Morbid beauty, the skull of the school, the apple of Daddy's eye

Thursday music corner: psychedelic rockers Unknown Mortal Orchestra, originally of Auckland and now domiciled in Portland, Oregon, have released five studio albums, mostly on the Jagjaguwar label, which also features Sharon Van Etten, Dinosaur Jr, Okkervil River, Bon Iver and Angel Olsen. 

Released on 4 August 2021, 'That Life' is the second UMO single released this year, and its off-kilter puppet-themed video by Lydia Fine and Tony Blahd is a particular highlight. UMO lead singer Ruban Nielson has described 'That Life' as an attempt to channel Hieronymus Bosch’s ‘The Garden of Earthly Delights’ in the landscape of America, ‘somewhere on holiday under a vengeful sun’. To date, all UMO albums have been released on cassette as well as the more conventional CD, LP and digital formats.

Unknown Mortal Orchestra – That Life (2021)