Music
-
- --
We're Jammin': Umphrey's McGee
Credits
Release Date: Jan 20, 2009; Lead Performance: Umphrey's McGee; Genre: Rock
B+
Tom Sinclair
Tom Sinclair is a senior writer for EW and has been called "the handsomest man in rock criticism'' (by his wife)
If your idea of a jam band is a posse of unwashed hippies reworking tropes from the Dead and the Allmans, you need to hear Mantis, the eighth album from this Chicago-based sextet. Umphrey's McGee stand revealed as consummate musical alchemists, deftly reconfiguring sounds from rock's vast panoply of styles, and evoking bands as diverse as Steely Dan, Metallica, XTC, Rush, and the Beach Boys without sounding like copycats. This bunch aren't just flaunting their impressive chops because they can; the sleekly constructed tunes (no noodling here) sparkle with a sweetness and soul that's more than the sum of their influences. B+
Download This: Keep checking the band's official site for updates on the new album
Posted Jan 14, 2009
Add Your Comments
The rules: Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.
If you see inappropriate language,
e-mail us.
You must have javascript enabled to submit a comment.
