"Time to Pretend" is a song by the American indie band MGMT, released as the lead single from their debut studio album '' Oracular Spectacular'' (2007) on March 3, 2008. An earlier version had been released on their '' Time to Pretend'' EP. The single was released as a 7" and CD single featuring the B-sides "Weekend Wars" (BBC Radio 1 Session) and " Metanoia", respectively. In early 2009, the song was re-released in the UK. The song was ranked at number 493 on ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

''s list of "

The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" is a recurring survey compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and industry figures. The first list was published in December 2004 in ...

", and its parent album, '' Oracular Spectacular'', was ranked at number 494 on the publication's additional list of "

The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a recurring opinion survey and music ranking of the finest albums in history, compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and indust ...

". The song was also ranked at number 90 on ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

''s list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Background

The track was originally recorded for the '' Time to Pretend'' EP (2005). It was re-recorded for the '' Oracular Spectacular'' album. From a quote from live at Abbey Road:

Music video

The music video for the song contains references to

Alejandro Jodorowsky Alejandro Jodorowsky Prullansky (; born 17 February 1929) is a Chilean-French avant-garde filmmaker. Best known for his 1970s films ''El Topo'' and '' The Holy Mountain'', Jodorowsky has been "venerated by cult cinema enthusiasts" for his work ...

's 1973 film '' The Holy Mountain'' and the 1954 novel ''

Lord of the Flies ''Lord of the Flies'' is a 1954 novel by the Nobel Prize-winning British author William Golding. The plot concerns a group of British boys who are stranded on an uninhabited island and their disastrous attempts to govern themselves. Themes ...

''. The video was directed by Ray Tintori. ''Tiscali Music'' gave the video a rating of 10 out of 10. A 3D version of the video with minor changes to the original was also produced.

Track listing

Reception

Kevin O'Donnell wrote in ''

'' that "''Time to Pretend'' is a space-rock gem that mocks the clichéd coke-and-hookers rock-star lifestyle, over big synth whooshes." The song hit #38 on the

Mediabase Mediabase is a music industry service that monitors radio station airplay in 180 US and Canadian markets. Mediabase publishes music charts and data based on the most played songs on terrestrial and satellite radio, and provides in-depth analytic ...

Alternative chart. ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...

'' critic

Josh Tyrangiel Josh Tyrangiel is an American journalist. He was previously the deputy managing editor of ''TIME'' magazine and an editor at ''Bloomberg Businessweek''.Stephanie Clifford (November 17, 2009"Josh Tyrangiel Named Editor of BusinessWeek"/ref> In Ju ...

named ''Time to Pretend'' the #8 song of 2008. The song was #3 on ''

''s list of the 100 Best Songs of 2008, #4 on

's Best Singles of 2008, The song was ranked at number 493 on ''

''s list of "

". ''NME'' ranked "Time to Pretend" as the 2nd best song of the 2000s. In October 2011, ''

'' placed it at number 12 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Television performances

MGMT performed the song "Time to Pretend" in a 3.5 minute slot on '' Late Show with David Letterman'' on January 8, 2008, ending the performance with a nod to

The Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential rock acts ...

' "

Light My Fire "Light My Fire" is a song by the American rock band the Doors. It was recorded in August 1966 and released in January 1967 on their eponymous debut album. Released as an edited single on April 24, 1967, it spent three weeks at number one on ...

". The song subsequently hit #19 on the

U.S. Alternative chart. They later performed the song on ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' on May 15, 2008. The band returned to Letterman for a 4-minute slot on May 11, 2010.

In popular culture

Television

"Time to Pretend" has featured in a number of TV shows, including HBO's show ''Pacquiao-Hatton 24/7'', episode 2, which originally aired on April 18, 2009, the Season 1 finale of ''

Gossip Girl ''Gossip Girl'' is an American teen drama television series based on the novel series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series, developed for television by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, ran on The CW network for six sea ...

'' on May 19, 2008, and featured prominently at the end of the second series finale of popular UK channel E4's '' Skins'' but was later omitted from the DVD release of the series due to issues acquiring the rights. It was also featured in the series premiere of '' 90210'' on September 2, 2008 and in the pilot episode of HBO's ''

Girls A girl is a young female human, usually a child or an adolescent. When a girl becomes an adult, she is accurately described as a ''woman''. However, the term ''girl'' is also used for other meanings, including ''young woman'',Dictionary.c ...

