Pitchfork Day 3 2012: Unknown Mortal Orchestra

Photo Credit: Julia Duerst

As a crowd gathers early in the day for Unknown Mortal Orchestra to come on stage, we sweat under the sun, drinking as much water as we can, sincerely missing the rain of the past two days. The band comes out, looking like a normal young 60s psychedelic group, ready to jam their way through our brains. If you’re on any drugs at this show, you’re excited for whatever trip you’re about to go on.

UMO plays with the control and consistence of any aged professionals, but these guys are, relatively speaking, just kids compared to most of their counterparts. Rubin Nielson, the mind behind all of the music, hits all his notes solidly as he sings and plays with the touring band. The drummer is notably skilled, bringing a mellow energy of support rather than the often apathetic drumming heard with this type of music.

Rolling through songs “Bicycle”, “How Can U Luv Me”, and “Nerve Damage” the crowd is digging their sound, the band is clearly passionate about each and every song. The best parts come towards the ends of most songs when they decide to continue on, jamming to some of their best tracks. They are having fun, making music within a genre that’s before their time, and bringing new modern sounds to mix with that old school psychedelic rock.