Umphrey's McGee - Mantis

Umphrey’s McGee - Mantis

Release date: January 20th, 2009

Umphrey’s McGee have always been a hard band to classify.  They’ve been making a name for themselves in the jam-band circuit for quite a while now, and their live shows display a knack for improvisation and spontaneity befitting the genre.  But there’s always been a slightly heavier, more technical aspect of their sound to set them apart from the likes of Phish and their other contemporaries.  Though this has largely taken a backseat in the band’s earlier material, they’ve brought it out into the spotlight with their 2009 release, Mantis - and it cements the band as a force to be reckoned with.

The guys in Umphrey’s must have spent a lot of time studying their classic prog-rock albums during the making of Mantis, because what seems to be happening here is that each track is paying tribute to one key influencer of the band’s sound or another, while still managing to sound fresh and immediate.  Take “Made To Measure,” the relatively straightforward, tuneful opening track, whose catchy melodies and jaunty chorded piano evoke latter-day Beatles.  Then check out album closer “1348,” whose stomping, syncopated grooves are pure King Crimson.  In between these two tracks lie a wide range of material for the band to flex their considerable compositional muscle in.  The epic title track showcases some of the album’s most dextrous playing, featuring some impressive guitar solos; first single “Spires” goes from an all-out rocking introduction to a mellow, harmonized a capella coda; “Turn & Run” just begs to be played in the car with the windows down on a bright summer day as its acoustic intro gives way to what might be the album’s most anthemic chorus.  There’s even some electronica on here, found in “Cemetery Walk II,” a sequel of sorts to the previous track, titled - you guessed it - “Cemetery Walk.”

And so on.  The rest of the album is crammed full of standout moments like the ones described above, and mentioning them all would take way too much time.  It’s hard to pick highlights from an album that’s as consistently great as this one.  Every moment of Mantis is enjoyable on some level, and almost everyone should be able to find something to love about it.  And at 54 minutes, it’s just short enough to leave you desperately wanting more the second it’s over.  Umphrey’s McGee have created a monster in Mantis, blazing onto the scene with an early contender for one of the best albums of the year.  Enthusiastically recommended.

4.5/5

Standout Tracks:

• “Mantis”
• “Spires”
• “Turn & Run”
• “Cemetery Walk”/“Cemetery Walk II”