Flash Delirium
Encyclopedia
"Flash Delirium" is a song released by the American
psychedelic rock
band MGMT
on their second album Congratulations
. It was the first single to be released from the album and was originally referred to as a "taster" before the band abandoned their original plan to not release any singles from Congratulations in order to solidify its existence as a singular body of work. A free digital download of the song was given away on the band's official website. "Flash Delirium" was made available as a digital download
from iTunes
on March 24, 2010.
On this album Andrew Vanwyngarden expresses his feelings towards social networking in the song 'Flash Delirium' and directly references to a popular site with the line "stab your Facebook
". He expands on this in an interview with online magazine Coup De Main stating his disgust at the distraction it causes from real life. "It's just this weird little world which is fueled by vanity and looking at pictures of yourself".
Sonic Boom
commentary of the track, before the Congratulations sessions at the Blanker Unsinn Studio on 2010: "The natives go all Dance-hall Stomp as something strange in the water forces a Flash time Strobo-cop emanation of the will. Delusion Extrucion."
magazine said it "ultimately keeps building until it explodes into a rapturous harmony, breaking into full-out thrash in its waning seconds." Pitchfork Media
said the song "features flutes, horns, and about seven different sections that reference doo-wop
, old school rock'n'roll
, electro balladry, Ariel Pink
-style lo-fi, wall-of-Spector
pop, and the Beatles
at their most high. All in four minutes and sixteen seconds!" "Flash Delirium" was also described as a "psychedelic trip."
Used in the EA Sports soccer game FIFA 11. MGMT's Kids' was also used in FIFA 09.
, "lends a visual clue into the maelstrom and chaos of modern times". It premiered on MGMT's website on Tuesday, March 30, 2010. It shows the two lead members of the band (Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser) at a welcome-home party. Ben touches a bandage at his neck a few times, with Andrew pulling his arm away from it each time. However, at the party, Ben removes the bandage to reveal a hole in his throat. Out of this hole is pulled an electric eel, symbolizing their previous hit song, "Electric Feel". The eel is then shoved into an iron lung
and presumably destroyed, though a hand is shown pushing out of the machine in a few brief shots. The house trembles and the guests of the party dance as the machine emits lights, violently shaking. The video ends with a picture from outside the house showing something exploding inside and a guttural sound as the camera moves. In the very beginning of the music video, there is a banner outside the car that reads, "Sue the spider" and "Sink the Welsh", a reference to the lyrics at the end of the song.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
band MGMT
MGMT
MGMT is an American alternative rock band founded by Benjamin Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden. After the release of their first album, the members of their live band, Matthew Asti, James Richardson and Will Berman, joined the core band in the studio...
on their second album Congratulations
Congratulations (album)
The album received mostly positive reviews upon its release, and a 72/100 metascore at Metacritic, based upon 39 reviews. Pitchfork Media deemed the album "audacious, ambitious, and a little fried." NME got a first listen of the album and described it as a mix of "frenetic, brief psych nuggets......
. It was the first single to be released from the album and was originally referred to as a "taster" before the band abandoned their original plan to not release any singles from Congratulations in order to solidify its existence as a singular body of work. A free digital download of the song was given away on the band's official website. "Flash Delirium" was made available as a digital download
Music download
A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...
from iTunes
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
on March 24, 2010.
On this album Andrew Vanwyngarden expresses his feelings towards social networking in the song 'Flash Delirium' and directly references to a popular site with the line "stab your Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
". He expands on this in an interview with online magazine Coup De Main stating his disgust at the distraction it causes from real life. "It's just this weird little world which is fueled by vanity and looking at pictures of yourself".
Sonic Boom
Peter Kember
Peter Kember is a British musician and producer, more usually known as Sonic Boom, and was a founding member of alternative rock band Spacemen 3....
commentary of the track, before the Congratulations sessions at the Blanker Unsinn Studio on 2010: "The natives go all Dance-hall Stomp as something strange in the water forces a Flash time Strobo-cop emanation of the will. Delusion Extrucion."
