MGMT’s Oracular Spectacular

The college parody album that defined a decade of Indie-Pop music ⁣⁣

Just one look at MGMT’s memorable 2007 debut album cover sparks a youthful shock of nostalgia for many. 𝘖𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘢𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳, a psychedelic compilation of optimistic juvenility, boasted three anthems; “𝘒𝘪𝘥𝘴”, “𝘌𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘤 𝘍𝘦𝘦𝘭” and “𝘛𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘥” that would lay the framework for both MGMT’s & Indie-Pop’s iconic sound for years to follow. ⁣⁣
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The initial intention though of 𝘖𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘢𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳, and the American duo’s creative process was much more congruent with college-life stoner fun than industry-innovating artistry. Ben Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden met in freshmen year at Wesleyan College, a smaller prestigious college for promising artists. It is here in Connecticut where the hit singles on the album were originally conceived in Goldwasser’s dorm room. At the time, the pair were purely experimenting with music for pleasure and satire, often performing to small crowds across their College, where they would purposely dress in excessive rockstar attire and poke fun at the Hollywood elites. This would all be altered by one phone call by Columbia records in 2006, signing the creative duo directly out of college after hearing two of the three monstrous singles. With new found resources and the endorsement of a major record deal, MGMT would move out to New York to record the remainder of the album and release the debut in late 2007. ⁣⁣
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The timing of the release would prove to contribute to the perfect storm that was the ever-growing underground indie rock scene. 2007-2008 would bear witness to the birth of the revolutionary iPhone and Twitter platform, two mediums that would naturally compliment the futuristic, early internet-age themes of the album. 𝘖𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘢𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳 would eventually help shape the framework of Indie Rock/Synth-Pop alongside groups like M3 & Passion Pit, adapting distorted synths and lo-fi recorded drums to create chart-topping hits. ⁣