Unknown Mortal Orchestra Sex & Food

Published Apr 03, 2018
On their first three albums, Unknown Mortal Orchestra had a way of flitting between funk, soul, psych and rock effortlessly, where warm melodies mingled with slick, yet warped, lo-fi production in inventive ways. While the band touch on many of ideas that made them so enduring in the past on their fourth record, Sex & Food, too often it feels underdeveloped and lacks the usual balance of swagger and sensitivity.Following the stammering intro track "A God Called Hubris," Unknown Mortal Orchestra bring back the compressed psychedelic-pop sound explored on their 2011 debut with "Major League Chemicals," where band mastermind Ruban Nielson's indecipherable, scratchy voice is knotted within his frazzled guitar playing. Nielson's signature serpentine finger-picking technique on "The Internet of Love (That Way)" is highly reminiscent of the slow-cooked jams of their second album, II, but instead of revealing its subdued rhythms in layers, the song about love in a disconnected, online society, predictably ambles along in a straight line.
Lead single "American Guilt" is built around a charged, crunchy stoner-rock riff and Nielson repeating "Oh no, here it comes, the American guilt" — it comes across as an unimaginative, half-baked political statement and forgoes any of Unknown Mortal Orchestra's usual emotional nuance. The spindly "Ministry of Alienation" toils around in the same tepid tone.
Still, there are a few bright spots that rank among Unknown Mortal Orchestra's best material. With its supple saxophone, groovy bass line and impossibly catchy backbeat, "Hunnybee," a fatherly love song for Nielson's daughter, is an absolute delight. It elevates itself in Nielson's candied chorus ("There's no such thing sweeter than a sting") and continues on with an achingly velvety guitar solo toward the song's final hurrah. Keyboard-driven "Everyone Acts Crazy Nowadays" follows in 2015's Multi-Love's danceable disco-funk, culminating in Nielson's tendency to use his dry falsetto as a secondary instrument, mimicking and playing off his nimble riffs. The slow build-up into the blossoming climax of realization in "Not In Love We're Just High" is rejuvenating towards the end of the album.
While Sex & Food is a disjointed effort with Nielson's usual ingenuity wavering at times, fans will undoubtedly find favourites in certain tracks. It's an anxious, up-and-down affair, with moments of reward sprinkled within its lethargic haze. (Jagjaguwar/Outside)