Ruban Nielson

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Ruban Nielson
R&B
  • garage rock
  • lo-fi
  • power pop
  • noise rock
    • Instrument(s)
    • Vocals
    • guitar
    • bass guitar
    • keyboards
    • drums
    • percussion
    • cello
    Labels
    Member ofUnknown Mortal Orchestra
    Formerly ofThe Mint Chicks

    Ruban Nielson (born 20 February 1980) is a New Zealand-American musician, singer and songwriter, and the frontman of the psychedelic rock band Unknown Mortal Orchestra. He has won two Aotearoa Music Awards and an APRA Silver Scroll, over the course of his band's five studio albums and one extended play.

    Born in

    neo-punk elements, broke up following Ruban's departure. Nielson subsequently formed a more experimental and psychedelic band, Unknown Mortal Orchestra
    , with musician Jake Portrait. His brother Kody also has performed drums on almost every Unknown Mortal Orchestra album.

    Nielson achieved critical acclaim and success worldwide with the band's self-titled debut album

    Consequence of Sound for the best albums of 2015. Singles "Multi-Love" and "Can't Keep Checking My Phone" were both A-listed at BBC's 6 Music.[2] Two more albums, Sex + Food, and the instrumental IC-01 Hanoi
    , followed in 2018.

    Nielson lives in the United States with his family. He has become a symbol of the rejuvenation of

    LEISURE and Pond.[3] NME has summed up Nielson as a master in creating "works of warm, fuzzy beauty."[4] Nielson said in response to being described as a musical provocateur; "No, I don't purposefully go out to try and do that......but it is really fun."[5]

    Early life

    Nielson was born in Darwin, Australia on 20 February 1980. His mother is an American hula dancer from Oahu, Hawaii and his father is New Zealand Māori brass player and Elam School of Fine Arts alumni, Chris Nielson, who toured with lounge singer John Rowles in the 1970s and has played in New Zealand bands such as Katchafire. With his mother being a Native Hawaiian woman (Kānaka Maoli), there was an instant cultural connection with Nielson's Māori father; the two ethnic groups are closely connected, and the ancestral Māori homeland is known as Hawaiki. The two met on tour in Los Angeles, and later had another son, Kody (born 9 May 1982), who later became a musician alongside Nielson.[6] The transpacific couple moved to Auckland when Nielson was young, where he grew up and regards as his home. Chris Nielson collaborated with his sons on Unknown Mortal Orchestra's 2018 album, IC-01 Hanoi, playing the flügelhorn and saxophone.[7]

    Nielson grew up in Orewa. Home life was difficult due to his father's chronic alcoholism and heroin addiction, and the fallout from his parents' separation. As a teenager, Nielson developed insomnia, and was unable to sleep at night; this affected his academic performance. Despite his addictions, his father cared for his children, and felt guilty about his illnesses and choices affecting them. As he weaned himself off heroin and alcohol, he made amends with his son by buying him his first guitar and getting recommendations from his Orewa College teachers to get him into Elam School of Fine Arts, New Zealand's most prestigious art school.[8] He graduated in 2002 with distinction, winning a Sir James Wallace art award. When listed in the University of Auckland's 40 under 40 list in 2020, Nielson said of his father and Elam:

    "His stories of Elam when I was a kid really stoked my desire to be there. He helped me get into Elam and negotiate what was originally a kind of ‘probational situation’ with my acceptance. Being at Elam really fulfilled a childhood dream and people like Nuala Gregory, Peter Shand, Jim Speers, Leigh Martin, Judy Millar and Denys Watkins as well as many others all had a huge impact on the way I see the world and creativity.”[9]

    He maintains an interest in the visual arts, and says that if he had not entered music as a profession he would have become a visual artist.[1]

    The Mint Chicks (2001–10)

    The Nielson brothers, Ruban and Kody, enjoyed making music together from a young age, despite their sibling rivalry and difficult home life. Ruban found it as a way to cope with his worsening insomnia, while the younger Kody enjoyed daredevil stunts and being a loud and anarchic frontman.

    Bad Buzz
     (2010). All were produced and recorded by the band's core members Ruban and Kody Nielson, with the exception of Crazy? Yes! Dumb? No! which was produced by the Nielson brothers and their father Chris Nielson at two different home studios.

    All four original band members met at Orewa College in Orewa, New Zealand, although the band starting moving between Portland, Oregon and Auckland, as the Nielson brothers have dual citizenship in New Zealand and the U.S.

    The Mint Chicks, the Nielson brothers' first band, quickly reached stardom. The band was also known for younger brother Kody's daredevil nature when performing, which included destroying their corporate sponsor's sign on stage hanging upside down from the stage (pictured).

    In 2006, the band played support for the

    The Black Lips, and The Bronx. They were also part of the New Zealand line-up for Big Day Out 2004, 2005, 2007 and 2009. In 2005, it was notable that Kody Nielson wielded a chainsaw on stage and destroyed a corporate sponsor's overly prominent sign with it.[11]

    At the 2007 New Zealand Music Awards the band won five Tui awards including best rock group, best album, best rock album[12] as well as winning best album cover and best music video for the single "Crazy? Yes! Dumb? No!".[13]

    On 24 October 2007, it was announced on the band's website that their bassist Michael Logie would leave the band when they relocated to Portland.[14] The group continued as a trio, with Logie relocating to London, England. The band played a free show in Portland on 29 June 2008, in which they played their then-upcoming third album from beginning to end live. The band later supported Shihad on the July 2008 Beautiful Machine Tour and tested their new songs in front of a home audience. As a result of their bass player having left the band, the Mint Chicks weren't able to play hits from earlier songs, angering some fans. To counter this Shihad's bass player, Karl Kippenberger, filled in for several more popular songs.

    On 25 December 2008, The Mint Chicks released the Mintunes EP consisting of "8-bit versions" of both previously released songs and tracks from the upcoming album. The band also released an iTunes-only single during 2008, "Life Will Get Better Some Day", a teaser for the album "

    Screens
    ", which was released in New Zealand on 16 March 2009 after having been recorded sporadically over the preceding two years.

    In October 2009 the Mint Chicks performed a rendition of

    Bad Buzz EP
    , released in February 2010.

    Shortly after the release of the EP, the band played their final show on 12 March 2010. The show, originally a fundraiser for MusicHy.pe, ended in chaos after Kody Nielson destroyed the two drumkits and equipment, imploring the crowd to 'start your own fucking band'.

    Unknown Mortal Orchestra

    Nielson left

    Pitchfork.[15][17][18]

    Nielson maintained the band's anonymity as he was not sure what he wanted the band to be and did not want to "face up to Mint Chicks fans and to people who were looking forward to a new Mint Chicks record."[15] Nielson eventually claimed the track under the band name Unknown Mortal Orchestra.

    The band's debut

    Pitchfork gave the album an 8.1, describing that with "an expert use of space rare for such a lo-fi record, UMO manages a unique immersive and psychedelic quality without relying on the usual array of bong-ripping effects."[19]

    Personal life

    Nielson is married to Jenny Nielson, with whom he was previously in a polyamorous relationship with alongside another woman; this courtship was the main inspiration for Multi-Love. He met Jenny during his time at the Elam School of Fine Arts, and the couple moved in together within a few months of their first date.[8] They have two children, Moe and Iris.[20] The family continued to live in Portland, Oregon, and Nielson, despite being a New Zealander, has said living in the country has added to a feeling of American identity.[5] Nielson later moved with his family to Palm Springs, California. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Ruban began dividing his time between Palm Springs and Hilo, Hawaii, to be close to his mother and uncles.[21]

    Discography

    with Unknown Mortal Orchestra

    with The Mint Chicks

    References

    1. ^ a b "Ruban Nielson – The University of Auckland". www.auckland.ac.nz. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
    2. ^ "404 Not Found". {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)
    3. ^ "Into The Ethereal". Houstonia Magazine. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
    4. ^ "Unknown Mortal Orchestra – 'II' | NME". NME | Music, Film, TV, Gaming & Pop Culture News. 31 January 2013. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
    5. ^ a b "UMO's Ruban Nielson on why he almost killed the band and how Sex & Food will save rock". NZ Herald. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
    6. ^ Cook, Christine (5 May 2012). "Exclusive Interview: Unknown Mortal Orchestra". The Owl Mag. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
    7. ^ "Unknown Mortal Orchestra | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
    8. ^ a b c "Love Is Strange: The Multitudes of Unknown Mortal Orchestra's Ruban Nielson". Pitchfork. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
    9. ^ "Ruban Nielson". University of Auckland 40 Under 40. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
    10. ^ Trevett, Claire (18 July 2006). "Volume of band brings house down at St James". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
    11. Critic
      . 25 February 2005. Retrieved 29 October 2007.
    12. ^ "Mint Chicks prepare to take on the world". One News. 19 October 2007. Retrieved 2 January 2008.
    13. ^ "The Mint Chicks nab major awards at NZ Music Awards". The New Zealand Herald. APN. 18 October 2007. Retrieved 15 February 2015.
    14. ^ "the mint chicks". Archived from the original on 19 April 2010. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
    15. ^ a b c Sanders, Courtney (13 June 2011). "Unknown Mortal Orchestra – Interview". Under the Radar. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
    16. ^ "Ffunny Ffrends by Unknown Mortal Orchestra". Bandcamp. 17 May 2010. Archived from the original on 9 June 2010. Retrieved 19 April 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
    17. ^ Ryan, Catbird (18 May 2010). "Unknown Mortal Orchestra – "Ffunny Ffrends"". MBVMusic.Com. The Catbirdseat. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
    18. Pitchfork Media
      . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
    19. ^ Cohen, Ian, (June 22, 2011). Unknown Mortal Orchestra. Pitchfork. Retrieved on December 7, 2012
    20. ^ Jenkin, Lydia (31 May 2015). "The Kiwi muso making it big in the States". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
    21. ^ "V – Unknown Mortal Orchestra". Secretly Store. Retrieved 16 February 2023.

    External links

    Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ruban_Nielson&oldid=1209956304"