USS (Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker) was a Canadian

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commercial ...

musical duo from Toronto.Artist bio on MuchMusic.com
Retrieved March 11, 2009 The band is composed of vocalist and guitarist Ashley Buchholz (aka Ash Boo-Schultz) and

turntablist Turntablism is the art of manipulating sounds and creating new music, sound effects, mixes and other creative sounds and beats, typically by using two or more turntables and a cross fader-equipped DJ mixer. The mixer is plugged into a PA sys ...

hype man A hype man, in hip hop music and rapping, is a backup rapper and/or singer who supports the primary rappers with exclamations and interjections and who attempts to increase the audience's excitement with call-and-response chants. The hype man's ...

Jason "Human Kebab" Parsons. The band's sound is a mixture of

drum and bass Drum and bass (also written as drum & bass or drum'n'bass and commonly abbreviated as D&B, DnB, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub- ...

beats,

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock genre and subculture that emerged during the in the American Pacific Northwest state of Washington, particularly in Seattle and nearby towns. Grunge fuses elements of ...

-like guitar riffs, and

2-step Two-step or two step may refer to: Dance *Two-step (dance move), a dance move used in a wide range of dancing genres * Country-western two-step, also known as the Texas Two-step * Nightclub Two Step, also known as the California Two-step *2-step ...

rhythms. "We like to call what we do the campfire after-party", Ash Buchholz has said; "It's like you're at Nirvana Unplugged but there's a drum and bass party and

glow sticks A glow stick, also known as a light stick, chem light, light wand, light rod, and rave light, is a self-contained, short-term light-source. It consists of a translucent plastic tube containing isolated substances that, when combined, make light ...

all around you."Carey, Steve, “Good old fashioned Victoria block party”, ''Victoria Times Colonist'', Aug 17, 2008
Retrieved March 11, 2009 The duo announced their split in 2021 and performed their final show on June 11, 2022.

History

Formation and first release: 2004–2008

USS hails from the

Greater Toronto Area The Greater Toronto Area, commonly referred to as the GTA, includes the City of Toronto and the regional municipalities of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York. In total, the region contains 25 urban, suburban, and rural municipalities. The Greater ...

, Buchholz being from the city of Markham and Parsons from the adjacent town of

Stouffville Stouffville () is the primary urban area within the town of Whitchurch-Stouffville in York Region, Ontario, Canada. It is situated within the Greater Toronto Area and the inner ring of the Golden Horseshoe. The urban area is centred at the in ...

.Arbour, Ross, “Band needs your help”, ''yorkregion.com'', Oct 17, 2008
Retrieved June 4, 2011 They met in 2004 while stocking the beer fridge and discussing music when they worked at a golf course.Interview for Crave TV
Retrieved March 11, 2009 The pair hit it off instantly.Paul, Andrew, "Vocab Junkies", ''See Magazine'', Aug 14, 2008
Retrieved March 11, 2009 A few months later, Buchholz's sister was looking for someone to DJ at her upcoming wedding and Parsons was suggested for the job. According to Buchholz, "It was love at first scratch", and he later moved into Parsons' parents' basement to begin experimenting musically. The band's name came about when Buchholz sketched out a map of exactly who he wanted to be in life. At the top, he wrote, "Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker". Although this title was to become the band's moniker, the duo says that the name is for everyone: "It's singular — it's the title of a characteristic, not the title of two guys", Buchholz said. By July 2008, the two began to perform live, and they released their first independent EP, ''Welding the C:/'' (pronounced "Welding the C Drive") later that same month. The band then parted ways to pursue different avenues; Parsons travelled to

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest T ...

to work on an

oil pipeline Pipeline transport is the long-distance transportation of a liquid or gas through a system of pipes—a pipeline—typically to a market area for consumption. The latest data from 2014 gives a total of slightly less than of pipeline in 120 count ...

and Buchholz went to the US on a

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...

. A friend of Parsons' later called him to say that Toronto radio station 102.1 The Edge had begun playing their first single, "Hollowpoint Sniper Hyperbole". The duo then returned to Toronto to shoot a video for the song, which was later added to the

MuchMusic Much (an abbreviation for its full name MuchMusic) is a Canadian English language specialty channel owned by BCE Inc. through its Bell Media subsidiary that airs programming aimed at teenagers and young adults. MuchMusic launched on August 31, ...

channel.

