It’s Not Us - Umphrey’s McGee
This article was originally posted on the S&R Blog.
Umphrey’s McGee has a special place in my heart that also comes with a few musical superlatives:
Band I have seen the most – 10 times
Band I most draw inspiration from when playing
Band whose record I lost bought in CD format – Similar Skin
Speaking of CD’s & records, UM just released their 11th studio album – their first record of new material (London Series were old songs recorded in an awesome venue – Abbey Road Studios and Zonkey was a collection of mashup songs that have been performed live) since Similar Skin which dropped almost four years ago.
The album is titled its not us and after listening to the album multiple times, the moniker is both accurate and an oxymoron. The record is filled with high energy songs that will serve as a platform for many jams to come. But it is also filled with acoustic ballads similar to that of Anchor Drop’s Bullhead City. The literal annotation of its not us comes in the form of a 80s tune that is filled with the era’s iconic heavy synth groves and 80s era drum beats – think Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s Relax – that gives the song “Looks” a blast from the past feel. After hearing this song it appears that Zonkey’s Franks Zombie song has seeped into the writing DNA of the band – and its amazing! Lets get started with the review shall we?
Up first is also the “single” off of the album – The Silent Type. The song starts out with Brendan Bayliss singing (vox and guitar) and Kris Myers (drums) plugging away on the kit. The rest of the band joins and instantly the song sounds like typical UM. In typical fashion, Bayliss creates a rocking groove with a simple story but include a life lesson among the lyrics such as “everybody wants what they cannot have.” The song is based on an old jam that fans have come to name Cigarette Cables. So if the melody sounds familiar, you’ve likely heard it at one of their shows. So far this album rocks and we are only one song in!
Up next is Looks which is the 80s synth-heavy song we discussed earlier. The song is filled with lead guitarist, Jake Cinniger’s signature chunk-a-chunk palm muted fills. The song is actually also sung by Jake as well. They are clearly being influenced by the music of the 80s on this number so its fitting that after the last chorus Jake takes off on a stereotypical (but tasteful) 80s hair metal solo adventure to close the song out. Hair metal: revived!
Next is Whistle Kids – a song with a catchy whistle melody played throughout the song. I have actually found myself whistling it quite frequently out of the blue even. IT’S THAT CATCHY! The song is a bluesy number than the last – a dirty blues number is what I meant to say. Bayliss sings a story of dealing with realities such as kids coming into his room too early after a night of partying – I mean indulging in social activities. What is an UM album without some humor? Boring. Throughout the song Brendan sings a line that wouldn’t necessarily be appropriate or understood by a kid and then corrects himself with something that would be appropriate afterward adding lines such as “I mean…” or “…is what I meant to say.” Dry humor yes, but humor and a great song nonetheless.
After Whistle ends, a long 40-second intro of guitar echo plays in what I think could be an epic intro jam in a live setting. Half Delayed is an echo-y delayed vocal song that has a powerful beat accompanied by ambient guitars and keys. It feels very Umphrey-esque. It’s by the 2:30 mark, the song really explodes into a dreamy-sounding solo.
The transition from Half Delayed into the next song, Maybe Someday is seamless. The two songs go together so well that I am surprised they aren’t two sections of a much larger song. I had to double take to make sure it was a new song on my first listen through.
THE TRANSITION IS THAT SMOOTH! The song is heavy on the ambient sounds. The transition from the verse to the chorus is led by 3 overdubbed guitars and is a nice touch that continues to tip the hat towards the 80s.
Remind Me is a funky tune that blends well with the past two songs. I wouldn’t be surprised if a setlist would look like this at future UM shows: Half Delayed → Maybe Someday → Remind Me. They are great songs and would do well in a live setting. Arranged in this fashion on the album makes the themes blend perfectly with one another. Not a bad thing, but Remind Me doesn’t stand out until the halfway mark of the song.
About at the 3-minute mark, the somber song adds a helicopter rotary sound into the mix and the gain is quickly turned up to ten. Then the Metallica influence comes in heavy with a James Hetfield inspired riff accompanied by a double bass drum. My ears perk up at this point and my mind is fully engaged in this rockin’ tune. Perhaps I had judged this song a bit too early. This song has gone from ambient rock to metal almost instantly. The rest of the song is a giant canvas for Jake and Brendan to showcase their chops. Finally ending on a riff UM fans are familiar with. Metal Engaged!
You & You Alone is such an eerie title. The song reminds me of Bullhead City. I love it when Umphrey’s goes acoustic. It’s a great way to strip down the guitarists’ tone away from the distortion, delay, and reverb that is on most tracks. The vocals also include a wonderful harmony that suggests the band has been working on their singing skills as a unit. Something that has always been a weaker skill for UM.
The intro to Forks is my favorite on the album. The use of multi-delay and slightly pitch-shifted guitars creates the perfect contrast to the acoustic guitar song previously. The song brings back an 80s synth pop feel which normally I wouldn’t enjoy, but UM does it in a way that captures my attention. We even have a cool synth mini-solo in the song. Maybe I am biased about this band, but the song rocks.
Speak Up is the first (and only) song on the album that includes a musician who isn’t a member of the band. The song starts with a saxophone playing alongside a guitar in the intro. Joshua Redman is the man behind the sax and he adds fills in between lines perfectly. I will also take the time now and add that I love extended guitar solos on albums and this song delivers.
Piranhas is by far my favorite song on this album. It starts with Ryan Stasik (bass) laying down a funky bass line that remains constant throughout the song. More 80s drums!! This album is like a flashback album to an awesome decade and I love it! “For only a moment I could stop the wheels from spinning!” My favorite line on this record. I can see this song being a huge jam vehicle among the other jam titans – All in Time, Bridgeless, Puppet Strings or In The Kitchen.
The last song on the album is Dark Brush. We go back to the hard rocking UM that we have come to enjoy over the past 20 years. Dark Brush immediately feels like a song in the same vein of Phils Farm or 1348. It drives the album out in a great rock fashion and I am left with nothing but musical satisfaction.
Check out it’s not us here on Spotify or here on iTunes. And click here for upcoming Umphrey’s McGee shows. Well, see you out there!
Until next time, let the music play!