USS (Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker) were early to recognize the consequences of trailing in self-doubt - and did just the opposite. After more than a decade of making music independently, Ash Boo-Schultz and Human Kebab united forces in 2006. By May of 2008, after being wooed by major Canadian labels, they created a system of their own design, Smashing World Records (SWR), and released their 6 song debut EP, Welding The C:/.
The global platform was built up on homegrown hype. When Toronto's alternative rock radio station, 102.1 The Edge, picked up the first single, "Hollow Point Sniper Hyperbole", alternative stations across Canada were close to follow. One year after the self-financed EP release party in July 2007 (held at the Gladstone, in the heart of Parkdale), life for these Torontonians catapulted into the spotlight.
The opportunities began piling up in Toronto while Human was off working on an oil pipeline in Edmonton, and Ash was soul-searching in southern Texas. The guys got the call from an excited friend with the news, digested the fairytale, and headed home.
The band headlined 102.1 The Edge's Next Big Thing concert on May 30th, to a record-setting frenzied crowd of over 2000 people. A few weeks later, they stole the show at the station's much coveted festival, Edgefest '08.
The experience has commonly been referred to as, "It was like the ball got pushed down the hill, with USS in front of it." The metaphor describes the nearly impossible task of trying to adhere to their new existence, while meeting the media demand, while making new music.
Enter Questamation. Through independent efforts, the band’s first full-length album was released March 2009. Debuting at #36 on Nielsen SoundScan (Canada) and hitting #12 on the iTunes Alternative Music Chart (Canada) - both the EP and full-length album have remained in the Top 100 since October 2008.
The 12 tracks were recorded at the Rainbow Trout Studios, just outside of Toronto, Ontario. Produced and engineered by Matthew Von Wagner (Crystal Castles, Alpha Galates), with additional production and soundscaping from Chuck Topping (former Iceberg radio DJ) and cinematic sound designer Chris Davies. World-renowned engineer Bob Ludwig (Radiohead, Jimi Hendrix, Nirvana) originally mastered the release.
The album's innovation stems to both the musical and physical realms. Unconventional instruments, such as a washer and dryer, blender, and remote controlled helicopter, all blend in beautifully with the atmospheric acoustics and ridiculous rhythms. Released on a fold-up, pocket map Z-card, (first ever of its kind, Acuity owns the only patent in Canada) keeps true to the USS theme of being the strange you want to see in the world.
According to iconic Canadian Music Legend, Alan Cross, "The new album takes everything they learned from the first EP and gives it all a titty-twister up to 11... astonishing. Bloody astonishing!"
Furthermore fantastic, are the fundamental figures. Sony/ATV Music Publishing has a worldwide publishing deal with SWR. Global digital distribution is done through Blood & Water – with sales to date as of summer 2010 reaching 12,000 units in North America, and hundreds in the United Kingdom and across Europe – numbers even extending to the continents of Asia and Australia. HMV Canada's customer demand for the music was so excessive, they approached USS – since 2008, HMV and CD Plus rack the catalogue directly from SWR.
After two magnificent years of touring the country, the Questamation era has set us up for what's next. USS are currently working on highly anticipated new music, alongside producer Tawgs Salter (Lights, Elliot Yamin, Josh Groban).
Always conscious, consistent and contemporary – USS will continue to change music through their grass-roots efforts and unconquerable ambition.
"It’s the point where you’ve read all the books, and now it’s just time to do," states Ash Boo-Schultz.
