Umphrey’s McGee saved the best for last, as the third and final night of the Minneapolis run yesterday, April 30th, showed UM at their superlative form. The second set is what dreams are made of, and the unplanned double encore was the best way possible to end the run.
“Gents” into “1348” got the night started off. As metal as the song is, “1348” actually had a more psychedelic jam that was a harbinger of what the rest of the show would be, especially the second set. The first set continued with excellent musicianship, delivering fun renditions of “The Bottom Half,” “Hurt Bird Bath” and more.
“JaJunk” opened the second set, which included a small jam where Ryan Stasik laid down a funky bass line that eventually lead to the ending, with Joel Cummins pounding the keys and the guitarists shredding. Brendan Bayliss even covered Jake Cinninger’s eyes, as the latter rocked his solo at the end of the song.
The “Nemo” segment was phenomenal as it contained a “Sweetness,” as well as a rocking version of Led Zeppelin’s “Dancing Days.” Bayliss thanked the crowd, before launching into “Dump City.” At one point, this version got so psychedelic that it more resembled a Grateful Dead “Space” than a rock show. The band zoned out with a bunch of weird noises and sounds, with percussionist Andy Farag going wild on his kit during this free-for-all. They eventually brought it back to the ending of the song for what was a wild ride of a “Dump City.”
Next up was a slower moment with “in The Kitchen,” filled with quality improv throughout. They finished the set with a monster version of Talking Heads’ “Making Flippy Floppy,” with Cummins leading some great synth licks and featuring Cinninger and Stasik with their own keyboard contributions.
They encored with an unusually placed “2nd Self” which segued into “The Floor,” both of which were rocking. That was supposed to be the end of the night, as a bow and a wave were given from the members of Umphrey’s. The crowd applauded. The band members left the stage. The crowd applauded. The house lights started turning on. The crowd continued applauding, louder. At some point, the screaming and yelling turned into a full-fledged Umphrey’s chant that seemed to last forever. Finally, they turned all the lights off and the place went pitch black. It was deafening. Umphrey’s could no longer deny us, and returned to the stage for a rare double encore. The Minneapolis Umphreaks willed the band back on to the stage. Kudos.
Umphrey’s delivered a “Triple Wide” that contained a “Cigarette Cables” middle section. It was truly worthy of the double encore. Thank you for a real good time, Umphrey’s McGee.
Check out the All Things Umphrey’s setlist and a full gallery from Ojeda Photography below:
Setlist: Umphrey’s McGee at First Avenue, Minneapolis, MN – 4/30/16
Set One: Gents > 1348, Andy’s Last Beer, The Bottom Half, Liquid > Thin Air, We’re Going to War > Hurt Bird Bath
Set Two: JaJunk, Nemo > Sweetness > Dancing Days > Nemo, Dump City, In the Kitchen, Making Flippy Floppy
Encore: 2nd Self > The Floor
Encore 2: The Triple Wide > Cigarette Cables > The Triple Wide
