MARCH 9 – THE WILMA
MARCH 10 – THE EMERSON
TICKETS at CACTUS RECORDS

Fans who have followed Umphrey’s McGee for any period of time know that there are only two guarantees: you never know what you’re going to get, and Umphrey’s always delivers. How else can a band be relentlessly innovative in both music AND fan relations for 13+ years?

“Our live show is malleable and every night is its own thing, where you never know where things are going to go,” keyboardist Joel Cummins explains. “People aren’t used to us playing three-and-a-half to four-minute songs back to back, so this album is a completely different experience than our live show, which is certainly something we were trying to do.”
Whereas this band’s stellar reputation is based on marathon concerts that mix original, technically demanding tunes with complex epics and, playful covers (ranging from Toto to Metallica), it has chosen the same kind of attention to melody, songcraft, and musicianship that make those artists stand apart. Umphrey’s chemistry, however, is something all its own, built upon a relentless live schedule of 100-plus shows a year, a solid base of musical training, and friendships that go back to when they walked in the shadows of the Golden Dome at the University of Notre Dame.

“The thing we realized pretty quickly is that music is secondary to our relationships,” guitarist/vocalist Brendan Bayliss points out. “If our relationships aren’t strong, it heavily affects the music. Some bands don’t speak to one another, they aren’t friends, and I just don’t know how that works.”

While competition was admittedly slim when they formed at Notre Dame in 1997, the band immediately became a campus favorite. When Umphrey’s moved to Chicago, it brought its Fighting Irish bonafides with it, so its initial hometown Windy City shows were packed to the gills with South Bend alumni and friends. The underground network of tapers helped spread the word about the band, and the ND connection also served the guys on the road.

“The first time we went out west it was crazy,” Bayliss recalls. “It didn’t matter what town it was — we knew somebody. I didn’t realize the reach of Notre Dame until after I graduated. I didn’t appreciate Notre Dame when I was there. Back then, I wouldn’t be caught dead in Notre Dame gear, but now I’m swimming in it and I wear it with pride.”

These days, the band plays for crowds from all over the US and beyond, and incorporates a sophisticated mix of cutting-edge technology, including a stellar light show. Its Stew Art concerts redefine live music as we know it, with fans texting to choose the direction of the band’s set, while the four-quarter UMBowls (each quarter has a different interactive theme) have quickly become landmark events not to be missed.

Umphrey’s tight-knit relationship with its rabid fanbase includes the band making recordings available of every live show since 2006, monthly podcasts, an extremely active presence on Facebook and Twitter, and digital “Easter Egg” hunts. This has led to a strong following throughout the U.S. and to successful international tours of Europe, Australia and Japan, where fans screamed out song titles even though they couldn’t speak a lick of English.

One of the perks of Umphrey’s McGee is that it allows the band members to be fans themselves, having shared the stage with heroes like Huey Lewis, guitarist Stanley Jordan, John Oates, and jazz saxophonist Joshua Redman, to name a few. Umphrey’s has even backed Lewis, gospel legend Mavis Staples and Sinead O’Connor for a classic version of “I’ll Take You There,” and they are regularly joined onstage by their peers.

“I can’t believe that we are 13 and half years in,” Bayliss points out with a mix of wonder and pride. “If someone told me that I would have been thinking: ‘No way! But sign me up. I’ll take it.’”

Last spring Umphrey’s McGee played an unbelivably good show to close out their spring tour at the Wilma Theatre in Missoula. Two sets of face melting music and lightshow. One of the best in the business. The show was started off with ‘Flamethrower’, a mellow instrumental house jam, and as the band settled in, the crowd did too. They followed up that with ‘2nd Self’ and ‘Professor Wormbog’. Other first set highlights were a cover of the Smashing Pumpkins ‘Cherub Rock’ and the set closer ‘Rocker Part2’ always a crowd favorite.

The second set was even more impressive. As the crowd gave the band energy the band gave them a show to remember in return. Highlights of the second set were a seventeen minute version of the song ‘Jajunk’ originally on the bands album Anchor Drops, a cover of the classic ‘Time” off of Dark Side of the Moon right into a slap yo mama techno version of the song ‘Cemetary Walk’ from the album Mantis.

Song Choices aside, the things that make an Umphrey’s show great are the bands ability to change gears, change the tapestry of what you are hearing, on a dime. And of course, the Lights. See you at the Wilma &   Emerson.     – March 2013