Alt-Rock Newcomers Ultra Q Share New Video For “Handheld” From Upcoming EP
Oakland-based four-piece band Ultra Q have released their new single and video “Handheld” today. The song will be featured on their upcoming EP Get Yourself A Friend dropping November 19th. For the new Inception-style music video directed by Hassan, the group pay homage to 90s skateboarding culture, complete with fish-eye lens shots and old-school camcorder aesthetics.
Written a few years back, frontman Jakob Armstrong revisited the song with the full band while in the studio this year. Knowing they wanted to incorporate guitarist Enzo Malaspina’s work on the verse, the band shaped the song, with his brother Chris Malaspina playing the electronic breakbeat on their live kit and Kevin Judd nailing the final touches on bass. Of “Handheld”, Armstrong shares “Our producer / engineer Martin Cooke described this as the best example of what our band does. Attempted pop songs with some funky stuff. Everything comes together on this one to bring one of the more tight, and neatly packaged Ultra Q songs. It’s short, it’s frantic, and I’m very proud of it.”
A strong contribution to the band’s noteworthy ascent, “Handheld” is a punchy and infectious tune that brings out elements of post-punk revivalist The Strokes with high-tempo instrumentation from more alt-punk groups PUP and FIDLAR.
Listen below: