MGMT Bounces Back at the Warfield in San Francisco

in SF Concert Reviews by

The hipster synthpop duo consisting of Ben Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden, better known as MGMT, rode into town last night on a stationary white Fixie bike for their sold-out show at the Warfield show in San Francisco.

On a set that consisted of a few keyboards, some instruments, and a random plant, they took the stage to perform a string of songs that hadn’t been heard in years. Almost ten years ago to be exact, which is about the time that their debut album, Oracular Spectacular, catapulted them to fame and got them a Grammy nomination.

The team who first met at Wesleyan University wrote their biggest hits “Kids,” “Electric Feel” and “Time to Pretend” in their dorm rooms. Shortly later they would be heard all over the airwaves turning the friends into an overnight sensation only to disappear into oblivion a few years later.

Many blame the lapse in popularity to the change of direction of their later albums, which seemed more experimental than anything. Whatever the case, that changed last night when the duo brought back those time-encapsulated songs to a packed audience full of screaming fans that had been waiting patiently for a comeback.

Most of the songs that MGMT is most known were played during the show including “Electric Feel,” “Kids” and “Time to Pretend”  as well as encores for “When You’re Small,” and “Syberian Breaks.” At the end of the night, the gig seemed to serve as a vehicle to say “We’re back!” And for everyone in the audience, the message was loud and clear, but most of all very welcomed.

Photos by Louis Raphael

Set List

She Works Out Too Much
Little Dark Age
When You Die
Time to Pretend
James
Alien Days
Flash Delirium
Kids
The Youth
TSLAMP
Electric Feel
Me and Michael
Hand It Over

Encore:
When You’re Small
Siberian Breaks

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Having released albums under Digital Nations, a label founded by Steve Vai, music critic Louis Raphael has remained deeply connected to the pulse of the San Francisco music scene. Following his tenure as the San Francisco Music Examiner for Examiner.com and AXS.com, he embarked on creating Music in SF® to authentically highlight the vibrant offerings of the city's music scene.

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