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MGMT Gets Plenty of Congratulations At The Riv |
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Written by MATTHEW LAMBERT / Photos by LYLE A. WAISMAN
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Saturday, 19 June 2010 |
I went into MGMT’s sold-out show at the Riviera Theater Friday night with a bit of skepticism. The group’s recent live shows haven’t exactly generated glowing reviews or much fanfare. The day had brought us boiling temperatures and a heavy storm brought a thick humidity into the Riviera. It was not exactly a hopeful environment. Nevertheless, the group brought a sense of fresh air during a two-hour set showcasing material from both “Oracular Spectacular” and “Congratulations.”
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MGMT
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Riviera Theatre
Chicago, IL
June 18, 2010
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The guys started on a mellow note with the acoustic-driven “Pieces of What,” and followed up with “Song for Dan Treacy.” The audience sprang from their seats when the guys jumped into the spectacular “Electric Feel,” a great mixture of electric funk and high-pitched vocals. While Vanwyngarden and Goldwasser kept their stage movement to a minimum, the backdrop of strobe lights and psychedelic imagery brought a cool resonance to their music.
The guys kept their interaction with the audience to a minimum, only pausing to say hello and commenting on the “nasty little storm” earlier in the day. While much of the recent criticism seems to be directed towards this lack of interaction, I sensed this audience didn’t really care about it. The fans were here for the music.
Vanwyngarden stopped early in the night to ask the audience how they liked the new album, “Congratulations.” While the audience cheered enthusiastically, this was clearly an “Oracular Spectacular” crowd. The crowd loved such hits like the synth-heavy “Time to Pretend,” “The Youth,” “Weekend Wars” and “The Handshake.” The newer material included the acid-tripped “It’s Working,” followed by the acoustic-driven “I Found a Whistle,” “Siberian Breaks” and the quirky tribute “Brian Eno.”
MGMT quickly came back for a three-song encore after the opening 15-song set. They started with “Future Reflections,” before moving into the highly anticipated “Kids.” It seemed like a perfect closing song, but the band seemed to ask for a little appreciation as they closed with “Congratulations,” the last track off of their new album. It did seem fitting in a way, as Vanwyngarden spread his arms and sang, “All I need is a great big congratulations.” The crowd quickly obliged with cheers as MGMT left the stage.
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