''Questamation'': 2009–2011

In March 2009, USS released their first full-length album, '' Questamation'', through their independent label, Smashing World Records."USS Ready To Be Ubiquitous Again"
''ChartAttack'', January 27, 2009, Retrieved March 11, 2009 For the recording, the duo teamed up with Matthew Von Wagner (

Crystal Castles Crystal Castles was a Canadian electronic music group formed in 2006 in Toronto, Ontario, formed by songwriter-producer Ethan Kath and singer-songwriter Alice Glass, who later left and was replaced by Edith Frances. Crystal Castles were know ...

, Alpha Galates) for production and engineering, while Chris Davies and Charles Topping 'aided musically'. Music engineer

Bob Ludwig Robert C. Ludwig (born c. 1945) is an American mastering engineer. He has mastered recordings on all the major recording formats for all the major record labels, and on projects by more than 1,300 artists including Led Zeppelin, Lou Reed, Que ...

was recruited to

master Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...

the original album in

Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropo ...

. James Black of Finger Eleven is featured playing guitar on "P.S. I Can Change". On March 14, they won the award for Favourite Group/Duo at the CMW Indie Awards in Toronto. During their performance, the duo lit up the stage with a high-energy set, complete with handstands and full-size cardboard cutouts of

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

and

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein ( ; ; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theor ...

. In November, they supported

illScarlett IllScarlett (styled as illScarlett; ) is a Canadian rock and reggae band formed in 2001. Their most prominent influence is California-based band Sublime. The band found their break when they set up their equipment (using a generat ...

on the Canadian leg of their 1UP! Tour. Shortly after the

2010 Haiti earthquake A catastrophic magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake struck Haiti at 16:53 local time (21:53 UTC) on Tuesday, 12 January 2010. The epicenter was near the town of Léogâne, Ouest department, approximately west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti's ca ...

, various musicians from the Toronto area came together on February 2, 2010, at

The Sound Academy Rebel (originally the Docks Nightclub & Concert Theater and then Sound Academy) is a nightclub and concert venue located on the Polson Pier in Toronto, Canada. Relaunched in October 2016 as Rebel Night Club, the complex is on the edge of Lake Ont ...

, for the 102.1 The Edge-sponsored Toronto Plays For Haiti benefit. USS headlined the event, alongside Choclair, The Salads, Die Mannequin,

The Trews The Trews are a Canadians, Canadian rock music, rock band from Antigonish, Nova Scotia, consisting of vocalist Colin MacDonald, guitarist John-Angus MacDonald, bassist Jack Syperek, and drummer Chris Gormley. The band is currently based in Hamil ...

, and

Moneen Moneen (sometimes stylised as .moneen.) is a Canadian indie rock band from Brampton, Ontario. History Moneen formed in 1999 after the dissolution of another band, called Perfectly Normal. The founding members were singer/guitarist Kenny Bridges ...

. That evening, on impulse, Human Kebab played DJ to Canadian hip hop artist

Maestro Fresh Wes Wesley "Wes" Williams (born March 31, 1968) is a Canadian rapper, record producer, actor, and author. He is known professionally by his stage names Maestro Fresh Wes (formerly Maestro Fresh-Wes) or Maestro as a musician, and is credited by his ...

. In March and April, the band embarked on their Highway to Health tour. USS travelled from

Barrie Barrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay, the western arm of Lake Simcoe. Although physically in Simcoe County, Barrie is politicall ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...

with The Stables, a

Durham Region The Regional Municipality of Durham (), informally referred to as Durham Region, is a regional municipality in Southern Ontario, Canada. Located east of Toronto and the Regional Municipality of York, Durham forms the east-end of the Greater T ...

band along for the ride as direct support. USS brought home their second consecutive COCA Award (Canadian Organization of Campus Activities) for Emerging Artist, (Winner of Emerging Artist Award 2009/2010), on June 25, 2010. In September,

Smirnoff Smirnoff (; ) is a brand of vodka owned and produced by the British company Diageo. The Smirnoff brand began with a vodka distillery founded in Moscow by Pyotr Arsenievich Smirnov (1831–1898). It is distributed in 130 countries. Smirnoff prod ...

launched their "Be There" campaign for the Nightlife Exchange Project. The countries that participated were Canada, United States, the UK, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Germany, India, Ireland, Lebanon, Poland, South Africa, Thailand, and Venezuela. USS were named as the Canadian curators, to deliver Canadian nightlife to India. In October, the duo flew to

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the secon ...

for the campaign.
In December, USS released the track "Mavericks", a collaboration with Canadian fiddler Ashley MachIsaac. The single's lyrics reference surfer Jeff Clark. USS earned two spots on 102.1 The Edge's top songs of 2010, with "Anti-Venom" at No. 26 and "3 Purple Butterflies" at No. 74. The 2011 soundtrack to ''

Major League Baseball 2K11 ''Major League Baseball 2K11'' or, in short, ''MLB 2K11'', is an MLB licensed baseball simulation video game published by 2K Sports. ''MLB 2K11'' is available for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Ni ...

