Amidst the strange synths of MGMT’s new self-titled LP lurks the spirit of something sinister; perhaps the echoes of Congratulations and Oracular Spectacular.

It takes a lot to be able to appreciate this album; it’s quite hard to grasp at first, and once you do, you’re not really sure if you like it or not. This deeper and more difficult sound is what fans such as myself least expected, after being so pleased with tracks such as “Congratulations” and “Kids.” But it’s what we should expect from a band that is hoping to stay relevant; every now and then, they have to mix it up.

MGMT kicks off with “Alien Days” a bizarre track that starts with a child singing creepily. It sounds exactly like its title: an alien abduction or something close; “Alien Days” takes us through a dark psych-pop jam tunnel, sounding more like something that should be on an episode of American Horror Story. “Cool Song No. 2” has a tribal pulse to it and poetic lyrics to match the ominous tone of the song, and with this it manages to stand out. Things only get stranger on “Mystery Disease” and “Introspection,” both equally tiring, though things pick up at “Your Life Is A Lie,” remnants of the MGMT we’re more familiar with.

It takes a full minute before we get to hear Andrew VanWyngarden’s voice on “A Good Sadness,” which begins with a pointless space-age intro that has listeners drifting off into another dimension. “I Love You Too, Death” is beyond the strangest track on this album, during which VanWyngarden sings of death and loneliness for a whole five minutes, and making for a mesmeric addition to MGMT. “An Orphan Of Fortune” seals the album (finally) although not with a bang; with about 16 lines of lyrics, it’s set at a lazy, crawling pace.

Some people can appreciate MGMT’s weirdness and unconventional pop synths, but it truly depends on the person. I, for one, can’t listen to more than a couple songs at a time, or I’d feel like I was losing my mind. But one thing can be said about MGMT: it’s forty-four minutes long, yet it feels like it goes on for two hours.

However atypical this sound may be of the band that we know, MGMT is poetic, even if you can’t exactly hear what VanWyngarden is trying to tell you. Either way his words echo in (or haunt, depending how you look at it) your mind like a ghostly conscience. It’s something you have to be in the mood for, though I’m not exactly sure what mood that would be. Yes, Congratulations and previous albums were better, but we must admit that MGMT would be stagnant if they’d produced the same sound as three years before. Though bizarre and largely confusing, this album is MGMT’s step in a whole new direction.

Score: 4.5/10