MGMT

In the current pop music climate, the hype cycle is so accelerated that the members of MGMT probably felt a backlash coming even while putting the finishing touches on their 2007 breakthrough, Oracular Spectacular. Being the same waggish kids who nominated Barack Obama to produce their major-label debut, they met the inevitable cries of “sophomore slump” head on by prefacing 2010’s Congratulations with “Flash Delirium,” a prog-psych pastiche that eschews sing-along choruses and obvious hooks for an Of Montreal-esque schizophrenia. Bursting with baroque instrumentation and a spacey eeriness akin to The Flaming Lips and Pink Floyd, Congratulations is a grower, containing greater surprises than past dance-floor anthems like “Electric Feel” might imply.

Updated 07/28/2010