The Uglysuit
In
November of 2007, we found ourselves deep into the Mantis recording process at
IV Lab in Chicago. Manny Sanchez, the owner and head engineer, was
working with me on keyboard parts for Mantis, the song. I believe we
recorded all of the organ parts for Mantis that day in the studio
(incidentally, through Brian Felix's Leslie 122 cabinet, which lives at the
studio there). We had wrapped things up and I asked Manny if I could hear
some other projects he was working on. Over the course of the next few
minutes, I found myself blown away by the sounds of the Uglysuit. The
Oklahoma-based band had come to Chicago for just 3 days to record their first
full album with Manny. When you listen to cuts from their album you'll
recognize a lot of tones you've heard on Umphrey's releases over the years,
from IV Lab's distinctive Wurlitzer upright piano (Memories of Home) to a
reamped Fender Rhodes (Red Tape). The band's sound seemed to be somewhere
between the lushness and ethereal sounds of Pink Floyd and perhaps what you
always wanted Coldplay to become, but never did. The melodies, the songs
and the arrangements all seemed to be there and I was intrigued, if not
impressed at that point.
Manny
was kind enough to reward my enthusiasm with a full promotional version of
their album, and I gladly threw it into my collection. Fast forward a
month later to Caribbean Holidaze in Jamaica. The album came up on my
itunes and became the soundtrack for my weekend, which also happened to be the
weekend that I met my fiancee. I couldn't get enough of the entire album
and felt like I had found my new favorite band. Occasionally, we find
music out there that moves us more than other music does, or simply connects
with us in deep places. This is what the Uglysuit did for me that weekend
in Jamaica and they were the perfect fit for the how my weekend there felt to
me.
We
couldn't be more excited to have them opening for Umphrey's McGee over the next
4 nights. So, do yourself a favor, and get to know the music of the
Uglysuit!
http://www.myspace.com/theuglysuit