Congratulations

MGMT | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 13, 2010)
• Original Release Date: 2010
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Columbia
• ASIN: B0037W68F4
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (120 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,148 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

2010 sophomore release from the Alt-Rock/Pop outfit. Congratulations is a collection of nine individual musical tours de force sequenced to flow with sonic and thematic coherence. Produced by MGMT and Sonic Boom, the album was recorded throughout 2009 in Upstate New York, Malibu and Brooklyn and features the band's core duo (Andrew Vanwyngarden and Ben Goldwasser) performing with Matt Asti, Will Berman and James Richardson, their live band.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

73 of 82 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Band Gets Better April 13, 2010

By Seattleboy

Format:Audio CD

Yes, there are no singles on this album, which is going to be a shock (and a dissapointment) to a lot of fans of Oracular Spetacular, but this is an album that you cannot judge after one spin as it takes a while to sink in. But if you give it a chance it is a real grower and is easily the best album I have heard this year. Here is a brief breakdown....

1. It's Working - awesome, psychedelic tinged opener. Wouldn't be out of place on the second half of Oracular Spetacular.

2. Song For Dan Treacy - One of my favorites. It's not traditional pop per say and probably won't be played on the radio, but is very melodic even without a typical chorus.

3. Someone's Missing - The closest this album comes to a traditional single. Ends abruptly once the chorus kicks in at the end, but is still very good.

4. Flash Delerium - This is the first "single" off the album and when I heard it my initial reaction was "blah." But this song sounds so much better in the context of the entire album and is now my personal favorite off the album.

5. I Found a Whistle - A nice, slow break proceeeding "Flash Delerium." I imagine this will be the song that will cause the lighters and cell phones to come out during their concerts. Listen to the lyrics carefully. I assume the song is not referring to the "Phantom Menace," but I wonder.....

6. Siberian Breaks - This is probably the song that will determine if you like the album or not. At 12 minutes long it is one of those songs that people are going to love and hate. It is really like 4 or 5 songs thrown together, but for whatever reason it completely works and is the heart of this album.

7. Brian Eno - An almost punk-type song dedicated to Brian Eno.... Not quite made for radio, but along with "Someone's Missing," it is one of the catchiest songs on the album.

8. Lady Dada's Nightmare - An instrumental and in my opinion the only mistep on the album. Not that it's bad, but it's not something you will want to listen to over and over and I would have much preferred a real, non-instrumental song, especially considering this is a short album at only 9 songs.

9. Congratulations - Great way to close out the album with probably the most traditional song MGMT has ever recorded. It is obviously meant to be a sarcastic reaction to the fame brought on by Oracular Spetacular, but is one of the best songs on the album regardless.

In closing, my only complain is that at 9 songs the album feels more like an EP then a full album. But even so, it is still so much better then most of the other crap out there these days. Give this one a chance, realize going in it is not Oracular Spetacular, and I have a feeling you will not be dissapointed Read more ›

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Under New Management October 10, 2011

By Rachel

Format:MP3 Music

MGMT founders, Benjamin Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden, were unceremoniously catapulted into fame with the release of Oracular Spectacular--a place that they didn't appear to comfortably occupy. The crowds of excessively adoring adolescents were perceived by the band as a pseudo-fan base. The darkly tinged lyrics of "Time to Pretend" and "Kids" seemed lost on the blithe crowds who quickly targeted the album as the latest, must-have fad. The result was a flurry of interviews and award show appearances for which the band appeared to be ill-suited. Therefore, for their second venture, they seem to have distanced themselves from the style that forced them into the limelight--a style that was simply one of many in their creative repertoire.

