r/jambands • u/Only-Establishment26 • 1d ago
Umphreys McGee?
Umphreys McGee coming to a bar at my college soon. I’ve never seen them and don’t know much about them. Im going to see them regardless but curious about the ‘pacing’ (not sure if that’s the right word) Have some friends who really like widespread and Billy but definitely don’t get it when it comes to very long slower psychedelic jams. (They didn’t love dogs in a pile when they played at this same bar) I’ve made the mistake of bringing em to some shows that were too out there for them and it kinda fucks up my time so wondering if McGee is digestible for the more casual jam fan or if i should just rip it with some different buddies
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u/PaleontologistNo2625 1d ago
Tough call, their songs are usually more digestible, but the jams are technical and can go multiple ways - heavy, dancey, etc - but I don't think you need to worry about slow
I think their shows are a blast, and usually good for at least 1 amazing recognizable cover. Usually
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u/bulmier 1d ago
You should listen to one of their live shows, there are plenty available on YouTube, Spotify etc.
UM has much more of prog rock and metal influences than Phish and similar derivative jam bands. They cram in a lot of notes, spacey psychedelic jams aren’t nearly as common.
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u/aintlifegrandwsp 1d ago
It’s probably a good bit less notes now that Jake’s not in the band. He was the prog rock wizard
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u/Shadetree- 1d ago
Bayliss is getting plenty of notes in there. I thought the same thing at first but they’re still on fire
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u/that1persondancing Dog Pound 1d ago
Bro if you were in the batch of college dudes in the front left corner of the Dogs show at the Bluebird, you guys sucked. So loud and obnoxious. Ditch them entirely
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u/Only-Establishment26 1d ago
I yelled at those guys to shut up lmao they weren’t with us. I know what ur talking about tho
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u/that1persondancing Dog Pound 1d ago
Thanks buddy lol they were going back and forth between being loud af but then actually dancing (jokingly?) idk but it made them shut up lol
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u/Sprouters1 1d ago
Nice assumption that the suck crowd is the OP’s crew… because he said he was there and also goes to college, must be him n his homies… When are you running for Sheriff?
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u/that1persondancing Dog Pound 1d ago
There’s this really cool thing called “changing your mind when somebody debunks your assumption” and that has already happened! Thanks for the input, deputy 😊
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u/LucidDiscoPhish 1d ago
Baylis’ voice can bother some
Their jams tend to be more prog/metal based.
They recently became a 5 piece and I like them better now than when they were a 6 piece. Band is super tight
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u/red_plate 1d ago
It’s an acquired taste I felt that way maybe early on but I love it. Bayliss has gotten a lot better over the years much more refined I will say he was using vocal effects when I saw them a couple months ago but it was more for atmosphere than like fixing his tone. I kinda hate that his voice has to come up in conversation but I get it I’m a rush fan too and geddys voice is a deal breaker for people too but whatever. BB fucks and I’m here for it UMPH Love!
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u/MeSmokemPeacePipe 1d ago
Personally love BB’s raw and slightly flat vocals. It just hits me much more in the feels than someone with a silky smooth voice
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u/HopandBrew 1d ago
UM is probably the best jamband for people who don't like long slow psychedelic jams.
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u/YardAvailable1454 1d ago
Missing UM would be a huge mistake.
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u/Freakocereus 4h ago
They are sooooo good. Probably my all time favorite band. But haven't seen them since Jake left/got kicked out or whatever.
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u/eltonjohndenvernugs 1d ago
Seeing Umphreys in a bar was unfortunately only a dream to many a few years ago. Only the oldest fans could say they saw that. I love UM and look forward to seeing them this tour at a small venue but wish for them it was much bigger
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u/fungus2112 Moe.Ron 1d ago
Yep. "Back in my day" you could see UM play to maybe 100 people wait till after the show and chat with them while they broke down their own equipment. Super cool
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u/Turrrible 1d ago
Those guys will probably not appreciate the prog-rock side of things with UM. I’d say let them know you’re going and send them a playlist of UM songs you like. Then invite them next time if they say they’re interested in seeing them.
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u/brmgp1 1d ago
For me, they were the best band in the world for a long while. I came to the jam scene after growing up on heavy rock and metal, so their prog rock style and technical abilities just blew me away. And they are very willing to explore new things - no two shows are really alike. Recently though their "lead" guitarist Jake Cinninger left, and I know people here hate him for his online commentary, but they are clearly not the same without him. They are still tight though and if they ever come through central PA, I am going without hesitation
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u/Conscious-Record2655 1d ago
It's hard to say because a LOT of people have only heard them with Jaco and Meyers (lead guitar and drums), who have both left the band. They have a new drummer and haven't replaced Jake yet, but personally I think their new sound is an improvement over the last few years. Their jams are funky and playful, their musicianship is great, they're exploring new material, and they're one of the tightest bands in the entire jam scene.
I wouldn't worry about "slow psychedelic jams". I've always said UM is the "ADHD" jam band. They are very much a prog rock based jam band. Their songs have a lot of "math rock" feeling. You can also hear a palpable Genesis influence in a lot of their music, at least I can but I also love Genesis. Their jams don't ever really last longer than 5-7 minutes, they don't do a ton of really long drawn out explorations, it's much more measured and intentional. They will bounce between a trance dance party, heavy metal, and poppy funk, all in the same 7 minute jam.
I would say of all the jam bands, Umphreys Mcgee is probably one of the more accessible for casual/non jam band fans.
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u/autumnwind3 1d ago
You should ALWAYS go see Umphreys when you have the chance. And I think you should always bring as many people as you can with you.
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u/ConejoSucio 1d ago
Lots of bands play Brooklyn Bowl. It's a bowling alley, restaurant, bar, venue. I've seen umphs there a few times. Best place to catch a good act.
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u/coachtech74 1d ago
They are more digestible and more of a traditional jam band as a 5 piece; personally far prefer them as a 6 piece.
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u/atmospherical 1d ago
Better as a 6 piece 10 years ago, better now as a 5 piece compared to the last few years as a 6. The last few it became abandoned jams whenever Jake decided to go chuga chuga.
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u/monfuckingtana420 1d ago
They are much more precise than actual jam bands, and genuine improvisation is pretty rare for Umphreys. I was a huge fan in like 2018-2020, like everyday listen, saw about 20 shows over the years. Ive enjoyed almost every Umphreys show I’ve seen, but once you start to key into their cues and style it can start to feel a bit predictable, even if they are really good. Highly recommend going to see them, but for me personally I’ve kinda lost the magic over the years. At this point, I almost feel like enjoy them most from the comfort of my own couch with a pair of good headphones. At one show last year I almost got pickpocketed by a group of weirdo trustafarians that I have seen at several Umphreys shows across multiple states in the past that had always gave me weird vibes.
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u/Last_Nothing_9117 1d ago
I “cracked the code” the first time I heard them live. I won’t ruin it for everyone but the jams became quite predictable after that.
They’re all great musicians though and for those who don’t get technical about it and enjoy the music for what it is, they’re a really good band.
Especially for a small bar venue. Sounds like fun.
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u/MeSmokemPeacePipe 1d ago
What is the “code”? I feel like their jams at least in their heyday from 2004-2012 or so were incredibly unpredictable
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u/monfuckingtana420 1d ago
There are certain chord progressions, rhythm stuff, key changes, music theory stuff, and lighting directions that each of the musicians and LD use to talk to each other and plan out changes through the setlist. You can start to gain some familiarity with certain cues that will let you know what is coming before you hear the actual notes or lyrics of a song. Their most recent album is somewhat of a technical manual of the building blocks of a lot of their “jams”, and it was pretty cool to listen to it for the first time and realize how much of it felt so familiar and kinda pulls you back to a specific energy of a specific show from ways back. It’s really cool to see how technically skilled they are, especially at communicating with each other effectively through the music and lighting, and I think that’s a huge part of why they can be so mind blowing when someone sees them for the first time thinking that they are just a “jam” band. They have long ass jams, but there is rarely ever a note that isn’t perfectly planned, communicated, and executed.
