Why Is One MGMT Dude Cooler Than The Other?

Dan Gibson | November 4, 2008 11:30 am

The nearly completely useless NME Cool List hit the internet today and while most of the list is predictable (M.I.A. and Lil Wayne are cool? This is entirely new information!), one inclusion/exclusion seemed a bit odd. Most people have likely made up their minds about MGMT at this point–especially since their music has been difficult to avoid in late 2008–and their inclusion in an arbitrary list makes sense. But what made Andrew VanWyngarden the “cool” half?

2008 saw the words “shamanic” and “cosmic” bandied around more recklessly than at any time since 1973, and it was primarily down to MGMT’s bandana-clad frontman, the blissed-out figurehead for a new generation of inner-vision voyagers.

Sure, I get the bandana thing: You can always tell the cool guy by the bandana. (Just look at Bret Michaels!) But wouldn’t Andrew’s bandmate and fellow Wesleyan grad Ben Goldwasser merit a mention in the top 50, especially on a list that honored Brandon Flowers’ moustache last year? I don’t even think the Klaxons did anything in 2008 and one of them made the list, and certainly Lethal Bizzle could have been knocked off to make room.

Hey, NME: Why do you hate Ben Goldwasser?

The list in full: 50. Jon McClure, Reverend & The Makers 49. Carl Barat 48. Lethal Bizzle 47. Eva Spence, Rolo Tomassi 46. Matt Bellamy, Muse 45. Brian Fallon, The Gaslight Anthem 44. Gruff Rhys, Neon Neon 43. Karen O, Yeah Yeah Yeahs 42. Tom Vain – S.C.U.M. 41. Shunda K, Yo Majesty 40. Robert Plant 39. Robbie Furze, The Big Pink 38. Jason Pierce, Spiritualized 37. Brandon Flowers, The Killers 36. Frank Carter, Gallows 35. Little Boots 34. DJ Mujava 33. Josh Homme, Queens Of The Stone Age 32. Lovefoxxx, CSS 31. Rivers Cuomo, Weezer 30. Will Roan, Amazing Baby 29. Scarlett Johansson 28. Miles Kane, The Rascals/The Last Shadow Puppets 27. Yannis Philippakis, Foals 26. Nick McCabe, The Verve 25. Peter Gabriel 24. Zack de la Rocha, Rage Against The Machine 23. Jamie Reynolds, Klaxons 22. Jay Reatard 21. Damon Albarn 20. Dev Hynes, Lightspeed Champion 19. Florence Welch, Florence & The Machine 18. Ed MacFarlane, Friendly Fires 17. Santogold 16. Ezra Koenig, Vampire Weekend 15. Johnny Marr 14. Dave Sitek, TV On The Radio 13. Lil Wayne 12. Guy Garvey, Elbow 11. Pink Eyes, Fucked Up 10. Caroline McKay, Glasvegas 9. Liam Gallagher, Oasis 8. M.I.A. 7. Caleb Followill, Kings Of Leon 6. Ladyhawke 5. Sam Dust, Late Of The Pier 4. Alex Turner, Arctic Monkeys/The Last Shadow Puppets 3. Andrew VanWyngarden, MGMT 2. Jay-Z 1. Alice Glass, Crystal Castles

NME Cool List 2008 [NME]

Tags: ,