Unknown Mortal Orchestra

V

Their best since Multi-Love, which is certainly a step in the right direction, but this is an interesting album for a few reasons...
For one, the production sounds really crunchy. It's like the prod from Multi-Love in a vacuum sealed bag. It doesn't sound awful, but it keeps these songs from hitting in the way they would otherwise. Then you have these instrumental moments scattered throughout the album which are quite nice, but they don't stand out in any meaningful way, which only makes this ... read more

Lil kid needs to watch out

This new Unknown Mortal Orchestra record is pretty decent. I think the production across this whole record is super solid, it feels super full and punchy. The songs themselves aren’t anything super memorable though, at least to me. I really like In The Rear View though. I will say even though the whole album is not not as catchy to my ears, it’s serves as good music to vibe to. So ye

The Garden - 7
Guilty Pleasures - 7
Meshuggah - 7.5
The Widow - 7
In ... read more

The title of the final track sums the album up pretty well.

Tamer Impala

(I mean even the big cat on the cover is tame)

NR

Bargain bin Tame Impala

Yeah, what can I say, it's a knock-off Tame Impala, just without all the interesting stuff. There are a few songs that are highlights but it starts to really dip in quality and increase how bland it feels. There are plenty of other artists that do this genre better justice than this and that kinda gets rid of the purpose that this album serves.

Peaceful, consistent, the tracks flow into themselves carefully and beautifully, and the instrumental pieces are well-placed and bring out the sharpness, even though it falls a bit in quality towards the end.
FAVORITES: Guilty Pleasures; Meshuggah; The Widow; That Life; Layla; Shin Ramyun; Weekend Run

V starts auspisciously with "The Garden". This fine cut makes curious about the following 13 tracks on the double vinyl. One of my highlights of the whole album is the third track "Meshuggah". The fourth track, the instrumental "The Widow", starts first a bit boring but gets more interesting with some changes during the last minute. That phenomen is characteristic for the whole album, it's permanently on the verge to be absorbing vs. to get boring. Another ... read more

Sometimes funky, sometimes catchy but more often than not bland and forgettable. The instrumental tracks in particular drag quite a bit (especially the aptly named 6-minute closer). I don't even really see myself returning to the highlights. I guess this lo-fi psychedelic pop sound isn't really for me. Cool cover art though.

Favourite Tracks: The Garden*, Meshuggah, That Life, Weekend Run

Sigh... UMO was one of my favorite bands for their first two albums, maybe the third too. After that, they started wearing me out.

In general, it sounds nice (besides a few snares that sound like they were recorded on a phone). But I miss their earwormy, irresistibly catchy lo-fi tunes. I feel like UMO has a problem with like, run-on chord progressions that lack any center or ground, and leave little impression. Ruben's guitars, and even vocals, just kind of noodle around in a very ... read more

*Writes a 10 second long little guitar riff* god I need to turn this into a song, what do I do? Do I build upon it? No, forget that, just repeat it until it reaches the length of a song.
But how long should this song be? Not too long so I don't bore whoever is listening. No no, scrap that, make it 6 minutes long! Yeeeeeees.
I should record some vocals too, so the song has something to it. I'll just record 10 seconds worth of vocals and make it repeat alongisde the 10 second guitar riff.
GENIUS ... read more

This is 2012 boring indie-rock revival. It’s like they looked at Mumford & Sons, X Ambassadors, and American Authors and said “hey we can be even more boring!!”

@Doofy wasn't kidding when he called this "Tamer Impala." Other then the vocals I would be convinced this was a leaked project from Kevin Parker, but it's not a good project because of that comparison. This album just doesn't click with me much at all, it's calm and soothing but barely anything ever sticks after the track switches it simply just exists. The album is not by any means bad but I wish the songs were more fleshed out and stood out to me because this served as a pretty ... read more

9.5/10 - The Garden ♥
7.5/10 - Guilty Pleasures
7.0/10 - Meshuggah
7.5/10 - The Widow
6.5/10 - In the Rear View
7.0/10 - That Life
7.5/10 - Layla
8.5/10 - Shin Ramyun
7.5/10 - Weekend Run
6.0/10 - The Beach
6.0/10 - Nadja
6.5/10 - Keaukaha
6.0/10 - I Killed Captain Cook
7.0/10 - Drag

Avg: 6.8

Very well produced and mixed. Appreciate some creative choices and even the instrumentals on this album. The first half of the album is pretty good, but the other half starts to get boring really ... read more

I usually listen to music while I'm working bcoz it makes me work better. I listened to this album and I'm the new CEO of Amazon.

I’d consider myself a UMO fan, but I have to say I’m disappointed with this one. I’m not inherently opposed to hazed out production and lengthy instrumental interludes, but the funk in between those moments really needs to groove, and I feel V so rarely achieves this. There are some interesting lyrical moments if you can cut through the fog to find them. I wouldn’t say those few standout moments are worth sifting through the hour of material, however.

I think this is a great project however, for it being a psychadelic album the biggest problem I have is there long sessions of instrumentals and it kind of devolves into a boring interlude between songs. That shouldn't take away from the fact that there are some catchy as hell songs such as That Life and The Widow but it falls short and hits the mark for what it's supposed to be in my opinon.

i accidentaly deleted my entire review, so i'm just gonna say this:

does it really have to be one hour long? like, does it REALLY???

I’ve been a fan of Unknown Mortal Orchestra for a while now, quite a while in fact. I’ve known of their music since the release of II; I remember watching the music video for Swim and Sleep (Like a Shark) around the time it released as it was a big deal considering the video was created by Joe and Beccy who also made the Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared web series. I fell in love with their psychedelic sound at quite a young age; it was definitely before I was into all the music ... read more

I got exactly what I expected; a bloated, boring project, emulating the sweetness and charm of "II" with its lo-fi production, but heavily lacking on the energy and songwriting front. This is a cute album, but I know Ruban can do better, and this thing definitely didn't need to be an hour long.
"Shin Ramyun" is a vibe though, I'm not gonna lie.

Wow...
I almost forgot about this band
Great stuff

So many fo(u)nd critics, 🫥.🔻.⏬⤵️(intuition)
opinions lo(s)t at seen. 🔺 ⏫.. 🫥🔝(into ambition).

Easy steady. V is a variable Number.

Well produced but didnt really keep me entertained

Music to hoooooonk mimimimimi😪/hooooooonk shoooo hooooonk shoooooo😴 to. Nadja goes hard tho

Great vibes here! Nice album to put on in the background and work on (I did the same) and overall some solid songs. Not their best but a big step up from their last album. That Life is SO good. Might update this later with more thoughts, maybe not. Who knows!