Umphrey’s McGee @ Marquee Theatre

No other band on Earth presents music to their fans quite like Umphrey’s McGee. The progressive jam band recently announced its second annual UM Bowl in Chicago. The event is a one-of-a-kind concert in which fans, via live text-messaging, call the shots on song choices and special collaborations in four uniquely themed “quarters.” Consider it the mini-Super Bowl of concerts. Umphrey’s is one of a handful of bands regularly called upon for the country’s most popular jam festivals — and for good reason. Their extensive, nearly sold-out tour is proof that they’re one of the better bands on the jam scene these days. Meanwhile, they’ve also donated their time to contributing an unreleased track to the Patagonia Music Collective, from which proceeds of their track will go to Climate Cycle, the band’s favorite environmental charity. Giving back to the community seems to be a requirement for being in a jam band. But Umphrey’s McGee sets themselves apart from the rest by using more traditional song formats while still improvising. If a band of six guys can pull off all that, then who knows what other kinds of good deeds and exciting events they’ll improvise next?