Ruban and the gang then shifted into a clever medley of oldies from II, Multi-Love and their self-titled debut. The opening number, 'From the Sun,' lacked the density of the recorded version but punched way harder. The band decided to forgo material from V to play songs from the first couple of albums, a rare move at the Desk that speaks to the strength of UMO's catalog.
The setlist leaned right into UMO's incalculability. Keyboard player Christian Li and longtime UMO member Jacob Portrait on bass make up the current roster. Chris, sax in tow, stayed put for the entire set along with Kody Nielson on drums rounding out the Nielson trio. I begged them to reconsider the routing and they obliged. Following that performance, Chris had travel plans that would've prevented him from making it to NPR.
During the band's live show back in April at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C., he casually drifted on stage, played the saxophone for a song or two, then drifted back off. His father, jazz musician Chris Nielson, has been on tour with them to support the band's latest album, V. Ruban Nielson was originally the guitarist for the Mint Chicks in New Zealand, formed with his brother Kody, the singer. Unknown Mortal Orchestra's Tiny Desk concert was more of a family affair than lead singer, Ruban Nielson, revealed during his band introductions. Unknown Mortal Orchestra: IC-01 Hanoi (2018), 6/10 Links: A History of Rock and Dance Music Links to other sites.
