Stream Journal: On Tour with Umphrey’s McGee

Stream Journal: On Tour with Umphrey’s McGee | Boston, MA Part Two

Rob Slater on November 4, 2014

Following up what most should deem as a pretty damn fine Halloween show is rarely easy, but alas, that’s the price of being a band that can do very little wrong at the moment. With the mashups out of the way, it was time for Umphrey’s to cut loose as they begin their climb to 2000 total shows played.

Set One

Set I: Bathing Digits > Cut the Cable, The Floor, Go to Hell, Higgins, Slacker, Women Wine and Song, August

How They Played

There isn’t a bigger “Cut the Cable” fan than this guy, so score one for Team Umphrey’s to start the show. “The Floor” is thriving in an improv spot to the point where you wonder what the hell took them so long to take off the deep end. Regardless, it was well worth the wait as this version once again went there with some effective rhythm guitar from Brendan while Jake and Kris fueled the rocket to the moon.

For “Higgins,” Bayliss and Cinninger switched roles they established on “Higgins” as the former led the charge with an inspired riff as the stew that sounded rehearsed took shape while Cinninger hung back on rhythm. The build is ignited by Brendan and whoever (couldn’t tell via the webcast) dropped the “double time” signal deserves a gold star because “Higgins” goes from 0 to 60 in a hurry. Myers is leaving a trail of death and destruction as he strikes down anything in his path, taking the group to the top of the mountain. I had flashbacks to the Hall of Fame version of “Girlfriend is Better,” except that lept over the mountain, this one stopped at the top. Still good enough.

“Slacker” taught us all a valuable lesson: Don’t WOO. Nobody wants to hear you make that ungodly noise. You’re not a sorority girl who just had her first beer. Stop it (unless you’re a drunk sorority girl).

Jake filled his vox quota with “Women Wine and Song” before the band dipped into a closing “August.” Always a producer of baby-making, silky smooth jams, this one was no different as the band leaned into a lovely, cohesive section before returning, leaving the stage set for another Bayliss solo.

MVP

While Cinninger is normally the fire and the brimstone, this time it was Bayliss playing some aggressive, inspired guitar and pushed one of the best jams of the evening, “Higgins.”

Playback Value

If you like to dance, definitely dig into that “Higgins.” There’s some rolls Myers goes on in it that make you wonder just how many arms he has at times. “August” is thoughtful and gorgeous with a brief “Bridgeless” tease, forshadowing the doom that awaited in the second set.

Set Two

Set II: Bridgeless > Den > Bridgeless, End of the Road, 40’s Theme, Kashmir, Pay the Snucka

Enc: Release > The Fussy Dutchman > Gulf Stream

How They Played

When Umphrey’s has a moment like they did to open the set, I like to call those ‘holy shit’ jams. Well, this is THE ‘Holy Shit’ “Bridgeless.” What ended up as a 30+ minute segment that also included a “Den” jam in there may go down as one of the finest cohesive jams of the year and possibly beyond. I’m not as good at this whole music thing as Joel is, so let him explain to you how it went down pre-“Den.”

A little 11/1 Bridgeless analysis- 5:30 – 10:45: created in the moment. 10:45 – 16ish: written stew by RS & me. 16ish – 18:57: in the moment
— Joel Cummins (@goldlikejoel) November 3, 2014

So, that happened. And then “End of the Road” happened which is ALWAYS welcomed after a scorcher like what occurred to open the set. “40’s” offered a chance to get freaky on a Saturday night and featured a more patient first section with more work from Andy Farag and Kris Myers than we normally hear on this song. “Kashmir” and “Pay the Snucka” closed a not-quite-as-good-as-the-first-set final frame although Jake Cinninger did have an uncanny Mike McCready “Yellow Ledbetter” tone during portions of his work on “Snucka” before getting into the Eddie Van Halen meets Rick Neilsen meets Nels Cline type stuff we’ve come accustomed to.

I still don’t know how I feel about the “Release” cover. It’s not for a lack of trying, and it’s normal to have mixed emotions about a band covering one of your favorite songs ever. To me, there is only one person born to sing that song and his name is Edward Louis Severson III. You know him as Ed, or Eddie. Still, props to the band for having the you-know-whats to do it. The “Fussy” and fun “Gulf Stream” were a nice touch to close the show, too.

MVP

The “Bridgeless” is pretty heroic. I’m not about to single out any one guy over the course of a opening segment like that. Give it to all six. Boston got done right.