The excitement can be seen on every one of the other 49 faces in the Crystal Ballroom's waiting area as the anticipation for the Umphrey's McGee's second StewArt event reaches it's peak. After a few moments, the door opens and pianist Joel Cummins enters the room first, followed closely by the rest ...view article

In the previous volume of the Umphrey's McGee Colorado Chronicles, I mentioned that Umphrey's made it possible for me to spend almost my entire day in Denver with them.  I didn't get to hang out backstage and shoot the breeze while drinking Colorado micro brews and smoking Denver nuggets, or take ...view article

My first exposure to the avant-garde jazz trio Medeski Martin and Wood (conveniently known as MMW) was at the State Palace Theater during a Jazz Fest weekend in 1999 New Orleans.  MMW was still relatively new, but had the distinction of opening for Phish in 1995, which stamped them with the Phish ...view article

Located on the banks of the Des Moines River, the Simon Estes Amphitheater was the site of yet another Umphrey’s McGee ‘musical-Mona Lisa’. A truly beautiful setting for a night that would include some of summer’s most electric moments. The ever-present feeling of the impending Fourth of ...view article

Cas Haley, the runner up from the 2007 season of America's Got Talent, just released his second album, and his first from Easy Star Records.  The album, Connection, is a cool mix of reggae, rock and pop, and puts Cas squarely in the spotlight and out of the shadow of Terry Fator, the ventriloquist.  ...view article

There is little comparison to the excitement of the thumping house beats, the funky rumble of a low bass line shaking the building and the infectious sonic articulation of synthesizers that can be found at a rave.  Imagine that being topped off with soaring guitar licks and the interplay of four ...view article

Considering that the Dave Matthews Band will be on hiatus during 2011, I felt that I couldn't pass up the opportunity to see them when they came to Dallas.  I'm glad I went because it seemed like Dave went out of his way to make sure he left his North Texas fans satisfied, and ready to endure the ...view article

With the epidemic-like spread of the Guitar Hero and Rock Band video games, Rock and Roll music has been packaged neatly into five little buttons as mind numbing, modified studio versions of classic hits are practically put on repeat in households throughout the world. Perhaps to counterbalance this ...view article