One of the most innovative and creative bands on the jam band circuit today is Umphrey’s McGee. The Chicago-based band has been busy touring for upwards of seven years in the U.S. and also performing at festivals in Amsterdam and other spots in Europe.
The crowd in Toad’s Place on Wednesday night was all too eagerly waiting for Umphrey’s McGee to walk on stage. Every five minutes the crowd began to shout and cheer for their band, and of course there was no opening band because Umphrey’s is known to perform a full show.
Personally, I find that they stretch the limits of traditional popular music and promote the original qualities of music that have been taken hostage by today’s mass-produced music empire.
Umphrey’s has proven that combining talent, improvisation and innovation into every live performance can bring together an international community in the name of music.
They constantly remix and rearrange their arsenal of jazz, rock, dance, reggae and funk so to make music that simply cannot to be categorized. Most of all they are full of energy, performing for three to four hours, up to 160 times per year. They are constantly touring the U.S. and have a rapidly growing fan base. With Umphrey’s McGee, you’re guaranteed at least two sets of non-stop music, and almost always an encore.
The Jam Band scene is the antithesis of the pop-oriented music authority. The bands themselves publicly encourage live taping of shows and then the trading of those tapes. They want their music to spread because of the emphasis they put on the music, not because of the money. These qualities allow great music to flourish, and in turn, separate top-40 pop-music from the underground.
Last Wednesday, Umphrey’s started off their set by mixing up old and new songs, making sure to keep it fresh by playing them entirely differently than the nights before. Their music is always very energetic and keeps everyone on their toes constantly paying attention.
The first set was only the beginning, as they delivered a heart pounding second set that barely stopped, molding one song into the next straight through their sometimes predetermined set lists.
Towards the middle of the second set, Jake Cinninger (guitars, vocals) and Ryan Stasik (bass) initiated the idea of jumping on keyboards with Joel Cummins (keyboards). Meanwhile setting their normal instruments aside, Brendan Bayliss (guitar, vocals) joined percussion with Kris Meyers (drums, vocals) and Andy Farag (percussion).
After returning from an amazing and inspiring offset jam, they flawlessly managed to introduce the funkiest rendition of Beethoven’s 5th symphony I have ever heard. It brought an intense energy to the crowd and surprised every soul in the venue, bringing the performance to its climax as Umphrey’s ended their second set in triumph.
But no true show is complete without the overwhelming holler for an encore, dictated by whistles, yells and “Wooo’s” all for Umphrey’s McGee. Needless to say, Umphrey’s came back out after a five minute break for an amazing encore that had the crowd shouting “all night long, wooo!” to one of their classic songs “Hangover.”
The atmosphere at an Umphrey’s McGee concert is a lot like other “Jam Band” artists such as the Disco Biscuits, the String Cheese Incident and the Phish and Grateful Dead: relaxed, friendly and all about the music. You’ll start dancing and you won’t stop. Of course you can run into the occasional arrogant A-hole, but it’s a lot better than a crowded city nightclub full of Armani Exchange dress shirts, greased up hair and a whole lot of arrogance and egotism.
The love and appreciation of the music gives the atmosphere a bonding quality. You’re as nice to the guy who steps on your toes as you are to the guy next to you who offers you a hit. Then you help the guy who needs to get closer to the stage to throw the band a small bag of marijuana as a tip. But you’re not surprised by any of this, because you’re at an Umphrey’s McGee show.
The live experience is most effective in person, but take my word and download some Umphrey’s McGee, either free from their website (Umphreys.com) or from your favorite music download program, and find out when you can see them next.
Support original and innovative talent in our modern underground music scene by seeing a show.
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