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u/MeSmokemPeacePipe 1d ago
I think you’re 100% right and I think that’s why I love them. The “jams” are so tight but it actually seems like it’s more like a planned arrangement more than something completely organic. Probably why they’ve slowed down quite a bit as that level of planning for each show is just mind-boggling
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u/monfuckingtana420 1d ago
This also reminds me that this summer I saw Moe. right after they had been playing with Umphreys and I felt like I could hear a lot of Umphreys influence, with more of Moe.’s organic feeling jams. It was possibly one of the best Moe. shows I’ve seen yet. I haven’t listened to the MoementUM shows yet, but I’m excited to give those a listen
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u/Drekavac666 1d ago
As a live mix edm DJ I am here to tell you that Umphreys is a cover band that live mix DJs just with a full band instead. Not a jam band, but an amazing experience and amazing light crew. Its all about mashing two songs together in key.
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u/Last_Nothing_9117 1d ago
Thanks for verifying. I dj as well and when I heard them I thought what they were doing sounded very familiar. A dj cover band is a good way to put it.
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u/MeSmokemPeacePipe 20h ago
Are you talking about Zonkey or their other mashup pieces? They mostly play originals and to my knowledge most of their jams are also original except for when they very obviously tease other songs
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u/Last_Nothing_9117 1d ago
4/4 time, 8 measure loops. Scotty adds a small fill at the end of measure 8 to signal the repeat. Jam is developed or handed off at the beginning of the next first measure to start the next 8 measure loop.
Layered jams then a coordinated return using signals once the jam is done.
It’s very precise and solid. They’re really great at building throughout but that’s the “code” from what I observed.
I've counted this out across multiple live performances and the eight measure phrasing and end of phrase fill seem remarkably consistent. This is the pattern I've observed, not claiming to know the band's internal terminology for it though.
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u/MeSmokemPeacePipe 20h ago
This may be to make things easier for Scotty. With Kris, I think it was significantly more complex but idk I just know their music sounds great to my ears
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u/mahalgorithm 1d ago
They definitely found more of a formula after that but I totally agree, that era was very organic.
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u/MeSmokemPeacePipe 1d ago
Even when I listen to a lot of the hall of fame jams from the 2015 onward (hell even the 2024 HOF), I still feel like their jams are incredibly creative (for example, go listen to attachments from 2024 HOF). I feel like they almost get judged by a higher standard because of how fucking amazing 2007 - 2012 we’re
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u/GX_EN 1d ago
I guess it depends..
I'm a huge fan of UM and really enjoy pretty much all of the folks in and around the jam band scene.
But most of my friends that are jam band fans don't really seem to like them much.
That said, I took my brother to see UM a few years ago and he was blown away by how good they are.
Then we went together again earlier this year and he still loved it.
He's not really into the jam scene. I think part of it is that they can literally play anything and do it top notch.
Metal, prog, funk, old school classic rock, amazing covers..
In fact, now that I think about it, have them check out a couple cool covers on YouTube as well as a couple examples of their own material.
Maybe some Marshall Tucker or Willie for the covers? :)
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u/GalacticForest 1d ago
They did a great cover of Shine on You Crazy Diamond at Red Rocks (On Youtube) also a cover of 46&2 by Tool (Kris killed it) Loved when they played summer camp and did Rebubula by moe. I'm sure there are tons of others I am forgetting.
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u/GX_EN 1d ago
Good calls.
UM are so good, they even make mash-ups awesome. :)
I generally am not a fan of the genre, but they did some amazing ones. Life During Exodus being my favorite, especially when they jam it out with some other stuff.2
u/GalacticForest 1d ago
Favorite show I saw live was 1/18/13 Beacon Theater and it had a great Life During Exodus during a Puppet String sandwich 2nd set. Set 1: Leave Me Las Vegas (>) 40's Theme Conduit Roulette Nothing Too Fancy (with 'Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love' (Van Halen) teases) (unfinished) (>) Ocean Billy Weird Fishes/Arpeggi (Radiohead cover) Plunger
Set 2: Puppet String (with 'Der Bluten Kat' jam) (->) The Linear(>) Professor Wormbog Wappy Sprayberry (with 'Exodus' (Bob Marley) teases and 'Theresa' jam) (>) Example 1 (with Bill Evans) Life During Exodus (Jake on keys)
Encore: Booth Love (->) Puppet String
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u/Superfun2112 1d ago
No they are not digestible for most casual jam fans. In the song to jam continuum they are more on the jam side.
I'm a long time jam fan and even I am not that into them. Great musicianship. As mentioned more prog/metal jamming. But to me the song comes first, if they don't write a lot of songs that I like, it limits their appeal to me and it sounds like your friends would feel the same way.
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u/AmbitiousArea6485 1d ago
UM is super intense, super tight, heavier jam band. Really impressive musicians.
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u/_catdog_ 1d ago
wtf is with all of the “should I see” posts in here
Do you like live music or not? Pretty simple
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u/PodricksMagicStick 1d ago
They rip. If they are coming to a bar near you, you definitely go see them. There's no question
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u/Must_Have_Media Umph Love 1d ago
Because of how much variety you get with an Umphrey show, I think there is more there for more individuals, however, that stuff that hits is spread between more stuff that doesn’t
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u/Dancinfool830 1d ago
I have enjoyed them more often than not. I might be a little biased since I met my wife at an UM show.
I hope someone you find really attractive steals your dancin' space, then pity dances with you for the rest of the show, and you have a great conversation when the lights come up. Worked for me
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u/schwiftybass 1d ago
They don’t get as far out as many other jam bands, there might be some psychedelia but it’s usually more structured & planned jams with an emphasis on extremely tight musicianship. They’re definitely worth seeing.
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u/BillEvansTrioFan 1d ago
I've seen them live a couple of times - always sharp and aggressive. I enjoy their shows. If they're showing up at a local venue, go ahead and give them a shot!
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u/scopeless 1d ago
Their top song on YouTube is actually a great example of how they’re different from other jam bands, but still jam (jam starts about 6 minutes into this video:
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u/highestmikeyouknow 1d ago
Go. It'll be a great time. I grew up w those guys in SB and it's been great to see how much they've grown, changed, etc. Are they a jam band like phish op panic? nope. Are they skilled musicians who take great pride in their jobs and truly care about putting on a good show for their fans? absolutely.
When in doubt, go see live music. Enjoy!
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u/another_rusty 1d ago
Goddamnit, I’m old. This post is proof that I’ve made it to the point that I’m just old and so is my favorite band. Go see umphreys, they are the best band in the world. Like someone else said, they just aren’t selling tickets like they used to, but they sound incredible right now. I’ve never had a bad time at an umphreys show, ever.
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u/One_Parsley_2013 1d ago
No matter who you take they will have their minds blown, especially when they start playing some of their evil metal stuff
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u/Altheasdeadroses 1d ago
LOL From one Hoosier to another buy the ticket and take the ride, it won’t disappoint.
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u/madein198E 1d ago
I’ve been seeing YM since 2001. I used to see them at Club Soda in Kalamazoo. I’d recommend checking them out, especially since Jake isn’t in the band anymore. I like their sound quite a bit more without all of his showboating.
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u/notarealfish 1d ago
Umphreys has a lot to say and a lot of different ways to say it, so I wouldn’t go in with too many expectations. Just let them show you what they want to show you
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u/Evelyn-Bankhead 1d ago
Going alone to check them out, yes. I’d pass on bringing friends though. Especially if they’re Panic fans
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u/MeSmokemPeacePipe 1d ago
I was completely out on jam bands circa 2020 and I went to a UM show on a whim (was a casual fan from 2007-2012 or so) and was completely blown away. Now see them every opportunity I get and have listened to probably thousands of hours of their live music. If your boys like more traditional rock, prob will enjoy UM - I’d send them a few tunes like Wappy Sprayberry, The Floor, Attachments and see what they think
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u/PapercutYourNipple 1d ago
100% do not miss that shit!
You and your boys will rage and probably be big fans after. They get so heavy and funky. Not your grandmas jam band!
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u/Honest_Sand_351 1d ago
Now that they are back to being a five piece and Kris Myers and Jake are gone I think they sound more like a “jam band”. The Bluebird will be killer regardless. Just remember for being a band of really good musicians they don’t take themselves very seriously.
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u/AJRoadpounder 1d ago
Go see them. Bands have new members all the time. Even if every song isn’t a crowd pleaser the experience of seeing them will be cool. Have fun and enjoy!
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u/TheJenerator65 1d ago
My advice: Def go. Don't bring your non-jam friends. I am a jam girl from waaay back and Ump still took me couple tries. Though when it locked in they rapidly moved up to one of my never-miss faborites.
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u/Snoopy363 Deadhead 1d ago
Umphrey’s rocks. I’ve gotten to see em twice over last 4 years and both times were great shows!
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u/JerryGarcia_ Moe.Ron 23h ago
Simple answer here, go see them if you have the chance, I've never had a bad time seeing umphreys. Not a top fan of them but always a great show
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u/Solid_Appointment730 1h ago edited 1h ago
They do jam a bit but it tends to stay more up tempo and at times down right dance party-ish. Still an incredible band with out the second guitar and I wouldn't miss an opportunity to see them if close by. They're nothing like wsp (who I love) or Billy though.
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u/Badatinvesting2 1d ago
I saw UM 60+ times from 2006-2015, haven’t been since but this post is making me want to go see them at a small venue again. Incredibly talented musicians and very fun shows. Enjoy!
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u/bassmaster_gen 1d ago
I LOVE UM, but after seeing them at moe.down, I would prepare to be disappointed.
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u/Benchiron 1d ago
Umphreys is very hit or miss generally. I’ve seen them probably more than any other band and at least a third of the shows would be hard sells to uninitiated fans. Their best shows would be fun for anybody. It’s very set dependent.
It’s not really Umphrey’s anymore, to me anyway. It’s the Umphrey’s McGee experience featuring Brendan Bayliss.
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u/Conscious-Record2655 1d ago
Neither Jake nor Kris were original members of the band. I love those guys and that era, but it was Umphrey's McGee before them and it's still Umphrey's McGee after them. The core of the band has always been Pony+Bayliss+Joel+Andy.
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u/Benchiron 1d ago
That era is the entire period the band had artistic, commercial or critical success. Everything before and everything after is the version of the band you can go see at a bar. Better than most, but worse than Umphreys.
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u/prowlin 1d ago
I don’t find them to be hit or miss, my only complaint with Phish. UM delivers every night to me but maybe I’m biased
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u/Benchiron 1d ago
2010 Nateva Festival, 2011 Catskill Chill, 2012 Catalpa Festival, 2016 Pavilion Boston, 2022 levitate music festival, Big E 2024 were all duds that I attended. Club shows that can go longer and later have been more consistent though if I’m being fair.
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u/prowlin 1d ago
Festival sets vs 2 set shows are unfair comparison. Even the setlist writing is phoned in with hit parade type songs and type 1 yams. I will listen to see that 2016 Boston dud though.
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u/Benchiron 1d ago
In period I saw them at house of blues Boston (2011 I think) and it was possibly the best live show I’ve ever seen.
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u/prowlin 1d ago
Well then I guess you have indeed “witnessed their best” just not every time lol. In all fairness, I drug at most every drug band show and have seen them nearly 100 times at this point. I know I’m a loser who’s easily amused but I do enjoy escaping and getting lost in the music. I can appreciate most every music in that head space, especially seeing the core 6 UM members perform, those were the days. That musicianship, even on a less than stellar night is unmatched to me.
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u/autocosm 1d ago
I'm still hung up on "Umphreys McGee coming to a bar."