PRODUCT DETAILS
Details: Created between Palm Springs, California and Hilo, Hawai'i, V is the first double album from the Hawaiian-New Zealand singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Ruban Nielson's Unknown Mortal Orchestra band. Designed to play as one continuous movement and road-tested on dry California freeways, V is the definitive Unknown Mortal Orchestra car record. It's also the fifth full-length album Ruban has released in twelve years. Across fourteen sunbleached songs - written solo or with his brother Kody - Ruban draws from the rich traditions of West Coast AOR, yacht rock, weirdo pop and Hawaiian Hapa-haole music. Over a laidback blend of singalong anthems and cinematic instrumentals, he evokes blue skies, afternoons spent lounging by hotel swimming pools and the alluring darkness that lurks below perfect, pristine surfaces. It's a duality expressed in the dilapidated sunset blues and the saltcorroded soul Ruban explores through tracks like 'Layla' and 'Nadja. ' During the pandemic's early days, Ruban reunited with Kody at a cousin's wedding in Hawai'i. With assistance from their father, Chris Nielson (saxophone/flute) and longstanding Unknown Mortal Orchestra member Jake Portrait, they brought everything Ruban had been thinking about together. The result was V, due for release on March 3, 2023, through Jagjaguwar. When they talked about records that moved them in that spine-shivering manner, Ruban started thinking about the 70s AM radio rock and 80s pop songs that had lurked on the edge of his subconscious mind for most of his life. He wanted to write his version of records like that, leading to the two glorious uptempo singles Unknown Mortal Orchestra released in 2021, 'Weekend Run' and 'That Life'. However, the golden good times never last forever. Not long after, health issues began to plague his extended family. Putting his recordings aside, he helped his mother and his uncle move home from New Zealand and Portland to Hawai'i, and began dividing his time between Hawai'i and Palm Springs. During this period he reconnected with his relatives, reassessed his past, and started to look at things with fresh eyes. Hawai'i brought back memories of the darker side of his parents' lifestyle as entertainers. On those trips, he heard those classic AM radio rock records everywhere. They were inextricably intertwined with the palm trees, swimming pools, and glamorized hedonism he'd internalized from his childhood. There's a type of music in Hawai'i called Hapa-haole (Half white). You can hear it expressed in signature Unknown Mortal Orchestra style through the humid guitar-led atmosphere of V's penultimate song, 'I Killed Captain Cook'. Although the songs are presented in a traditional Hawaiian manner, they're mostly sung in English. Having been influenced by Hawaiian music since Unknown Mortal Orchestra's first album, Ruban saw a space for himself within the tradition. When he reflected on his success, he realised he had the responsibility and platform to represent Hapa-haole music on the global stage.
Tracklist:
- 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
SHIPPING
- Shipping times are estimates, and transit times may vary. While we usually ship within one business day, please allow us up to 2 business days handling time for each shipment.
- Shipping charges on all premium shipping options (non-media mail) are non-refundable.
- Flat-rate media mail shipping is intended for individual consumers and not bulk purchasing. We reserve the right to request additional payments for bulk purchases using our flat-rate shipping service.
- If you would like your pre-orders and in-stock items shipped separately, please order them separately. Otherwise, we will ship all items in your order when the last title is released!
- Street dates for pre-orders are tentative and are subject to change.
- Every international order includes shipping insurance that covers both the purchase and shipping costs. In the event of a lost or damaged package, we will file an insurance claim on your behalf. If the claim is accepted by the insurance company, we will refund you the amount offered in the claim. If the insurance claim is rejected, no refund will be provided.
- Any duties, taxes and customs fees for international orders are the responsibility of the customer.
RETURNS
Domestic Returns (US Only): We stand by all of our products and offer a refund on all products within 30 days of purchase (excluding products marked as warehouse finds/no returns, bulk orders, or international orders). Returned items must be in the same condition they were sent. Shipping charges on all premium shipping options (non-media mail) are nonrefundable.
International Returns: Due to the cost of international shipping, we do not offer refunds, exchanges or returns on international orders. Every international order includes shipping insurance that covers both the purchase and shipping costs. In the event of a lost, delayed or damaged package, we will file an insurance claim on your behalf. If the claim is accepted by the insurance company, we will refund you the amount offered in the claim. If the insurance claim is rejected, no refund will be provided.
Bulk Order Returns (Purchases including 3 or more of same item): Shipping on bulk orders is nonrefundable. Customers with bulk orders are responsible for all return shipping costs as well as a 15% restocking fee deducted from the refund amount.