'' and the pilot episode of '' The Magicians''. It has also appeared in

ITV's ITV is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network. It was launched in 1955 as Independent Television to provide competition to BBC Television (established in 1936). ITV is the oldest commercial network in the UK. Since the passin ...

live coverage of Champions League football. "Time to Pretend" was also used on the Argentine TV show ''Exitosos Pells'', showing bloopers from the series. The song was also used in the series ''

The Revolution Will Be Televised ''The Revolution Will Be Televised'' is a British television satire show starring Heydon Prowse and Jolyon Rubinstein, which was first screened on BBC Three in August 2012. Writing for ''The Guardian'', Sam Wollaston said it's "Sacha Baron Co ...

''. It was also featured in the season one finale of '' The Imperfects''.

Film

"Time to Pretend" has been used in the 2008 films (or in the trailers for) ''

Sex Drive Libido (; colloquial: sex drive) is a person's overall sexual drive or desire for sexual activity. Libido is influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors. Biologically, the sex hormones and associated neurotransmitters that act up ...

'', '' How to Lose Friends & Alienate People'' and '' 21'', an early trailer for the

Tim Burton Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and animator. He is known for his gothic fantasy and horror films such as '' Beetlejuice'' (1988), '' Edward Scissorhands'' (1990), '' The Nightmare Before Christmas'' (1993 ...

film '' Alice in Wonderland'', the 2011 film ''

Warrior A warrior is a person specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracies, class, or caste. History Warriors seem to have be ...

'' and the official trailer for '' Spider-Man: Homecoming''. The song (in a "Super Clean Version" that censors the profanity and drug references) was also featured on the soundtrack of the 2008 film '' 21.'' It also appeared in the film ''

Changeland ''Changeland'' is a 2019 comedy-drama film written and directed by Seth Green. It was released on June 7, 2019, by Gravitas Ventures. Plot While a troubled man goes through a personal crisis, he meets up with his estranged friend in Thailand. ...

''.

Commercials

The song was the theme music for Manchester-based UK radio station

Key 103 ''For the Network, see Hits Radio. For the National DAB station, see Hits Radio UK.'' Hits Radio Manchester is an Independent local radio station owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to Greater Mancheste ...

Piccadilly Magic 1152 Greatest Hits Radio Manchester & The North West is an Independent Local Radio station based in Manchester, England, owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Greatest Hits Radio Network. It broadcasts to Greater Manchester and North West Eng ...

's new football show ''Total Football'' covering Manchester United and Manchester City games. It was also included in one of HMV's holiday commercials. The song was also used for the Polish TV commercial for the

Ferrero SpA Ferrero SpA (), more commonly known as Ferrero Group or simply Ferrero, is an Italian multinational company with headquarters in Alba, Italy. manufacturer of branded chocolate and confectionery products, and the second biggest chocolate produc ...

Duplo chocolate bar aired from December 2009.

Video games

* The song was featured in ''

Shaun White Snowboarding ''Shaun White Snowboarding'' is a snowboarding video game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft for Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, Wii, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. Gameplay Th ...

'', released in November 2008, along with another track from '' Oracular Spectacular'', "Of Moons Birds Monsters". It has also been featured in several skateboarding videos. * The song was featured on the ''

NHL 2K10 ''NHL 2K10'' is an ice hockey sports video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports, part of the ''NHL 2K'' series. It was released on September 15, 2009 for PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Wii, and Xbox 360. Randy Hahn and ...

'' soundtrack. * Sections of this song appear in the

PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on November 11, 2006, in Japan, November ...

game ''

LittleBigPlanet ''LittleBigPlanet'' (stylized as ''LittleBIGPlanet''; abbreviated ''LBP'') is a puzzle platform video game series created and produced by British developer Media Molecule and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Most games in the seri ...

''. * The song and its music video appears on the soundtrack of ''

Guitar Hero Live ''Guitar Hero Live'' is a 2015 music rhythm video game developed by FreeStyleGames and published by Activision. It is the seventh main installment in the ''Guitar Hero'' series. The game was released for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Wii U, X ...

'' as part of its ''GHTV'' service.

Covers

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

Live Lounge The Live Lounge is a segment on the British radio stations BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 1Xtra. It was originally hosted by Simon Mayo, and later by Jo Whiley on her weekday mid-morning, and later weekend lunchtime radio shows, then by Fearne Cotton ...

'' sessions: **

Kaiser Chiefs Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who formed in 2000 as Parva, releasing one studio album, ''22'', in 2003, before renaming and establishing themselves in their current name that same year. Since their formation the band h ...

, September 2008 **

Paolo Nutini Paolo Giovanni Nutini (born 9 January 1987) is a Scottish singer, songwriter and musician from Paisley. Nutini's debut album, '' These Streets'' (2006), peaked at number three on the UK Albums Chart. Its follow-up, '' Sunny Side Up'' (2009), de ...

, November 2009 **

Leddra Chapman Anna Leddra Chapman (born 10 October 1989), better known as Leddra Chapman, is an English singer-songwriter and musician from Brentwood in Essex. She rose to prominence when her debut single, "Story", was released on 7 December 2009 to much cri ...

