Psych-rock outfit Unknown Mortal Orchestra have announced their return, with the group set to release V next month. The new double-album is the band’s sixth LP and follows their 2018 releases Sex & Food and IC-01 Hanoi, the latter of which was their first instrumental release.
Alongside news of the album’s arrival, the group have shared the single ‘Layla’, the first in a two-part series documenting the adventures of two young women.
Unknown Mortal Orchestra – ‘Layla’
The brainchild of Hawaiian-New Zealand musician Ruban Nielson, Unknown Mortal Orchestra started working on new music around the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, but family health issues disrupted the process.
Nielson took time to recalibrate and focus on family before eventually travelling to Palm Springs, California, with his brother and frequent collaborator, Kody Nielson, to work on new music. The pair were joined by longstanding Unknown Mortal Orchestra member Jake Portrait.
The album draws inspiration from the Nielsons’ native Hawaii and the American west coast, and incorporates elements of album-oriented rock, classic hits, “weirdo pop”, and Hawaiian hapa-haole music. In a statement, Ruban Nielson said that he wanted to craft a record that transcended ideas of clout and cultural currency, and to inject fun back into the creative process.
“In Hawaii, everything shifted off of me and my music,” Nielson said of the album’s creation. “Suddenly, I was spending more time figuring out what others need and what my role is within my family.
“I also learned that things I thought were true of myself are bigger than I thought. My way of making mischief – that’s not just me – that’s my whole Polynesian side. I thought I was walking away from music to focus on family, but the two ended up connecting.”
Unknown Mortal Orchestra: V
- The Garden
- Guilty Pleasures
- Meshuggah
- The Widow
- In The Rear View
- That Life
- Layla
- Shin Ramyun
- Weekend Run
- The Beach
- Nadja
- Keaukaha
- I Killed Captain Cook
- Drag
Further Reading
Unknown Mortal Orchestra Release Ninth Annual Christmas Day Song ‘SB-09’
Love Letter To A Record: P.H.F. On The Mint Chicks’ ‘F**k The Golden Youth’
Unknown Mortal Orchestra: “Altered States Help You Get A View Of Reality”