'' (MLB 2K11), released by 2K Sports, single "Anti-Venom" from ''Questamation''. It was also on the Nintendo Wii and 3DS version soundtrack to '' Need for Speed: The Run'', released by EA Black Box and Firebrand Games in November 2011.

''Approved'': 2011–2012

USS released their next single, "N/A OK" on February 14, 2011. In an interview with ''Eye Weekly'', Parsons elaborated on what the duo was working on:

It's amazing. We're working with
Tawgs Salter Thomas "Tawgs" Salter is a Canadian musician, songwriter, producer and recording engineer. His extensive body of musical work includes a vast array of artists ranging from Josh Groban, Lights and Lenka to Chantal Kreviazuk, Fefe Dobson, Dear ...
, who's done records with Lights,
The Midway State The Midway State is a Canadian alternative rock band from Collingwood and Wasaga Beach, Ontario, signed to Remedy Records for North America and to Universal Publishing for the world outside. They debuted with ''Holes'' in 2008, followed by ''Pa ...
, and
Josh Groban Joshua Winslow Groban (born February 27, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. His first four solo albums have been certified multi-platinum, and he was charted in 2007 as the number-one best selling artist in the United States, wi ...
, and he's been helping us define what the new USS is, from a songwriting perspective. We're free to be quirky, acoustic, singer-songwriter, electronic turntable-based music, but in a bigger sounding format that has global aspirations. We've returned more to the minimal that we showed on our first EP, ''Welding The C:/'', but we're doing it with the right producer, to make it sound as big and powerful as we can be. At the start of the year we did a song with
Ashley MacIsaac Ashley Dwayne MacIsaac (born February 24, 1975) is a Canadian fiddler, singer and songwriter from Cape Breton Island. He has received three Juno Awards, winning for Best New Solo Artist and Best Roots & Traditional Album – Solo at the Juno A ...
, and we followed that with what's hopefully going to become our new EP.

'' Approved'', the band's second EP, was released digitally worldwide on May 3, 2011, the day of the release party at Toronto's MOD Club and the kickoff date for the USS Approved Spring/Summer Cross-Canada tour. The physical copy was exclusively released in Canada at the band's shows or on their official website. In an interview with ''Niagara Music Scene'', Buchholz explained the EP's title: ''Approved'', because it seems like everyone has issues of self-worth. YOU'RE ALL GOOD ENOUGH! Most of life is just overcompensation for not feeling like you are good enough. APPROVED! By the end of summer 2011, the second single from ''Approved''—"Yo Hello Hooray (Everyday)"—had begun receiving regular rotation on Canadian rock radio stations. "Yo Hello Hooray (Everyday)" is the band's highest-charting rock radio single in Canada to date. "N/A OK" was nominated in the Rock category at the 2012 Canadian Radio Music Awards. The third single from ''Approved'', "Damini", charted on the hits Canadian rock radio chart.

''Advanced Basics'': 2013–2015

On June 4, 2013, USS released "This Is the Best", the first single from their third EP, '' Advanced Basics''. The band flew to London to perform in Trafalgar Square for Canada Day International alongside Canadian rock icons

The Tragically Hip The Tragically Hip, often referred to simply as the Hip, were a Canadian rock band formed in Kingston, Ontario in 1984, consisting of vocalist Gord Downie, guitarist Paul Langlois, guitarist Rob Baker (known as Bobby Baker until 1994), bassi ...

plus

Jann Arden Jann Arden (born Jann Arden Anne Richards; March 27, 1962) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and actress. She is famous for her signature ballads, " Could I Be Your Girl" and " Insensitive", which is her biggest hit to date. Early life and educa ...

The Sheepdogs The Sheepdogs are a Canadian rock band formed in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in 2004. The Sheepdogs were the first unsigned band to make the cover of ''Rolling Stone'' and have gone on to a career featuring multi-platinum album sales and four Ju ...

