Video: MGMT – “Little Dark Age”
From Little Dark Age, due 2018 on Columbia Records.
One of the reasons I love MGMT is because their music makes me feel young. That’s what good pop music does, right? It makes you tap into those long buried feelings of excitement and anticipation–for what, you don’t even know–and yes, even anxiety.
When I was 14 I had my first job at a hot dog joint in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I was a busboy and dishwasher and had to have a special work permit signed by my parents to work there before I was 15. But we are midwestern and a good work ethic is instilled young so getting the signature was no problem. I spent early Saturdays and Sundays delivering scalding hot silverware out to the bins, fresh from the dishwasher I also ran. I’d skip off to the freezer on occasion to steal pickles and sliced turkey prepped for the lunch crowd. I’d also steal looks at the waitresses who were maybe a year or two older than me.
I did this all with a soundtrack blasting through my Walkman made up of mixtapes from friends. The song that most represents this time for me is “Bring on the Dancing Horses” by Echo and the Bunnymen. It was the kind of pop song that evokes those feelings described above. It made me a little sad, but also a bit excited that there were melodies out there that could confuse and confound in the best ways.
This MGMT video reminds me of Echo and the Bunnymen.