With Congratulations, MGMT has meticulously crafted a musical journey that meanders through various soundscapes and experiments with broad variations in tempo and style. Although the universal sentiment is one of introspection and disillusionment, it is not crowded with thoughts and messages of gloom. While it would be fitting to assert that the drifting guitar riffs and psychedelic instrumentals are reminiscent of such classic rock influences as Pink Floyd, it must also be affirmed that the band has maintained a sense of innovation and novelty. It's safe to assume that there are no top 40 hits on this album, but this was likely intentional. It seems that, on this outing, MGMT's artistic course was a direct reaction to the standards of the radio industry, as accessibility was not a consideration. After all, their intended audience is not the mainstream crowd that flocked to their previous release....

"Congratulations" is one of those singular albums that needs to be experienced with an uninterrupted flow, as each track blends seamlessly into the next. While there are certainly stand out tracks, such as "Someone's Missing" and "Flash Delirium," the remainder of the album should not be considered any less momentous. Despite the variations, both in the midst of songs and among tracks, they play off of each other in a manner that makes them all significant to the thesis. The album closes with the title track, which is configured of equal parts melodrama, dripping sarcasm, and antipathy. As alluded to in the lyrics, Goldwasser and VanWyngerden could have easily remained complacent in their overnight success. Instead, they chose to challenge their expansive audience to see which ones were really getting the message, and separate them from those who were simply there for the party. Read more ›

14 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Better than OS May 21, 2010

By B. Bielamowicz

Format:Audio CD

In Rolling Stone a few months back, I read that MGMT was going to release a new album soon, and my heart almost stopped. After falling in love with Oracular Spectacular, I couldn't wait to hear their second album. The weekend it first came in, I listened to Congratulations a total of 12 times the whole way through; it might sound somewhat obsessive, but I couldn't get over how much I liked it. Sure, it's hard to compare it to OS; there are some songs on the album that remind me of the first album (Someone's Missing, I Found a Whistle, Congratulations), but for the most part, it's quite the musical leap from their first. I was so proud of Andrew and Ben's decision to stray away from singles; the album is meant to be listened to the whole way through each time, the way albums are supposed to be. What a novel idea!

And as far as the album cover? "Well, people that are stupid don't understand it, but cool, smart people get how awesome it is."
Andrew VanWyngarden, you sure have a way of explaining things.

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars better than their first? June 25, 2010

By joh

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

I really like the direction MGMT is going. Great album very different from their first but not diverging from their synth pop sounds. an A+ on this one

47 of 67 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Secondalbum Syndrome April 13, 2010

By M. Ouimet

Format:Audio CD

The first time I heard MGMT's new album, I thought of the interviews they had to give on the red carpet of the last Grammys. If you didn't see it, it was as awkward as interviews can be and at the time, it was clear that the band didn't want nothing to do with these people. What we didn't know at the time was that their hostile attitude would actually shape their entire next album, Congratulations. The band had also announced that there would be no more `Kids' or `Time to Pretend' and as soon as `Flash Delirium' came out, it was pretty obvious what went through their minds in the studio: `this time, let's do something that the mainstream will NOT dig'. If only this album was good.

The main thing that strikes me about Congratulations is that it's not only reactionary, but closed to itself and borderline-adolescent. It finds MGMT focusing too hard on making less accessible music, less catchy pop songs and even though structures are more adventurous and as trippy and enjoyable as it may be on acid, it leaves the sober listener craving for a lot more substance. The childhood nostalgia that characterized Oracular Spectacular is pretty much gone and that's fine, but MGMT tries to escape it by pushing too hard towards psych-pop experimentation.

It's still listenable, though. `It's Working' and `Congratulations' are decent opener and closer and `Flash Delirium' is a blast. Some people complain that it's not a single, and I agree. That's why it's awesome. It's crazy, all over the place and it keeps becoming something else. Then, there's my favorite cut, 'I Found a Whistle', a short and beautiful song with a hypnotic melody and a spectacular finale.

It's a clear case of Secondalbum Syndrome: trying too hard to move too far from the identity that the first album gave you.... Anyway, an average MGMT album is still more refreshing than anything out there, so I'm happy. Yay! Read more ›