Black Crowes & UM | 07.06 | Chicago
By Team JamBase Aug 13, 2007 • 12:00 am PDT

The Black Crowes & Umphrey’s McGee
07.06.07 :: Petrillo Music Shell :: Chicago, IL
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Opening with a 45-minute power set, Umphrey’s McGee set the bar high with lip curling, brow raising guitar and bass runs, spanning every musical style from heavy metal to ska to jazz. Guitarist-vocalist Brendan Bayliss threw “Wallets Worth” into a fast, high pitched groove within the opening bars, dissipating the notion of what a planned climatic moment usually entails, sending first time listeners for a loop. Although surprised by UM’s immediacy, I was definitely left with the notion these guys have done their share of listening to early progressive rock bands, all the way from Dream Theater to Metallica.
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Their setlist was characterized by meticulous playing and numerous improvisatory highlights that required listeners to be sophisticated and open-minded. One aspect I enjoyed was the interesting use of vocal harmonies that were as distinct and complex as their lyrical meaning, which also enhanced and helped develop the mood of their playing, bringing Umphrey’s McGee’s expressiveness full circle.
The strength of a band can be measured by their ability to listen and respond – two traits challenging in their own rights – but once in balance with one another become the two most important building blocks for a band’s staying power. Working through their ambitious progressions with obvious ease, Umphrey’s makes clear their musical intentions aim to take a bite from many styles but their solid footing and general know-how allows them to present them with taste and talent.
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On “Jealous Again,” the storytelling lyrics, shared between brothers Chris and Rich Robinson, are nicely layered with the female background singers’ upper harmonies. The vocals are pitted against guitar and keyboard phrasing, alternating the instrumentation and creating several highlights in the arrangement.
“Cosmic Friend” gathered momentum with wailing guitar and prominent bass interplay. The song’s vocals are doubled in the bass leaving a lot of space for Chris to explore his vocal range. With call and response ideas exchanged between vocals and guitar, heavy drum accents supplied this confident groove with the edge it needed. Proving that The Black Crowes can cross several genres lines, the band slowed things down on “Seeing Things.” In the true spirit of a slow blues number, Chris led the vocal hierarchy between himself and his soulful backup singers with soaring intensity and clarity. Transferring between his low and high range with ease, Chris exposed and expanded the wounded nature of the lyrics artfully. With a slow buildup and depth of groove, the song arrived at the powerful climax with its minimal harmonic framework intact.
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The Black Crowes’ setlist from the Petrillo Band Shell was a small montage of their impressive repertoire. Reflecting on different styles from past generations of rock & roll and blues musicians while simultaneously adding a modern twist, The Black Crowes manage to preserve the roots of American Music with authenticity. With a lead singer as unbridled and willing as Chris Robinson at their helm, The Black Crowes’ abundance of musicality is transformed into a contagious art form.
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