Pre-order of Underwater Over There. You get 3 tracks now (streaming via the free Bandcamp app and also available as a high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more), plus the complete album the moment it’s released.
Purchasable with gift card
releases May 10, 2024
$12USD or more
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
- Limited edition of 600 units
- Available at Bandcamp, Unwed web store, tours & local indie retail
- Full-color inner art sleeve
- Blue Oceania colored vinyl
NON-US CUSTOMERS: lnk.to/unwedsailor (go here and we will continue to add non-US stores for better shipping rates as we receive them or do a web search for shops in your respective country)
THE IMAGES YOU SEE ARE NOT ALWAYS GOING TO BE THE GUARANTEED LOOK OF THE VINYL PRODUCT, BUT IT WILL BE CLOSE.
Includes digital pre-order of Underwater Over There.
You get 3 tracks now
(streaming via the free Bandcamp app
and also available as a high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more), plus the
complete album the moment it’s released.
shipping out on or around May 10, 2024
edition of 600
$24USDor more
Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album
- Full color 4 panel digipack
- CD has bonus track not included on the vinyl version of the album
Includes digital pre-order of Underwater Over There.
You get 3 tracks now
(streaming via the free Bandcamp app
and also available as a high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more), plus the
complete album the moment it’s released.
Tulsa, Oklahoma’s Unwed Sailor have been on a tear over the past few years. Following a quiet phase through much of the 2010s, they reëmerged with the aptly titled Heavy Age (2019), and two more full-lengths, Truth Or Consequences (2021) and Mute The Charm (2023), that chart a remarkable evolution of their bass-led, pop-leaning post rock. On Underwater Over There – their ninth LP overall – a current of 80s goth and jangle-pop runs beneath a litany of memorable hooks and compositional left turns, creating a propulsive and intricate world of sound.
The band worked collectively on all elements of mixing and production to craft a meticulously layered environment, while maintaining an air of spontaneity and experimentation across the set. Early standout, “Final Feather”, drifts through varying landscapes of airiness and haze on a high-neck bass hook, while the hum of voices adds a contrast of angelic comfort. Bearing influence from New Order and The Cure in particular, its balance of gravitas and shimmer is the result of founding member Johnathon Ford’s intuitive writing method: the lead bass line comes first, followed by supporting melodies, drums, guitars, keys, and final detailing.
“Dusty” is a prime example of this process, as Ford’s powerful, low-end groove anchors a full-spectrum array of guitars, bells, and arpeggiations along with Matt Putman’s energetic drum section. Its fluid pacing provides a perfect establishing shot, with shifting moods that gather into a coda guided by David Swatzell’s harmonized, glittering guitar riffs – a sunrise after a moonless night. In quick succession, “Blue Tangier” widens the aperture with a pounding percussive refrain, vibrant bass tone and an unforgettable, fuzzed-out melodic motif.
Sprawling centerpiece, “Junko”, is a loose callback to 2003’s The Marionette and The Music Box, its deliberate stride and interwoven melodies evoking the hands of a mechanical clock, and the anticipation of something long-awaited but nebulous. It drifts effortlessly from innocence to intrigue, expands into a mesmerizing howl, and vanishes abruptly into mist. “Antoinette” conveys many of Unwed Sailor’s unique strengths in a tight four minutes, as its mysterious, wah-wah melody snarls across a massive and deeply textured bed of percussion, pulsing with the kinetic push of a steam engine, equal parts beauty and brutality.
Title track, “Underwater Over There”, commences the final act with aquatic synthesizer loops that ease into chorus-tinged bass and towers of rich melody and counterpoint. This patient fortitude carries into the penultimate piece, “Bend the Air”, which offers the album’s most cinematic passage, a climax of emotional release and breathless exhilaration. By contrast, the brief closer, “V & V”, is a balladic, piano-led ode to Ford’s cats, Voodoo and Veruca; you can easily imagine them resting in a sunbeam, as its backdrop of field recordings nods to the bustling world outside.
While honoring their forebears in winks and nods, Unwed Sailor remain totally inimitable in their approach and style, twenty-five years into an acclaimed career. The band’s clear vision for Underwater Over There has yielded some of their most indelible work, and their inventive, passionate approach gives a strong sense of plenty more beyond the horizon.
Engineered by:
Matthew Putman at Electric Nebraska in Ft. Smith, AR
Kendal Osborne at Closet Studios in Bixby, OK
Johnathon Ford at Current Taste in Tulsa, OK
Chris Colbert at National Freedom in Cottage Grove, OR
Published by Current Taste Music (BMI) / Mute the Charm Music (ASCAP
The instrumental post rock, dream pop ambience of Unwed Sailor has been guided by the vision of Johnathon Ford (Pedro the
Lion/Roadside Monument)
Since starting the band in Seattle in 1998, Ford has combined these elements along with shoegaze, ambient, & film music to create the unique sound and vision of Unwed Sailor....more
supported by 14 fans who also own “Underwater Over There”
Another great record from Pedro the Lion. I'm from Arizona, so these past 2 albums have be re-shaping my boyhood memories, attaching to locations like glue. RYNO // 라이노
supported by 13 fans who also own “Underwater Over There”
The first time I heard Zao was in 1999. I was a young teenager. hearing this now is surreal. To hear this level of quality from these giants is surely a blessing. and what a fantastic production. thank you for this amazing performance, ZAO. I'm especially impressed by how the band has continued to refine the old songs. the tightness and quality of craftsmanship from ZAO here is just fantastic. Quality release. Replicate Extinction
Ottawa duo Paragon Cause craft songs that occupy the space between goth and dream pop, with sublime melodies drifting in guitar haze. Bandcamp New & Notable Aug 15, 2021
The Seams' jangly pop is full of lovely melodic twists and elegant turns-of-phrases delineating the quotidian details of love and romance. Bandcamp New & Notable Oct 5, 2018