Umphrey’s McGee Shares ‘In The Kitchen’ Episode Of ‘Anchor Drops Redux’ Series

Umphrey’s McGee released another episode of their Anchor Drops Redux series. The video series previews the band’s forthcoming Anchor Drops Redux album, a 15th-anniversary re-release and vinyl pressing of 2004’s Anchor Drops. With each clip, the group offers “a track-by-track deep dive into the history of the album, stories behind the songs, and musings on the early years of the band’s time in Chicago.” Now, Umphrey’s has released the third episode, which details “In The Kitchen.”

The video begins with Brendan Bayliss describing his first apartment in Chicago, “It was so cold in the kitchen, literally, that you had to leave slippers by the kitchen floor because it was just freezing. We didn’t have any money when we moved here, so I was chintzing on all the bills, so the lights were low and the heat was down.” He adds, “One of the few things that makes sense. In this band, we don’t name with any reason behind it.”

From there, the band speaks about the improvisational origins of “In The Kitchen” and how they built out the number using their “Lego” theory, which they also explained in their video on “Plunger.” The video also quotes a prior JamBase interview from 2003, which helps understand the band’s mindset in composing songs during that time.

Watch Umphrey’s McGee’s mini-documentary on “In The Kitchen” below:

As a bonus, check out video of the band’s first live performance of “In The Kitchen,” which took place at Otto’s in Dekalb, Illinois on December 6, 2002: