Who: You might not know the names Andrew VanWyngarden or Ben Goldwasser, but the two multi-instrumentalists are responsible for some of the most recognizable hits from the early 2000s. MGMT's founding members met during their freshman year at Connecticut's Wesleyan University, and have shape-shifted sonically since 2007 indie-pop Oracular Spectacular, dipping into different genres, including psychedelic and progressive territory, on their next three albums.
"In a lot of ways, [MGMT] was the reaction to having to take an academic view of music," Goldwasser told Interview magazine last year. "Studying music like that, it was important to have an extracurricular thing, and for us that was playing synthesizers and trying to make them sound like animals."
Early hits: The sparkly "Kids" and the slinky "Electric Feel" arrived primed for the dancefloor and remain the most beloved tracks in MGMT's catalog. The third single from the band's debut, "Time to Pretend," also frequently finds its way into the band's live sets.
Spin: MGMT spent most of last year touring behind strong 2018 LP Little Dark Age, and continues to play much of its material. Album opener "She Works Out Too Much" has been in heavy rotation, along with "When You Die"—two cuts that spotlight MGMT's more left-of-center influences, like throwback synth-pop band Sparks. Stay on the lookout for LDA's standout track, "One Thing Left to Try," which typically appears toward the end of the set.
Previously: MGMT has played Las Vegas twice: 2013 at the Cosmopolitan's Boulevard Pool and 2017 at Life Is Beautiful. The former featured a memorable setlist, including beautiful, somber ballads "I Found a Whistle" and "Congratulations"—two songs that rarely pop up in concert these days. Fingers crossed we hear them again this time around at the Pearl. And while we're dreaming, "The Youth," a haunting but upbeat track from Oracular Spectacular, has been sprinkled into recent shows. Can we get that one, too, guys?
MGMT with Cola Boyy. November 21, 8 p.m., $32-$73. The Pearl, 702-944-3200.
