Umphrey's McGee
The Bottom Half

And who are these guys? Raise your hand if you've ever heard of them. I must confess that in my sacred ignorance, they were completely unknown to me. Until my colleague Rob "Zompi," a great downloader of underground music—to whom goes all my gratitude—passed me his USB stick.

What can I say? When you come across collectives like these Umphrey's McGee, you can't help but notice that you are in front of something unusual. Hailing from Indiana and active since '97, UMG follows the glorious tradition of jam phenomena such as Allman Brothers and Phish. Imagine an electrified Dave Matthews Band emulating Police and Huey Lewis & The News, and within the same album experimenting with diametrically opposite genres (from folk to pop, from hard rock to country, passing through reggae and so on). The result is an elegant and very entertaining progressive.

The album that introduced me to them is "The Bottom Half," from 2007, and it's a good example of the versatility of this sextet. The sound quality is spectacular, and the songs (10 tracks, all quite different from each other plus a second disc of outtakes) have a technical clarity that immediately makes you imagine what they can create on stage. Out of curiosity, I wanted to listen to a few live tracks and, well, judge for yourself...

The piece that introduces this work is the title track, whose vaguely funky verse is interrupted by a bridge that seems taken from Sting's '80s. The chorus is very catchy and ends in a triumph of funk-metal guitars, complete with an epic solo. The second track, "Bright Lights, Big City", immediately changes the game: the pop song rhythms are the classic deceptive appearance because as soon as you follow the guitar exploits, you realize they mean business. "Higgins" is the unexpected reggae track, and along with the title track and the intense acoustic guitars of "Home", it is one of the best moments of the album. When the electronic instrumental "Atmosfarag" (named after the percussionist Andy Farag, ed), if possible, that feeling intensifies, making you doubt that the music is from the same band.

Umphrey's McGee have a distinct flair for melodic pop rock, while going far beyond the clichés and boundaries of the genre: "Red Room" flows smoothly, yet on closer inspection, it's built on multiple levels, and "Intentions Clear" seems like a jam between Toto and Huey Lewis at their best. Closing the dances is the beautiful "Divisions"; ten minutes of melodic jam to take your mind away.

"The Bottom Half" is an album that grabs you immediately: it is straightforward, immediate, and played like a god. Give it just one listen; it's worth it. The second disc contains about thirty various tracks, including B-sides from the previous album and various studio and live improvisations.

In fact, I'd be really curious to see a concert by these guys; it's a pity that they aren't really known around here.

All the more reason to be proud to introduce them here on Debaser.