Reception
Many critics praised "Flash Delirium" for its adventurism and distinct clash of styles. Rolling StoneRolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine said it "ultimately keeps building until it explodes into a rapturous harmony, breaking into full-out thrash in its waning seconds." Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
said the song "features flutes, horns, and about seven different sections that reference doo-wop
Doo-wop
The name Doo-wop is given to a style of vocal-based rhythm and blues music that developed in African American communities in the 1940s and achieved mainstream popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s. It emerged from New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Baltimore, Newark, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and...
, old school rock'n'roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
, electro balladry, Ariel Pink
Ariel Pink
Ariel Pink is a Los Angeles-based recording artist who is sometimes associated with the freak folk scene.-Biography:...
-style lo-fi, wall-of-Spector
Wall of Sound
The Wall of Sound is a music production technique for pop and rock music recordings developed by record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles, California, during the early 1960s...
pop, and the Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
at their most high. All in four minutes and sixteen seconds!" "Flash Delirium" was also described as a "psychedelic trip."
Used in the EA Sports soccer game FIFA 11. MGMT's Kids' was also used in FIFA 09.
Music video
The video for "Flash Delirium", directed by Andreas NilssonAndreas Nilsson
Andreas Nilsson is an artist and director based in Malmö, Sweden, best known for his contributions to the music videos of The Knife, Fever Ray, MGMT, Goldfrapp, José González, White Lies, Peter, Björn & John, Moby and Bright Eyes.-2010:...
, "lends a visual clue into the maelstrom and chaos of modern times". It premiered on MGMT's website on Tuesday, March 30, 2010. It shows the two lead members of the band (Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser) at a welcome-home party. Ben touches a bandage at his neck a few times, with Andrew pulling his arm away from it each time. However, at the party, Ben removes the bandage to reveal a hole in his throat. Out of this hole is pulled an electric eel, symbolizing their previous hit song, "Electric Feel". The eel is then shoved into an iron lung
Iron lung
A negative pressure ventilator is a form of medical ventilator that enables a person to breathe when normal muscle control has been lost or the work of breathing exceeds the person's ability....
and presumably destroyed, though a hand is shown pushing out of the machine in a few brief shots. The house trembles and the guests of the party dance as the machine emits lights, violently shaking. The video ends with a picture from outside the house showing something exploding inside and a guttural sound as the camera moves. In the very beginning of the music video, there is a banner outside the car that reads, "Sue the spider" and "Sink the Welsh", a reference to the lyrics at the end of the song.
Awards
| Title | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|
| MuchMusic Video Awards MuchMusic Video Awards The MuchMusic Video Awards are annual awards presented by the Canadian music video channel MuchMusic to honour the year's best music videos.... |
International Video of the Year – Group | Nominated |
| MTV Video Music Awards MTV Video Music Awards An MTV Video Music Award , is an award presented by the cable channel MTV to honor the best in music videos... |
Best Rock Video MTV Video Music Award for Best Rock Video The MTV Video Music Award for Best Rock Video was first given out in , and it was one of the four original genre categories added to the VMAs that year. That year, though, the award was called the Best Heavy Metal Video. From 1990 to 1995, the award was called the Best Metal/Hard Rock Video, and... |
Nominated |
Personnel
- Andrew VanWyngardenAndrew VanWyngardenAndrew VanWyngarden is the lead vocalist, guitar player and songwriter for the band MGMT, praised for "an uncanny knack for producing pop music that sounds as if it were filtered through a kaleidoscope"...
– vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, fake flute - Ben Goldwasser – synth and samplesSynthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
, organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
, pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, additional vocals - Matt Asti – guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Will Berman – drums, guitar, bass
- Jennifer Herrema – additional vocals
Charts
| Chart (2010) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Billboard Japan Hot 100 Japan Hot 100 The Japan Hot 100 is a music singles chart in Japan. It is compiled by Billboard and Hanshin Contents Link ever since February 2008. The chart is updated every Wednesday at billboard-japan.com and every Thursday at billboard.com .... |
81 |
| Canadian Hot 100 Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
87 |