After headlining the historic for five consecutive years, Midwest jammers finally achieved a sellout crowd Saturday night to close out their July 4th UMerica run. Aided by the pull of local funk outfit The Motet, the show attracted a diverse crowd that extended well beyond the UM loyalists that travelled across the country for the event.
An evening set by Nashville’s Moon Taxi set the stage for the Motet, who began a little after 8 pm. The band has built a devoted following around their feel-good brand of Afrobeat funk and accomplished lineup of musicians. The dance-inducing set ranged from sing-a-longs like “1,2,3” off their newest self-titled album to deep electro cuts like “Nemesis.” Bassist Garrett Sayers and guitarist Ryan Jalbert each shined during tasteful solos, while animated lead singer Jans Ingber boogied in bright red pants. Saxophonist Dominic Lalli joined the band for a track, paying homage to the group that launched his career before forming Big Gigantic.
Taking nothing away from the members of Umphrey’s McGee, the star of Saturday night was lighting director Jefferson Waful. Opting away from the pyrotechnics and flashy approach of past Red Rocks shows, he focused on programming a rig of natural floods that twisted and turned with every chord change. In one of the most memorable moments of the night, Waful turned his entire rig to face the natural rock behind the stage and backlit the band with a swirling wall of color.
Saturday’s show was heavy on the hits, with lengthy takes of “All In Time,” the epic (though monotonous) “Ocean Billy” and an encore of “Hajimemashite.” Other highlights included Bob Seger’s classic “Hollywood Nights” sung by Jake Cinninger and a groovy “Slacker.”
The night was not complete without sit-ins that led to some of the best jams of the weekend. Lalli came back out for the new track “Bad Friday” (debuted over the band’s New Year’s run at the Fillmore) and the Motet horn section and Ingber returned for a take of The Band’s “Ophelia.” The latter turned into a brass-filled New Orleans hoedown that had even the security guards dancing.
Saturday was yet another notch in the belt of a band at the height of their popularity. Unfortunately for Colorado fans, Umphrey’s McGee will not be in Denver again for New Year’s–having already announced a 5-night run at The Tabernacle in Atlanta.
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Nate Etter is a Boulder-based musician and a regular contributor to Reverb. You can reach him at Nate12Etter@gmail.com.
Dylan Langille is a Fort Collins-based photographer and a regular contributor to Reverb. See more of his
