Photo of Jake Cinninger of Umphrey’s McGee by Laura Jerele
With a near-sellout crowd packed into The Pageant and an impending snowmaggeddon looming for the upcoming weekend, it felt like everyone in St. Louis had the same idea: get the hell out of the house, hit the town for the night, and squeeze in one more big night before winter shut things down this weekend. Judging by the buzz in the room, Umphrey’s McGee was exactly the right choice.
Umphrey’s delivered a full three-hour show split into two expansive sets with a short intermission and no supporting acts. Shows like this feel special. I love it when a band gives fans an entire evening with no distractions, making it very much “an evening with.” Umphrey’s trust their audience to stay with them, and the audience gladly does. No real set list that I could see, I figure it was played out as the night went on. I’m still not sure because nothing lagged, there were no awkward or stalled moments—this was a well-honed production that somehow felt loose, unpredictable, yet completely tight and top-notch all in one. By the time singer Brendan Bayliss finally spoke into the mic, the welcome was hysterically spot on. He acknowledged the obvious with a smirk. “It’s cold outside, but it’s warm in here because of you motherfuckers.” That line landed perfectly and set the tone for a night that felt communal, loud, hot, and unapologetically joyful.
Often lumped into the jam band category, Umphrey’s McGee operate well beyond it. Yes, the songs are long and packed with notes, but there is never a sense of drifting. Nothing feels lost or indulgent. Their music is surprisingly tightly constructed, melodic, and rhythm-driven, and judging by the constant movement across the floor, completely danceable! From the first notes to the final encore, the crowd barely stopped moving, everyone swayed, danced, and did not sit still.
The devotion of Umphrey’s fans was not just great to see, but also cool to hear. I chatted with one fan at the front rail who made the drive in from Nashville and shared that this was his 241st show! Whoa! Every mile and every dollar, he said, was totally worth it. His connection to the band is so deep that he even appears on stage each night on a sticker on the bassist Ryan Stasik’s pedalboard. Not too many fans can say that, right?
Visually, the band created an atmosphere that was punched with tons—and I do mean tons!—of vibrant light. A killer light show paired with thick, constant fog made all the dancing in the crowd feel almost otherworldly. It was not quite a hippie disco, though the abundance of tie-dye suggested no one would have been surprised if it turned into one.
Musically, the night carried unexpected heft. I am not super familiar with their music, so the heavy guitar riffs surprised me a ton. Some songs felt closer to metal than anything else! Guitarist Jake Cinninger showed no shortage of technical skill or love for intricate runs and arpeggios, pushing the band into both melodic and prog territory—both hit hard and loud to me. I love that their heaviness was punctuated by a fabulous nod to Led Zeppelin, with the band slipping in a cover of “The Song Remains the Same” in the first set that felt both familiar and yet mashed up entirely into their own sound. Other songs from their setlist for the evening included “Miss Tinkles Overture,” “Remind Me,” “Out of Focus,” and “The Linear.”
As the show wrapped and everyone filtered back out into the cold, it felt like everyone had made the right call. Snowstorm or not, Umphrey’s McGee turned The Pageant into a warm, buzzing escape, the kind of night that reminds you why live music is always worth leaving the house for. Always. | Laura Jerele
