Essential new albums

MGMT: MGMT
When MGMT previewed new track ‘Alien Days’ on stage at Colombian festival Estéreo Picnic in March – captured and shared online by fans – we were excited but dubious. Watching on YouTube, we felt great flashbacks of ‘Time to Pretend’s catchy synth lines colliding with the bad taste left in our mouth by the proggy undertones of 2010 LP Congratulations. Then, as the performance clicked into gear, something very glam and very Bowie, with a plodding beat and psychedelic pings and pows, came out. We were hooked once again. Rumours abound of a new album, and we can hardly wait for more. Tarbox Road Studios in Cassadaga, NY mentions the duo recording there this year. Lead singer VanWyngarden mentioned in an interview that it would be self-titled, yet nothing has been officially announced as we went to press. If this third record does see the light of day this year, it’ll be a strong contender for best of 2012.
Danielle Goldstein. Release date TBC. All albums avaliable on iTunes after release date.