Live at Crystal Ballroom

March 7, 2014- Portland, OR

Show Review by: Walter McCorkle

Friday night in the Bridge City (Portland, OR), uber touring band Umphrey’s McGee swung through town stopping at the highly praised Crystal Ballroom. My typical attitude toward any show featured at the Crystal Ballroom exudes enthusiasm; however, I have noted one flaw in the Crystal’s virtually spotless resume, and it guilts me to point it out, but in the broad scheme of things, I find it necessary. Please be aware, this flaw has absolutely nothing to do with the stellar performance that the band put on. The unfortunate negative first impressions of the venue couldn’t slow down the veteran jam band no matter what the circumsances. This particular evening, the normal open aired and floating, suspended dance floor was completely packed all the way out to the entrance, and the balcony was pushed to its limits as well. I have been to many shows that have felt full because they were sold out, but this was a completely different feeling. There was no personal space to get down to the epic musical talent that graced the stage, hardly a chance to get a beverage, and good chance of missing full songs if you dared to use the restroom. Crystal Ballroom, I apologize for the rant, but there was clearly some overselling of tickets going on and I am resolved to believe other people would say the same. Now, what this situation can say about Umphrey’s McGee is that most any venue would be clambering to fill their capacity to the max (and then some) just to have this band booked for an evening.

I’ll switch gears to the main act now, as that is where the major accolades are deserved for the bands’ overflowing talent and nearly infallible ability to deliver enjoyable experiences night after night. Tonight was no exception, and the band’s execution was on point. The night started with a bass thumping “Le Blitz” intro during which bassist Ryan Stasik certainly got the crowd loosened up and set the tone for some progressive-metal-jam-rock (that’s a mouthful) music to come. “Le Blitz” worked smoothly into “Bright LIghts, Big City” as the tempo was on cue from song to song. “Bright Lights” gave the first look into the amazing improvisational wandering of which the band is so capable. There were moments of ambient trance featuring synthetic textures on Joel Cummins’ keys, and high paced build ups between the dueling guitarists Jake Cinninger and Brendan Bayliss. The next few songs (“Much Obliged > White Pickle, No Diablo”) featured more of the infamous shredding scales of Bayliss and Cinninger alike. “Much Obliged” and “White Pickle” took a quite a few turns into different improv-territories, debuting the talented Kris Meyer’s ability to hold a platform of rhythm while still offering varied beats, patterns, and paces on the drums with some major support from percussionist Andy Farag. Later in the night, these two would be spotlighted again for their epic skills. (A fun note in “White Pickle” was the little teaser of the Star Wars theme towards the end of the song.) After a solid multitude of jamming layers shared amongst these past two songs, a pretty straightforward “No Diablo”, and the last two long segues, the band took a breath and got realigned for the last home stretch of the first set. “Dump City,” “The Linear” and “Miss Tinkle’s Overture” shared a good portion of the first set’s minutes as Umph really focused on their highly technical, multifaceted songwriting abilities that feature so much of what the band has become known. Being leaders of the music scene having some of the more complex songs, it makes you wonder how the members can recall every twist and turn that is built into each song. “The Linear” showcased tastes of quick paced drum lines and guitar scores with a long midsection of ambient jamming. And to close out the first set, the ever popular and, again, highly technical “Miss Tinkle’s Overture” featuring a funky bass driven, keyboard riddled jam, finished up in classic Umphrey’s McGee style with the crowd on the edge of their toes and hungry for more.

For any of you folks who were willing to brave the masses moving outside, or felt the need to catch some fresh air (or smoke your cigarette of choice) during the set break, you may have been lucky enough to catch a short street performance by the California Honeydrops who opened up for Umphrey’s McGee this evening. Yes, you read right, the opening band brought out a few of their instruments and played a little free form collaboration right outside of the venue for a very excitable crowd. An interesting testament to the California Honeydrops’ roots, having started out playing some street performances in Oakland, CA. After a brief time spent out at the sidewalk dance off, the crowd and I moved back into the venue just in time to catch UM retake the stage.

The second set proceeded with a progressive/indie rock sandwich – “Plunger > Hajimemashite > Plunger”. A pretty solid introduction to a rowdy second half of the show. A long “Ringo”, which ended up becoming one of my favorite songs of the night, started with its relatively reggae sounding intro and quickly moved into another excellent jam session that showcased each member in their own limelights. The band was clearly having a good time and at a couple different points in the night shared their appreciation of the Portland crowd which only inspired more positive vibes throughout the hoards people. Next was a solid “Prowler”, so aptly named as the intro truly invokes almost theatrical feelings of prowling, and another chance to hear Cummins’ really tickle the ivory keys of his piano, and a couple interspersed jams that oozed “the Samba.” We were led into “1348” with a full head of steam and I think at this point, it is only fair to give some credit to some of the folks behind the scenes, most particularly the lighting engineer and all of those involved with the accompaniments to the music. The night was full of some wonderfully on cue lighting and plenty of variety of lighting action. The lighting only helped when the funky dance jam in the middle of “1348” was in full force. After a kind dedication from Brendan Bayliss to his younger brother, the band pulled out another uniquely Umph skill, and that is the ability to cover just about any song. “Rock the Casbah,” originally performed and written by the The Clash, featured Jake Cinninger on percussion, and was the catalyst for the upcoming “Drums” that both Andy Farag (Percussionist) and Kris Meyers (Drummer) participated in as well. There is always something very tribal about a good “drums” by any band really, and this instance was certainly not a let down. I have always enjoyed a good “drums” because it gives the listener a chance to see this set of instruments really pushed out to its limits and gives the musicians their opportunity to work freestyle, away from any particular rhythm support for the rest of the band. As “drums” drew to an end, Brendan Bayliss gave a quick introduction and special thanks to his co-members of the band. After this nice touch by Bayliss, the set closer “Puppet String” got kicked off. The song was filled with bass bombs, hard rocking guitar rifts, and all around high energy putting the crowd on edge for an encore after the song ended. Responding to the loud ovation from the crowd, Umphrey’s McGee took the stage and rocked the masses to a satisfying close with “Pay the Snucka.” This band has yet to disappoint me the few times I have been lucky enough to see them, and I don’t think they will in any shows to come. Little could have made my night more enjoyable (except maybe a little more space to dance) than the excellent opportunity to see Umphrey’s McGee.