Tag: The Good Life

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Playful and Summery Visuals for Umm’s “Black Summer”

Now, if you’ve been frequenting this site throughout the course of the summer, you’ve likely come across a couple of posts featuring the  Los Angeles, CA-based indie rock duo Umm. Comprised of Stefanie Drootin, best known for stints in The Good Life, Big Harp and in the backing bands of She & Him and Bright Eyes, and her Big Harp bandmate and husband Chris Senseney, the duo specialize in a 90s alt rock-inspired sound, full of fuzzy power chords, propulsive and forceful drumming paired with swoon-worthy boy-girl harmonizing and anthemic hooks; in fact, as a child of the 80s, who started to come of age in the 90s, “I’m in Love,” off the duo’s recently released full-length debut Double Worshipper instantly reminded me of the countless hours I spent watching 120 Minutes, of scanning the radio stations to make mixtapes of my favorite songs of the moment and of borrowing friends’ tapes and CDs and dubbing them on a Sony boombox stereo I had owned. 

Double Worshipper’s second single “Black Summer” continues along a similar vein as its predecessor, as it clearly 90s alt rock-inspired. And although the song manages to possess  some rather dark lyricism, there’s a breezy and old timey pop accessibility that bolsters both the song’s anthemic quality, as well as its mischievous irony; after all, the song is about rejecting the idea of some kind of stable, acceptable adulthood — and pretty much saying “Fuck it, it’s all bullshit. Just exist, man.” 

Directed by Mike Stillkey and shot with what looks like grainy Super 8 film, the video features the duo goofing off on a glorious Southern California day at the beach and in the desert, playing together and naturally a horse’s head mask, because — well, why not? 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Over the past month or so, I’ve written a bit about the  Los Angeles, CA-based indie rock duo Umm. Comprised of Stefanie Drootin, best known for stints in The Good Life, Big Harp and in the backing bands of She & Him and Bright Eyes, and her Big Harp bandmate (and her spouse), Chris Senseney, the Southern California duo specialize in a decidedly 90s, alt-rockinspired sound, full of fuzzy power chords, plaintive and swooning harmonizing and anthemic hooks reminiscent of The Breeders, The Posies and others. And in that same month or so period, you may recall the 120 Minutes-like “I’m in Love,” and the dark yet breezy “Black Summer” off the duo’s soon-to-be released debut together, Double Worshipper.

Double Worshipper‘s third and latest single is the slow-burning and moody ballad “Yeah I Want It,” and while further cementing their growing reputation for crafting anthemic, 90s alt rock-inspired tracks with rousing hooks; but what makes this particular track different is its emphasis on swooning boy-girl harmonies and a dreamily wistful melody, which makes the song the most summery, if not most dream pop-leaning song they’ve released to date.

 

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Last month, I wrote about the  Los Angeles, CA-based indie rock duo Umm. Comprised of Stefanie Drootin, best known for stints in The Good Life, Big Harp and in the backing bands of She & Him and Bright Eyes, and her Big Harp bandmate Chris Senseney, the duo specialize in an alt rock-inspired sound, complete with fuzzy power chords, plaintive and swooning harmonizing and anthemic hooks reminiscent of The Breeders, The Posies and others; in fact, as a child of the 80s, who started to come of age in the 90s, “I’m in Love,” off the duo’s soon-to-be released full-length Double Worshipper instantly reminded me of countless hours watching 120 Minutes, making mixtapes of my favorite songs off the radio, spending even more hours in record stores and trading cassette tapes with friends.  Interestingly enough, the album’s latest single “Black Summer” will further cement the duo’s growing reputation for crafting 90s alt rock inspired material; but in the case of their latest single, the song possesses a breeziness that underlies both the dark lyricism and anthemic nature of the song.

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of Stefanie Drootin, best known for stints in The Good Life, Big Harp and in the backing bands of She & Him and Bright Eyes, and her Big Harp bandmate Chris Senseney, the Los Angeles, CA-based indie rock duo Umm specialize in a sound that features fuzzy power chords, plaintive and swooning pop-leaning harmonizing and anthemic hooks reminiscent of The Breeders, The Posies and others as you’ll hear on “I’m in Love,” the latest single off the duo’s forthcoming full-length debut Double Whisper. Certainly, as a child of the 80s, who started to come off age in the 90s, “I’m in Love” reminds me of making mixtapes, dubbing my friends tapes and making dubs for friends and spending countless hours in record stores.