Words & Photos: Ashley M. DowningOn a brisk Friday evening in May, The Park West in Chicago kicked off its summer season with a wild, music filled event. This show was presented as the official Summer Camp Music Festival pre-party, with all of the musicians in attendance scheduled to play at upcoming fest the following...

This installment of Notes From The Jazz Underground features the playlist based on the January 31st show.This was the show broadcast the day after found Umphrey's McGee drummer Mike Mirro had passed so NFTJU host Paul Abella built the playlist around some UM material.First featuring Mirro, "Nothing Too Fancy" from Local Band Does...

Then they opened the second set with 27 minutes worth of "Der Bluten Kat", that had me alternately enthralled and confused. There was plenty of great sound to sink my teeth into, but I still left grasping for that passage that I wanted to take away and listen to again and again.I might attribute it...

Day two in the books and one with plenty of segues and a few cool covers. A sweet video of the Pink Floyd encore (dedicated to South Bend, Indiana) below the setlist.Tonight is the third night of the entirely webcasted Chicago run. See you there.02.21.2014The Riviera Theatre,Chicago,IL,USASet 1:A Mild Sedative&...

Umphrey's McGee kicked off a three day "hometown" stand at the Riv last night (we'll be reporting from day three) in strong fashion. After spending the afternoon at WGN with everybody's hero meteorologist Tom Skilling, the came in hot on a windy night in Chicago. The "Much Obliged" featured a vocal Stew with a "The...

One way for constantly gigging musicians to change the way they sound: change up their axes. But most equipment switches are subtle here's something that may be a bit more radical.The Roli Seaboard takes a traditional keyboard, eliminates the indvidual keys, and allows the user to manipulate the sound via a soft, continuous surface....

BB & Jaco sold out their annual charity gig for 2013. They also got help from a UM bandmate, busted out some crazy covers and some holiday fun.Setlist via thebort.comSoul Food 1> Puppet String > Dim Sun > Pequod, Passing, Uncommon > Puppet, Bad Poker, Cut the Cable, Wish You Were Here, Great American &...

This was a nice surprise with my morning coffee. YouTuber izeoftheworldphotos has uploaded the full show video from one this weekend's Chicago Soulgrass shows at Abbey Pub. This band featured half of Umphrey's McGee jamming with Bill on sax and included plenty of fusion-y goodness, some Umphrey's tunes and superb playing all around.These videos...

Volume Three of The Barn'sNotes From The Jazz Underground feature showcases the show broadcast on August 16th. This one, by Paul's admission, kind of goes all over the place. This week's goodies include:Sean Nowell, a fairly straight ahead sex player covering HendrixA little preview of last Saturday's Umphrey's McGee / STS9 show at Northerly Island (...

First, the setlists. Media toward the bottom of the page.STS98/17/2013First Merit Bank PavillionChicago, ILSet:This, Us > Squares & Cubes, Golden Gate, One A Day, Abcees*, Vibyl*, Simulator*, Kabuki, Circus, Vapors, Be Nice*, King Pharoahs Tomb*, Moon Socket, SchemeNotes:* w/ the Liquid Horns.(via STS9news.com)08.17.2013FirstMerit Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island,...