, and

Arkells Arkells is a Canadian rock band, formed in Hamilton, Ontario. In 2006, they signed with Dine Alone Records, and have since signed with Universal Records Canada and Last Gang Records. They are managed by Last Gang Management. They have release ...

. USS released ''Advanced Basics'' in Canada on February 11, 2014. The album was funded through

crowdsourcing Crowdsourcing involves a large group of dispersed participants contributing or producing goods or services—including ideas, votes, micro-tasks, and finances—for payment or as volunteers. Contemporary crowdsourcing often involves digita ...

site PledgeMusic, with the project titled "#Letsgetweirdtogether". To promote it, the band played pop-up shows across Toronto, which were filmed and released on YouTube. The song "Yin Yang" was later used to promote the fall lineup for CTV television. The band toured Canada in March/April 2014 with Hedley and

Classified Classified may refer to: General *Classified information, material that a government body deems to be sensitive *Classified advertising or "classifieds" Music *Classified (rapper) (born 1977), Canadian rapper * The Classified, a 1980s American ro ...

. On July 18, 2014, USS headlined This Is the Fest at Echo Beach in Toronto. The show was part of the Edgefest Concert Series, presented by 102.1 The Edge. They were given the opportunity to handpick the lineup, which included artists such as

MS MR MS MR (pronounced ''Miz Mister'') are a New York-based American pop duo, consisting of vocalist Lizzy Plapinger and producer Max Hershenow. The duo are signed to Iamsound, Kitsuné and Columbia Records. Plapinger is also known for her work a ...

, Said the Whale,

Bear Hands Bear Hands is an American post-punk and indie rock band, consisting of Dylan Rau (vocals and guitar), Val Loper (bass), Ted Feldman (guitar), and TJ Orscher (drums). Hailing from Brooklyn, New York, United States, and formed in 2006, the band si ...

Wildlife Wildlife refers to undomesticated animal species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wild in an area without being introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous to game: those birds and mammals that were hunted ...

Dear Rouge Dear Rouge are a Juno award-winning Vancouver-based alternative rock band formed in 2012 by Drew and Danielle McTaggart. History Formation and early years Drew and Danielle McTaggart were both touring musicians under separate projects. They met ...

, and more. In the fall, they toured across Canada with

Mother Mother Mother Mother is a Canadian indie rock band based in Quadra Island, British Columbia. The band consists of Ryan Guldemond on guitar and vocals, Molly Guldemond and Jasmin Parkin on vocals and keyboard, Ali Siadat on drums, and Mike Young on ba ...

. In 2015, the duo was nominated for a Juno for Breakthrough Group of the Year and 102.1 The Edge's Casby Award for Favourite New Song for Shipwreck.

Final albums: 2017–2021

In January 2017, USS released their second studio album, ''New World Alphabet''. On October 26, 2020, the band announced via Twitter that their upcoming album, ''Einsteins of Consciousness'', would be their last, and posted a message saying goodbye to their fans and promising one final tour when it's appropriate to do so. The record was released on January 8, 2021.

Final Freakquency Tour: 2021

On June 24, 2021, the band began selling tickets to their final farewell tour, dubbed the Final Freakquency Tour. This began on November 20 in Buffalo, New York, following the easing of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...

restrictions. The tour was set to end on December 18, 2021, with the band's final performance in Toronto. However, due to the rise of the coronavirus Omicron variant, the show was postponed to June 2022. In October 2021, ''

NHL on Sportsnet ''NHL on Sportsnet'' is the blanket title for presentations of the National Hockey League broadcast held by a Canadian media corporation, Rogers Communications, showing on its television channel Sportsnet and other networks owned by or affil ...

'' introduced new theme music composed by the band, titled "Never Stop".

Discography

Studio albums * '' Questamation'' (2009) * '' New World Alphabet'' (2017) * ''Einsteins of Consciousness'' (2021) * ''The Science & Artfunkel Victory Lap'' (2021) EPs * '' Welding the C:/'' (2007) * '' Approved'' (2011) * '' Advanced Basics'' (2014) Singles

References

External links

*
Myspace profile

Facebook fan page
{{Authority control Canadian electronic music groups Canadian post-rock groups Dance-punk musical groups Electronic music duos Musical groups from Toronto Musical groups established in 2007 Canadian musical duos Rock music duos 2007 establishments in Ontario