Portland, Oregon's Ruban Nielson of Unknown Mortal Orchestra Cut 'FEAR' With Jared Mattson in a Couple of Days

Portland, Oregon's Ruban Nielson, the mind behind Unknown Mortal Orchestra, took a detour in 2026. FEAR, his collaborative album with Jared Mattson of The Mattson 2, arrived June 5 on Jagjaguwar, and it was imagined for lonely, in-between places like motels, abandoned gas stations, and parking lots.

Fans first, collaborators second

Stereogum reported that Nielsen and Mattson connected online in 2024 as fans of each other's music. That June, they recorded the album over a couple of days in Palm Springs, California.

A product listing from New Zealand retailer JB Hi-Fi says they recorded and mixed everything in Palm Springs, with Matt Colton mastering at Metropolis Studios in London. In Mattson's account, "FEAR" was finished two days later, and Nielsen told him, "Let's make more that sound exactly like this."

Music for motels and empty parking lots

Mattson told Stereogum he imagined music set in transitional, impersonal spaces, music that "could sit inside that loneliness without trying to fix it." He summed up the mood as "calm without anesthesia."

The seven-track album runs "HIGH T," "RIVER RAFTING," "TESTAROSSA," "AMERICAN EAGLE," "WEDGIE," "TOUCHDOWN" and "RAZOR BLADE." Lead single "AMERICAN EAGLE" arrived with a video directed by Mark Francis.

Mattson brings his own history of cross-band projects. Stereogum's archive shows The Mattson 2 releasing music with Chaz Bundick in 2016 and 2017, and appearing on Toro y Moi's 2020 Joe Bataan cover "Ordinary Guy."

From Auckland to Portland

Unknown Mortal Orchestra began in 2009 as Nielson's solo project in Auckland, New Zealand, and is now based in Portland, according to Wikipedia. Before that, he formed the band The Mint Chicks in Auckland, and he moved to the United States in 2007.

Fat Possum released UMO's 2011 debut. Jagjaguwar has released the band's albums since 2013, a run that includes II, Multi-Love, Sex & Food and the 2023 double album V. Wikipedia lists "Multi-Love," "Hunnybee," "Can't Keep Checking My Phone" and "So Good at Being in Trouble" among the project's notable songs.

Nielson stayed busy before FEAR, too. In 2025, UMO issued the instrumental album IC-02 Bogotá, the Curse EP, and the singles "Earth 1" and "Boys With The Characteristics Of Wolves."

As of October 2026, Unknown Mortal Orchestra has 156K Instagram followers.

Where to listen and follow

Stream and buy UMO's catalog on the official Unknown Mortal Orchestra Bandcamp. FEAR is out on Jagjaguwar.

Sources

Stereogum — "Jared Mattson (The Mattson 2) & Ruban Nielson (Unknown Mortal Orchestra) Announce New Collaborative Album FEAR: Hear “AMERICAN EAGLE”"
JB Hi-Fi — "FEAR (Vinyl)"
Stereogum — "The Mattson 2"
Wikipedia — "Unknown Mortal Orchestra"