Umphrey’s McGee, Petaluma, California

So I'm up in Sonoma County, California to visit my daughter and taste some of the fine wine growing up there and I notice in Petaluma Umphrey’s McGee is playing.  So me and the GF head down to Petaluma Sunday night to hear them at The Mystic Theater.  My familiarity of them is Anchor Drops and a one cursory listen to a pod cast of one show.

You have understand arriving in down town Petaluma I thought  I walked back to the early 70’s.  I was expecting maybe some nod to the hippy culture but not as much as I saw.  Some guys with beards and hair grayer than the rain soaked clouds were hanging out in front.  I saw a guy with a New Riders of the Purple Sage t-shirt. Girls in flip flops and jeans with long unstyled hair and glassy eyes were heading through the door.  I thought this going to suck.  If this is the kind of people who listen to them then this is going to be a Grateful Dead clone.  We get inside and decide to sit in the balcony not knowing what might be happening on the floor.  Altogether the crowd was 350-400 people in a place that maxs at 500.  It is a converted movie theater just so you know the layout.  Good sound system and decent size stage although I think it  would find it difficult if these guys toured with someone else.  The size of their set up is large.  They have two Guitarists and a Bassist, Drummer, Percussionist (who might of well been a drummer he just needed a bass drum) and a Keyboard player who had a full set up of a Hammond and several synths and other assorted keyboards.

Right before (30 minutes or so) the band came on there seemed to be a waft of poignant smoke arising from all over the theater.  So much so the smoke was rising into the lights above the stage and creating a bit of a fog show.  My naïve GF who didn’t experience the 70’s like most of us said “ that’s some kind of special effect isn’t it”.  I said "I have never heard pot called that before". I am serious no one tried to stop it and it was blatent as all get out. It was way too funny makes me chuckle now as I type this.  

Finally the band came on and you know what?  I don’t understand why any of those people like them. All they did was create some of the tightest riff orientated music I haven’t heard since the Dixie Dregs or Frank Zappa.  The drummer and percussionist were incredibly tight and if any of the hippie girls dancing on the floor had any idea that there was little dance rhythm to the music it would have shocked them to sobriety.

I am hoping to get to know this band better and picked up their DVD at the show and hope to have better report than this one without the contact high.