'A Weekend Run' with Unknown Mortal Orchestra
April fools SHOW CELEBRATED RELEASE OF ‘V’ WITH STAR STUDDED AUDIENCE
The usually short but sweet marquee featured in front of the historic Hollywood Palladium displayed an unusually long artist tonight. Dubbed “UMO” by fans, Unknown Mortal Orchestra headlined the venue with a sold out crowd as I quickly made my way to the security check and will call. This time around, I was equipped with film, no digital cameras of any kind. This specific request from the band made for an unlikely scenario for some photographers, but unique to UMO’s social feeds. The contrast of colors with shadows made for great photos, but it was going to be somewhat of a challenge nonetheless.
Opening act Amulets were wrapping up their set when I placed my V photo pass on my shoulder and walked into the photo pit. The venue itself was going through some renovations, covering up the merch corner that greets guests as soon as the enter. The floor was filled with fans and little to no wiggle room in between. The photo pit started with a mere two photographers before filling up to about six or seven. After around 20 minutes, one band member walked on stage and took to the keys, playing the intro to kick off track from V, “The Garden.” Singer Ruban Nielson then came out to a wave of cheers along with the rest of the live band. He took a few sips of a drink and jumped into guitar on the same track, engaging the audience even more with his solo that comes during the climax of the song. The already six minute track went a little longer on stage, and so everyone had to pace themselves with their film. The letters “UMO” illuminated the stage while also morphing the band into silhouettes of themselves, jamming in the dark.
I hadn’t noticed that I was still shooting the first song before running out of film, so I waited until blended tracks “…From the Sun” and “Secret Xtians” off II transitioned the orange light bursts into moody blues. The band played mostly hits and deep cuts from their first four albums, allowing fans no time for their anticipation to dissipate. “Thanks for letting us play so many old songs,” Nielson shared before beginning new track “Nadja.” Everything blended quite well with no dull moment of “oh this is a new song that I don’t know so I’m not so interested.” At this point, I was watching from the VIP balcony where I noticed Mac DeMarco and Anderson Paak. grooving to the music, Paak. in particular got DOWN to fan favorite “So Good at Being in Trouble.” The song sounded slowed down compared to its studio counterpart, but the extended outro proved superior in my opinion.
V cut “Layla” followed right before the band went into another popular track, “Multi-Love,” instantly recognizable from the key intro. Nielson quietly tuned up while the keyboardist almost eased the crowd into what was about to come. Nielson sounded spot on, expressing the passion in his lyrics for the song. This ended the show before the encore chant commenced. Needless to say, UMO came back onstage to finish with an extra six songs, consisting of mostly V hits and even a Grateful Dead cover. Of course, “Hunnybee” was not to be forgotten and acted as an appetizer for finale “Can’t Keep Checking My Phone.” Five albums later, the band has progressed to a pedestal of superior psychedelic music while remaining humble in stage presence. Check out the set list here!
PS: Check out our gallery of photos from the performance!
PS: Check out our gallery of photos from the performance!
Jacob Alvarez