Ryan Stasik Talks Umphrey’s McGee History On ‘Inside Out With Turner & Seth’ Podcast

Umphrey’s McGee bassist Ryan Stasik is the featured guest on the latest episode of Osiris podcast Inside Out With Turner & Seth. Stasik spoke with co-hosts Rob Turner and Seth Weiner about live during quarantine as an introduction to a discussion Ryan had with Turner and Kevin Cassels regarding UM’s early days.

Ryan talked with Seth and Rob about teaching musicians and chatting with Umphreaks via the Live Lesson Masters online platform. Stasik then details his daily routine while stuck at home and the creativity he’s experiencing under quarantine. The bassist revealed he’s often in touch with his band mates and UM’s crew and that the sextet is working on new music. Additional topics hit upon were original Umphrey’s McGee drummer Mike Mirro’s contributions to the band’s early compositions, how Ryan is staying positive and the energy that will come when UM and every other band are finally able to take the stage again.

Old school Umphrey’s fan and music expert Kevin Cassels, who’s also a talented drummer, joined Stasik and Turner for a lengthy chat in Asheville, North Carolina back in February. Kevin, Ryan and Rob start by discussing Stasik’s first meeting with UM guitarist Brendan Bayliss and pre-Umphrey’s bands such as Tashi Station. The bassist, who actually started as a guitarist, explained “Hajimemashite” was the initial Umphrey’s McGee original. Stasik spoke about a demo of the song Tashi Station recorded in 1997, which defunct blog Hidden Track premiered in 2011.

The trio’s hour-long chat continues with talk of how the members of Umphrey’s McGee gravitated to each other and left their old bands. Ryan also spoke of percussion Andy Farag joining UM and recruiting Jake Cinninger in 2000. Stasik went on to explain how UM’s repertoire changed once Cinninger was added to the mix. The Pittsburgh native also talked about his relationship with Mirro and when Mike told the band he was quitting. Ryan recalled Mike’s final shows and the many transitions Umphrey’s went through in their first few years. Another subject the three discussed was the evolution of Stasik’s playing. Listen to the latest episode of Inside Out With Turner & Seth below:

JamBase is the media partner of Osiris.

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Source: JamBase.com