| The
Review |
If you like Phish, chances are you have heard of Umphrey's
McGee. I heard of them a couple years ago when rumors of Phish's
demise were rampant but still unconfirmed and UM was being
heralded as the "next great thing" in the "jamband" genre.
UM are anything but a "jamband", however, as they incorporate
jazz, rock, blues, folk, and, thankfully for us, prog. They
have several releases to their credit, but until now only
two were readily available on cd: "Local Band Does OK" and
"Anchor Drops", the latter doing fairly well sales-wise and
boosting their reputation significantly. Both of these releases
are fantastic and led me to become a rabid fan. These two
albums contain jaw dropping and wonderfully quirky guitar
and keyboard interplay and genre crossover that will make
your head spin. The singer sounds similar to Trey from Phish
but with a better range. With that background, we have this
release...
On first listen, I was not a big fan. Where are all the
sick leads and complicated structures? Here we have much more
simplistic (and softer, I might add) arrangements. It seemed
to me that the band did not spend as much time writing, and
more of the songs have a streamlined feel (i.e., verse/chorus/verse/chorus)
On repeated listens, however, the album grows. There
is more going on here than you initially think. As always,
the melodies are very good and in fact - the vocals play a
larger role than on the last two releases. Although the notes
are not as intricately played, they are still very well done
and stay with you after the cd is over. There is some great
piano, organ, and as always - innovative guitar leads. Unique
melodies are key on this album, and some may take a while
to settle in. My main complaint is still the lowering of the
complexity level, but I think I may come to like this album
more in time. It is very likeable and I highly recommend checking
out this band - I say go for the aforementioned two releases
first - then check this album out if you like. Rating: 3.5
stars
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