Listen: Unknown Mortal Orchestra - "Multi Love"
Ruban Nielson and co are back. There's no doubt about it, Unknown Mortal Orchestra have been one of the most exciting and refreshing bands of the last few years. The New Zealand/American troupe's self-titled debut and follow-up II were nigh-on perfect examples of genre-blending: soul, psych and indie strung with lo-fi sentiments to make breezy, accessible pop.
The band have now announced their third album with the rather wonderful title-track, "Multi-Love". Despite some hulky house keys setting in, the song has that undeniable UMO sound. Those beats are still full of life, that bass still snakes around hypnotic phaser guitar lines, and Nielson's soulful husk still hugs the song's groove.
Speaking to us ahead of End of the Road last summer, Nielson said: "The sound is upgraded for the new record but it's still beat heavy, still soulful and still creates a weird sexy alien mood."
"Multi-Love" might not be their bigges upgrade but it's another stellar track from a band who just keep getting it right.
Multi-Love is released on 26 May via Jagjaguwar. Check out the band's tour dates below:
February
22 Newcastle, England - 6 Music Festival
March
7 - Eugene, OR - WOW Hall
9 - Seattle, WA - Barboza
10 - Spokane, WA - The Bartlett
20 - Bristol, England - Thekla
21 - London, England - Islington Assembly Hall
22 - Coventry, England - Warwick University *
23 - Liverpool, England - Liverpool Sound City
25 - Amsterdam, Netherlands - Bitterzoet
26 - Berlin, Germany - Berghain Kantine
27 - Brussels, Belgium - AB Club
28 - Paris, France - La Flèche d’Or
29-31 Nîmes, France - This is Not a Love Song Festival
30 - Barcelona, Spain - Primavera Sound
June
2 - Boston, MA - Brighton Music Hall
3 - Montreal, Quebec - Theatre Fairmount
4 - Toronto, Ontario - Lee’s Palace
5 - Pontiac, MI - Pike Room
6 - Chicago, IL - Lincoln Hall
8 - Minneapolis, MN - Triple Rock Social Club
9 - Omaha, NE - Waiting Room
10 - St. Louis, MO - Firebird
11-14 - Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo
13 - Atlanta, GA - Terminal West
14 - Carrboro, NC - Cat’s Cradle
15 - Washington, DC - U Street Music Hall
16 - Philadelphia, PA - Boot & Saddle
17 - Philadelphia, PA - Boot & Saddle
19 - Brooklyn, NY - Warsaw
* with Django Django
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