Umphrey’s McGee returned for night two of their run at Red Rocks Amphitheatre last night, bringing with them a flurry of newer songs and huge jams. After last night’s epic rager with Dweezil Zappa, Umphrey’s had Joe Russo’s Almost Dead and The Main Squeeze on the bill tonight, making for an exciting, three-pronged lineup of uptempo funk, energetic Grateful Dead jams, and several progressive masterpieces from the host band.
Opening the first set with “Attachments”, which debuted at this year’s Holidaze event, Umphrey’s quickly transitioned to older material with a rare “Kabump”, making only its fourth appearance on a setlist in 2016, and it was one to remember as Jake Cinninger teased Funkadelic‘s “One Nation Under A Groove” during the tune. 2015 UMBowl track “In The Black” was up next, followed by the older “Example 1”, a song that dates back to UM’s pre-Cinninger era in 1998. After a run through the older tune, Brendan Bayliss switched to an acoustic guitar, and Umphrey’s went right back to the new stuff by playing “Gone for Good”, the single they debuted at January’s Reel to Real show. Bayliss kept the acoustic on for a cover of Led Zeppelin‘s beautiful “That’s The Way”, which was played last night for only the second time since 2013. The band closed the set with a classic combination of “Out of Order” into “All in Time”.
Set Two began with the orchestral “Preamble”, which led into its traditional partner in the multi-sectional epic “Mantis”, which in turn led into another UMBowl 2015 track in “Make it Right”. “The Triple Wide” was next, with its thumping beats echoing off the rocks and bringing a party vibe into the show. The dance-heavy number wound it’s way through an impressive improv section that landed on the epic rocker “Puppet String”.
Following “Puppet String”, fans were treated to the improvisational highlight of the evening, as Umphrey’s took “Hindsight” from 2014’s Similar Skin out for a walk. The improv fireworks continued with a huge run through a jam classic in “August”, which contained a “Jimmy Stewart” segment; this one peppered with lyrics from Bayliss’ songbook. “August” went unfinished, as the “Jimmy Stewart” segment bled into an incredible “Hurt Bird Bath”, bringing the second set to a close.
For the encore, Umphrey’s started up with “Much Obliged”, which its funky beat and impressive guitar play. The song transitioned into a performance of The Who‘s “Join Together”, which featured Cinninger on harmonica for the fun debut cover that finished the show.
Umphrey’s continues their summer with tour dates up and down the East Coast over the next few weeks. You can check out the full setlist from last night’s show, below.
Setlist: Umphrey’s McGee at Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Morrison, CO – 7/3/16
Set 1: Attachments, Kabump[1], In The Black, Example 1, Gone for Good[2], That’s the Way[2], Out Of Order > All In Time
Set 2: Preamble > Mantis[3] > Make It Right, The Triple Wide > Puppet String, Hindsight, August[4] > Hurt Bird Bath
Encore: Much Obliged > Join Together[5]
[1] with One Nation Under a Groove (Funkadelic) teases
[2] with Brendan on acoustic
[3] with Jake on keys; unfinished
[4] “Jimmy Stewart” with lyrics; unfinished
[5] debut, The Who; with Jake on harmonica