There is one thing I know, a little rain will not stop an Umphrey’s McGee Fan. Last weekend, June 28th, in Kettering, Ohio, there was an epic rock show at the Fraze Pavilion. This was UM’s first show at this venue and it was bound to rock rain or shine.
The Fraze Pavilion is celebrating its 23rd year, and I can’t say enough good things about this venue. The staff was so friendly and the area is just beautiful. When you walk in you are greeted with small pools with fountains in the middle where you can soak your feet. As you walk towards the stage, there is a large lawn area and a pavilion area with VIP seating. The staff was helpful in seating and couldn’t have been more kind to all of the patrons. It was a great venue to see a rock show.
The Werks, a local Ohio band, opened up the show as the storm clouds rolled in. It was a warm, muggy day, but the rain would soon change that. The Werks have a sound that goes well with Umphrey’s. They have an eclectic rock sound, that is energetic and well-structured. They played into the oncoming storm, and their set ended right as the cooling summer rain rolled through.
Umphrey’s McGee took the stage as the storm was still in full swing. The crowd was not deterred by the rain as the band opened with “October Rain,” a new melody they have been playing to open shows. It drizzled through a majority of the first set as Umphrey’s pushed forward into “Room To Breath,” “Andy’s Last Beer,” and “Hourglass.” The weather finally broke as they went into one of my personal favorites, “The Fussy Dutchman” as fleeting glimpses of a rainbow hung in the sky, the colors of the rainbow were reflected in the light show. The sunset was beautiful, and as the storm rolled away, they closed the first set with “Miami Virtue > Miss Tinkles Overture.”
I am constantly impressed by this band’s ability to bring a perfectly composed rock show, night after night. They play so tightly together with no matter how many nights they have been touring. The two nights previous to this show, they played Electric Forest and were booked for Milwaukee the next night. They have toured in this fashion for several years, and rarely disappoint.
The second set in Kettering, Ohio left nothing to be desired. They opened with a classic “Wappy Sprayberry” into “Jajunk.” The sun had set and the light show was as beautiful as ever as the band pushed forward with the powerful guitar riffs of one of their harder rock songs, “Tribute to the Spinal Shaft.” The set came to an end all too fast with the band coming back into “Jajunk” from the opening song. They encored with Led Zeppelin's “Fool in the Rain” reminding us of the storm at the beginning of the night and leaving the crowd reluctant to say goodbye to such an amazing night.