- BBC Radio 2

Janice Long Janice Berry ( Chegwin; 5 April 1955 – 25 December 2021), known professionally by her first married name Janice Long, was an English broadcaster who was best known for her work in British music radio. In a career that spanned five decades, ...

live session, January 2010 **

Jón Þór Birgisson Jón is an Old Norse common name still widely used in Iceland and the Faroes. According to Icelandic custom, people named Jón are generally referred to by first and middle names and those without a middle name are referred to with both first nam ...

from Sigur Rós, March 2010 *

Broderick Smith Broderick Smith (born 17 February 1948) is an English-born Australian multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter and sometime actor. He was a member of 1970s bands Sundown, Carson and the Dingoes, 1980s Broderick Smith's Big Combo and he has rec ...

and Patience Hodgson (of The Grates) performed a duet of the song live on the '' RocKwiz'' Episode 74 in January 2009. *Covered by

Weezer Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Patrick Wilson (drums, backing vocals), Scott Shriner (bass guitar, keyboards, backing ...

at the

Reading Festival The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend. The Reading Festiv ...

2010. *Covered by

Sunday Girl "Sunday Girl" is a song recorded by the American new wave band Blondie, from the band's 1978 album ''Parallel Lines''. Written by guitarist Chris Stein, the song was inspired by Debbie Harry's cat, who was named Sunday Man—the cat had recentl ...

, premiering on her YouTube channel in August 2010. *Covered by

Neil Hannon Edward Neil Anthony Hannon (born 7 November 1970) is a Northern Irish singer and songwriter. He is the creator and front man of the chamber pop group The Divine Comedy, and is the band's sole constant member. Hannon wrote the theme tunes for ...

The Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature an ...

for

Dermot O'Leary Seán Dermot Fintan O'Leary Jr. (born 24 May 1973) is an English broadcaster who currently works for ITV and BBC Radio 2. His radio career began when he worked as a disc jockey at Essex Radio, but he is best known for being the presenter of ' ...

's BBC Radio 2 Saturday Sessions 2010. *Covered by

Anthony Jasmin Anthony Jasmin sometimes Anthony & Jasmin is a Danish pop duo who on 28 March 2014 won season 7 of the Danish version of ''X Factor'' in 2014. After Anthony Lopez and Jasmin Dahl were eliminated as solo artists at bootcamp, the duo was formed and ...

during the final of the seventh season of the Danish version of ''

X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...

''. *Covered by The Reach, single released October 2015 *Cover by

Kiki and Herb Kiki and Herb (Justin Bond and Kenny Mellman) are an American drag cabaret duo. Bond portrays Kiki DuRane, an aging, alcoholic, female lounge singer. Mellman portrays her gay, male piano accompanist, known only as "Herb." Despite Bond and Mellm ...

as the opening song of their 2016 cabaret show ''Kiki & Herb: Seeking Asylum!'' at

Joe's Pub Joe's Pub, one of the six performance spaces within The Public Theater, is a music venue and restaurant that hosts live performances across genres and arts, ranging from cabaret to modern dance to world music. It is located at 425 Lafayette St ...

. *Sampled by

Sigala Bruce Fielder, known professionally as Sigala, is a British DJ and music producer. He has had eight songs peak within the top ten of the UK Singles Chart, including his 2015 debut single " Easy Love", which samples " ABC" by the Jackson 5. C ...

and

James Arthur James Arthur (born 2 March 1988) is an English singer and songwriter. He rose to fame after winning the ninth series of ''The X Factor'' in 2012. His debut single, a cover of Shontelle's " Impossible", was released by Syco Music after the fi ...

in their 2020 single Lasting Lover *Covered by

Black Country, New Road Black Country, New Road (commonly abbreviated to BCNR or BC,NR) are an English rock band formed in Cambridgeshire in 2018, consisting of Tyler Hyde (vocals, bass), Lewis Evans (vocals, flute, saxophone), May Kershaw (vocals, keys), Georgia Elle ...

in 2021. It was later included in the bands ''Never Again'' EP.

Remixes

* The Welsh drum and bass artist

High Contrast Lincoln Barrett (born 18 September 1979), better known by the stage name High Contrast, is a Welsh electronic music producer, DJ and record producer. He produces drum and bass music, and his 2009 album ''Confidential'' reached BPI gold cer ...

produced a drum and bass remix of "Time to Pretend". This remix was featured on Radio 1 during the Sub Focus Essential Mix of 25 April 2009.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 2008 singles MGMT songs 2007 songs Songs written by Andrew VanWyngarden Columbia Records singles Songs written by Benjamin Goldwasser Songs about drugs Satirical songs