It’s been six years since British alternative band MGMT released new music, so fans are very excited about their new album “Loss of Life.” It was released Feb. 24, and to the delight of many, the album contains 10 songs that loosely reflect the band’s older hit music.
The album starts off with a track titled “Loss of life, Pt 2.” It’s an intro track that introduces the listener into the album with an echoey, spoken monologue. This monologue theme is present throughout the album in track nine, “I Wish I Was Joking” and track ten, “Loss of Life.” The ways that MGMT incorporated spoken dialogue into their songs is refreshing and interesting to the ear when listening to the album. It captures your attention and makes you listen to the message that they are perpetuating.
A large theme that MGMT worked into this album is love. Track two, titled “Mother Nature,” details the journey that one must go on to find love even though there might be risks. They mention that “I understand your hesitation,” showing that it’s okay to have doubts along the way. Track three, “Dancing in Babylon,” featuring Christine and the Queens, also focuses on love—it tells a powerful story of the emotions and influences behind love and the overwhelming effect it can have on a person. The repetition of “I love you” many times at the end of the song shows devotion and passion for the other person. I thought that the song was beautifully made and that the voices of MGMT’s lead singer, Andrew VanWyngarden, and Chris, the lead singer of Christine and the Queens, flowed together so nicely.
Existentiality is also a large part of this album. Although a lot of the meaningful lyrics present in MGMT’s work are cloaked by upbeat guitar or drums, they are still very prominent if you listen closely. Track four, “People in the Streets,” is a reflective but almost anxious track contemplating how complex life can be. It portrays a person who is struggling with finding answers to their questions and having trouble finding their place. It also brings up the struggles of others, making the listener very aware that the “people in the streets” are struggling along with the main character.
One of the last prominent themes I noticed was loss, which was expressed in many different forms. In track six, “Nothing to Declare,” we hear an intricate story about a person who has looked back and realized that they haven’t fulfilled a lot of hopes they had for their life. We see a loss of hope in this song, which I thought was an important topic to cover and one that I haven’t seen in a lot of the band’s music. Track nine, “I Wish I Was Joking,” also explores the loss of an important figure. The lyrics portray the somber story of someone that has experienced the loss of someone else and how they are trying to get through their grief into acceptance.
Track four, “Bubblegum Dog,” was the most intriguing song off of the album in my opinion. The song portrays the uncomfortable things in our life that we will have to face one way or another. I thought that the use of the phrase “bubblegum dog” was incredibly unique and interesting—this is not like a song that I’ve heard before. It poses a great metaphor for the concept of things catching up to us in life, especially the harder things that we don’t want to deal with.
“Loss of Life” is a truly moving album that captures a lot of heavy themes and makes them into remarkable pieces of music. Although many of the lyrics are very dark and sad, MGMT brings them up with colorful background instrumentals using lots of effective drum and guitar work. I thought that this was a great reintroduction of MGMT back into the music world, and I would recommend this album to anyone looking for unique music.
“Loss of Life”: ★★★★★
