MGMT – Flash Delirium Video

Posted by Justin Hoyt

Being weird for the sake of being weird rarely appeals to my senses. Too many bands take this approach as a way to get attention and overshadow the fact they lack the chops to let the music stand on its own. However, there are times when done right an over the top, weird, gross out video is perfectly in order. Take for example MGMT's freak-fest of a new video for their mind bending new single "Flash Delirium":

The images of a soldier returning to a surreal, bourgeois household with his apprehensive companion seem to have very little to do with the song but I think that's the point. There are some truly hysterical moments in the video; for instance the elderly woman handling flute solo duties or the spaghetti filled iron lung which destroys the monster living inside MGMT's Ben Goldwasser. The single itself rivals anything off of 2008's Oracula Spectacular and is relentless in its refusal to get stale. There is a chorus but it only becomes recognizable after a few listens allowing the song to shape-shift and progress through multiple genres without the urge to drive back into a hook every 16 bars. I can tell you that Congratulations, which comes out April 13 and is streaming now at the band's website, contains much of the same lucidity and unconventional format as "Flash Delirium".

Goldwasser(L) VanWyngarden(R)

I gotta admit I was expecting very little out of Goldwasser and band-mate Andrew VanWyngarden on their follow up to the hugely successful Oracular Spectacular, but they did not disappoint. The album is a singular entity combining electro/surf/indie/alternative music seamlessly throughout. And while there is no "Kids" or "Electric Feel" on Congratulations, which will probably cost them a couple of bandwagon fans, there is an overwhelming sense of a band living up to their immense potential instead of caving to the pressure's to repeat a proven winning formula.

MGMT will be hitting the pavement to promote Congratulations including festival stops at Coachella and Sasquatch before heading to the UK for a lengthy visit. My assumption is they will return for an extended American tour soon after though no dates have yet been announced, but if the video is any kind of precursor for the live show this will be one not to miss.