If you’re reading this on a mobile device we apologize for the irony.
Unknown Mortal Orchestra have revealed ‘Can’t Keep Checking My Phone’ to be their second single ahead of their third LP Multi-Love which is due out May 26th, and it’s a hand-clapping psych-soul groove.
In a newsletter sent to fans, frontman and multi-instrumentalist Ruban Nielson explains it’s about “missing somebody and that point where you refuse to accept online ‘connectivity’ as a substitute for being with someone IRL.”
Opening with a bit of meandering horns and classical guitar, ‘Can’t Keep Checking My Phone’ bounces around lyrical topics that include eating crickets, the aurora borealis, and wondering if the universe is really a hologram, all before putting the phone down and regrettably picking it up once again.
“Do you fall in love with the idea of someone? Or the chemicals they give off in person? Either way, I’ve got to get off my phone,” Nielson concludes.
World Tour:
5/7 – Eugene, OR @ WOW Hall
5/9 – Seattle, WA @ Barboza
5/10 – Spokane, WA @ The Bartlett
5/20 – Bristol, UK @ Thekla
5/21 – London, UK @ Islington Assembly Hall
5/22 – Coventry, UK @ Warwick University
5/23 – Liverpool, UK @ Sound City
5/25 – Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Bitterzoet
5/26 – Berlin, Germany @ Berghain Katine
5/27 – Brussels, Belgium @ AB Club
5/28 – Paris, France @ La Fleche d’or
5/28-30 – Barcelona, Spain @ Primavera Sound
5/29-31 – Nimes, France @ This Is Not a Love Song
6/2 – Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
6/3 – Montreal, QC @ Fairmount Theatre
6/4 – Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace
6/5 – Pontiac, MI @ Pike Room
6/6 – Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
6/8 – Minneapolis, MN @ Triple Rock
6/9 – Omaha, NE @ Waiting Room
6/10 – St. Louis, MO @ The Firebird
6/12 – Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo
6/13 – Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West
6/14 – Carboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
6/15 – Washington, DC @ U Street Music Hall
6/16 – Philadelphia, PA @ Boot and Saddle
6/17 – Philadelphia, PA @ Boot and Saddle
6/19 – Brooklyn, NY @ Warsaw
7/14 – Bergen, Norway @ Landmark
7/16-19 – Southwold, UK @ Latitude Festival
7/23 – Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater
7/25 – Seattle, WA @ Capitol Hill Block Party
7/26 – Vancouver, BC @ Imperial
7/28 – Boise, ID @ Neurolux
7/29 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge
7/31 – Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater
8/1 – Santa Fe, NM @ Santa Fe Reporter Block Party
8/2 – Phoenix, AZ @ The Crescent Ballroom
8/3 – Tucson, AZ @ Club Congress
8/5 – San Diego, CA @ Casbah
8/6 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Roxy Theatre
8/7-9 – San Francisco, CA @ Outside Lands
9/8 – Helsinki, Finland @ Tavastia
9/10 – Stockholm, Sweden @ Debaser Strand
9/11 – Gothenburg, Sweden @ Pustervik
9/12 – Copenhagen, Denmark @ VEGA Small Hall
9/14 – Hamburg, Germany @ Ubel & Gefährlich
9/15 – Cologne, Germany @ Gebaude 9
9/16 – Frankfurt, Germany @ Zoom
9/17 – Berlin, Germany @ Lido
9/20 – Utrecht, NL @ Tivoli Vredenburg Pandora
9/22 – Brighton, UK @ Concorde 2
9/23 – London, UK @ O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire
9/24 – Birmingham, UK @ The Library at the Institute
9/25 – Manchester, UK @ The Ritz
9/26 – Dublin, IE @ Whelan’s
9/28 – Nottingham, UK @ Rescue Rooms
9/29 – Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club
9/30 – Glasgow, UK @ QMU
Originally published on The Music Ninja
