The normally psychedelic Unknown Mortal Orchestra have gifted us their first music of 2022, acoustic cut ‘I Killed Captain Cook’.
The track features nifty guitar work and vocal harmonies from Ruban Nielson, who has called it a tribute to his mother, Deedee Aipolani Nielson. Deedee would tell the story of Cook’s demise at the hands of a native Hawaiian to Ruban as a child, and the mesmerising video for the track features her dancing on a shoreline.
Unknown Mortal Orchestra – ‘I Killed Captain Cook’
‘I Killed Captain Cook’ is taken from a forthcoming double album for Unknown Mortal Orchestra, which is set to drop in 2023. Their last album, ‘Sex & Food’, came out in 2018.
A surprisingly tender track for the subject matter, Nielson sticks to solo guitar throughout. The story takes on a folk-tale feel told from the perspective of the man who killed Cook for, among other things, attempting to kidnap Hawaiian chief Kalaniʻōpuʻu.
‘I Killed Captain Cook’ follows a pair of standalone singles from the Nielson-led UMO, ‘That Life’ and ‘Weekend Run’, both released in 2021. The band’s 2023 double album will be released through the Jagjaguwar label.
Further Reading
Unknown Mortal Orchestra Release Ninth Annual Christmas Day Song ‘SB-09’
Elizabeth: “I Used to Blow Things Up Just to Have Something to Write About”
Arctic Monkeys ‘The Car’ Review – Decadent Leisure and Immobilising Nostalgia
