before and after you work out." In the chorus, she declares, "the only reason we never worked out was he didn't work out," which is probably my favorite line on the album. VanWyngarden sings from the boyfriend's perspective, bleakly describing the issues surrounding the failed relationship. Ironically, VanWyngarden's dismal lyricism works really well with the bright, ebullient, synth-driven instrumentation. Between the flawless percussion, the bubbly bass lines, and the tasteful saxophone melodies, this song is a total jam—an excellent album opener.
It's risky opening with a song like that, because it sets the bar pretty high for the rest of the album. Luckily, Little Dark Age never really disappoints. After "She Works Out Too Much," we move onto the title track "Little Dark Age," which is quite a change in tone. It seems to be talking about depression, or at least a dispiriting time in Ben and Andrew's lives. However, the lyrics are fairly ambiguous and cryptic. In an interview with France 24, Ben and Andrew did confirm that this song was inspired by the current political climate in the United States. This was the first single released from the album and from the time I heard it, my interest was piqued. "When You Die" is a horrifying psychedelic and psychological song about—you guessed it—death. Ariel Pink co-wrote the track, and I love the eerie guitar melodies he adds to it.
The mood lightens as we move on to "Me and Michael," a nostalgic song about platonic friendship. Between the explosive snare, the soft synths, and the splashy reverb, this song sounds like it came straight out of the end credits of an 80s movie. It's extremely catchy and probably the biggest sing-along track this album has to offer. "James" has a similar theme, and it was written as a tribute to James Richardson, a guitarist for MGMT's live band. This is probably the lowest we've ever heard Andrew's voice go, and he pulls it off extremely well! "TSLAMP," or "Time Spent Looking At My Phone" is a commentary on modern cell phone addiction that really puts things into perspective. Andrew describes the ways in which phone addiction becomes detrimental to living a happy and healthy life. The lyricism and word play in this song are phenomenal. "Clouds are getting full / So close all the windows / I would never let you die / Even if our love is ornamental," he sings. "Days That Got Away" is a song that's progressive, dreamy, low energy, and mostly instrumental. There's nothing extraordinary about it, but it also doesn't feel out of place.
The album concludes with "One Thing Left to Try," "When You're Small," and "Hand It Over." "One Thing Left to Try," a song about dealing with suicidal thoughts, is perhaps the heaviest and densest track on the album. The advice that Andrew offers to those dealing with these sorts of thoughts is to "draw the line and remember there's more than you're seeing." "When You're Small" is an optimistic song that discusses the highs and lows of life. Andrew explores what it's like to feel big and what it's like to feel small. He comes to the conclusion that being small has its benefits, and inspires his listeners to make the most out of any circumstance they find themselves in. Finally, the album ends with the slow, dreamy, and political "Hand It Over." With its relaxed tempo, soft reverberated vocals, and flanging instrumentation, this track is reminiscent of other big synth-pop acts, like Tame Impala.
Little Dark Age is my favorite installment in the MGMT discography. There's not a song on this record that I didn't enjoy. I was surprised and impressed with the lyricism. The instrumentation does get a bit less exciting throughout the second half of the album, but it never reaches a drastically low point. The pacing of the album could be improved. I suppose there are moments that might seem to drag and/or lull you if you aren't fully invested. But overall, I'm extremely satisfied. This is all I could have asked for and more. It's definitely one of my favorite releases of the year thus far.
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