As a general rule, great expectations are best avoided. More often than not though it is impossible to ignore preconceptions and so the usually law-abiding citizen is tempted by the allure of anticipation and consequent excitement. I, like so many others, am guilty of said temptation.

Armed with notions of what an MGMT show would be like I arrived at the Astoria. A familiarity with tracks from their album Oracular Spectacular and conversation with a friend who had seen them at a Cardiff gig led me to believe that this would be a ‘relaxing’ event (her description, not mine.) And as the set began, it seemed things were panning out as predicted.

A flute player and stage smoke set a scene that wouldn’t have been out of place in hippy camp. Gradually band members, including main men Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser, appeared. Dressed in a flowing Joseph’s Technicolour Dreamcoat number Andrew transported his vocals into the microphone. If only glitter/fairy dust had fallen from the ceiling and the audience could have pictured themselves in a West End production (maybe A Midsummer Night’s Dream for the ambience.)

But as the gig continued the calming edge was replaced by a rockier sound. Rightly so. The energy was taken up a notch and this turned into a very different night than forecast. Tracks like The Youth and Time To Pretend were well-received but sound different live. What became apparent is that MGMT are all about the instrumental side of things. Every opportunity was taken to extend an interlude and, credit where it’s due, they gave the fans their money’s worth and played well. There is truth in the ‘too much of a good thing’ theory though. Cutting back a little and honing in on the best bits would have tightened things up.

MGMT are in their own world and it’s a fun, talent-ridden one. If they can just make it a little more accessible they will be set themselves up for even bigger success.