One of New Zealand’s best exports, Unknown Moral Orchestra (UMO), have rung in the New Year with their huge, fuzz-laden single ‘American Guilt’. Littered with the fuzziest, most compressed guitar licks we’ve heard from the group, ‘American Guilt’ hits us like a blazing train, paving its way down the tracks as it spurts out new and disgustingly fresh sounds and ideas that clearly show the band is far from stopping anytime soon.
The thick and aggressive guitars drive the train, sitting in the forefront of the piece while the crumbly, lo-fi percussion of the drums shovel the coal into the boiler to provide the energy and support needed to keep the track flowing smoothly and on time. The vocals are the crunch of the shovels slicing into the coal, digging up the most solid nuggets as they are fed through distortion and compression to really bring to life, Ruben Nielson’s lyrics and support the guitars.
Seeing this glimpse into UMO’s upcoming album is quite thrilling, leaving us lusting after the return of more heavy tones and killer riffs and boy oh boy do I hope we get to hear more like this very soon.
Written by Jaspar Robinson
You can purchase 'American Guilt' here or stream it via Apple Music.
(Photo by Neil Krug)
