This typically means the full package or a specific high-quality rip of the entire EP. ⚠️ Note on "Original" vs. "Album" Versions
This is the version where the kick drum on "Destrokk" sounds like a cardboard box being hit with a wet stick—and I mean that as the highest compliment. The low-end isn't punchy; it's woolly . You hear the room hiss. You hear the cheap mixer clipping on the high end of "Kids." Before the synth hook became a frat house anthem, it was just a glitchy loop played on a MicroKorg that sounded like it was about to crash.
Here is a track-by-track breakdown of the six songs on the Time to Pretend EP, highlighting what makes each one unique and why you would want to hear them in high-fidelity.
This is the exact catalog number for the original Cantora Records physical CD pressing. For die-hard physical collectors and archivists, locating a legit CANRCD 01 disc is a prized achievement.
The unique identifier (catalog number) used to distinguish this 2005 Cantora release from later reissues or singles. mgmt 2005 time to pretend cds canrcd 01 flac hot
For collectors of indie rock history and audiophiles alike, the string represents the ultimate digital grail: a perfect, lossless preservation of MGMT’s legendary debut EP.
After signing to Columbia Records, the track was re-recorded and polished for mainstream radio.
Because nostalgia has been algorithmically flattened. We have high-res streams of everything, yet we lost the texture of limitation. The Time to Pretend CDr represents the last moment where a band sounded broke.
At first glance, it looks like a jumble of product codes, file formats, and nostalgic yearning. But to the audiophile, the MGMT completist, or the indie rock historian, these ten words tell a story of scarcity, sonic purity, and a band caught between a dorm room and global superstardom. This typically means the full package or a
Today, MGMT is known for psychedelic synth-pop anthems like Kids and Electric Feel . But in 2005, Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser were just Wesleyan University students experimenting with lo-fi recording equipment. Before Columbia Records came calling, they self-released a raw, unpolished, and ferociously creative EP.
If you find the —the real one, with the proper log file and a checksum that matches the old What.CD database—don't just listen to it. Study it.
(05:40) – A sweeping, psychedelic emotional anchor.
Here are a few options for a post featuring the MGMT "Time to Pretend" CD, tailored for different platforms. The low-end isn't punchy; it's woolly
(4:24): A more straightforward, subdued track that serves as a bridge to the finale.
In your search for this release, you will often see it paired with the term (Free Lossless Audio Codec). For a song as sonically dense as "Time to Pretend," format choice makes a massive difference in playback quality. MP3 vs. FLAC
But somewhere deep in the forums—on /r/riprequests, Soulseek, or private music trackers—a different beast lurks. A myth. A piece of plastic that changed the trajectory of Brooklyn indie rock before it even left the burner.
Before they released the glossy, Columbia Records-backed Oracular Spectacular (which took early tracks like "Kids" and "Time to Pretend" and re-recorded them with producer Dave Fridmann), MGMT were a self-described "indietronica" act playing localized gigs.