(SOUNDBITE OF UMPHREY'S MCGEE SONG, "OUT OF FOCUS (LEGO 2)")
SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
For generations, children and adults have created entire worlds out of Legos, but the progressive jam band Umphrey's McGee has given those building blocks a new application.
(SOUNDBITE OF UMPHREY'S MCGEE SONG, "OUT OF FOCUS (LEGO 2)")
SIMON: And that's "Out Of Focus," the lead single from their new album "Blueprints." It's made up of spontaneously created sections of music they call Legos that are taken from live performance and put together with lyrics and other new elements - voila, they become songs. Guitarist and vocalist Brendan Bayliss and keyboardist and vocalist Joel Cummins of Umphrey's McGee joins us now from Chicago. Thanks so much for being with us.
BRENDAN BAYLISS: Oh, thank you for having us.
JOEL CUMMINS: Great to be here.
SIMON: Brendan, what is Lego to the band? How did this come about?
BAYLISS: Well, in the very beginning stages of songwriting, we were looking at entire pieces, seeing what would work. You know, some people would have sections of songs or a verse or a chorus. And when you start collaborating with other people, sometimes someone would have a B section that would work with someone else's A section. That was kind of a natural starting point. And then when we started improvising live on stage, there were certain moments that were actually really good. And we listened back and decided to keep that part from that jam that night.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "OUT OF FOCUS (LEGO 2)")
UMPHREY'S MCGEE: (Singing) I thought you hadn't noticed. Maybe I hoped you did. That question is loaded. Who are you trying to kid? I fell out of focus just like I wanted to.
CUMMINS: It's just the idea of what can we create and let the fans into the creative process a little bit. So, you know, if it goes well, they feel like they're part of something magical, and if it doesn't, then we can blame them.
SIMON: (Laughter) And, Brendan Bayliss, some of these Legos go back nearly 20 years, don't they? I mean, for example, parts of the song, "Exit Signs," I gather are pulled from improvs in 2006.
(SOUNDBITE OF UMPHREY'S MCGEE SONG, "EXIT SIGNS (LEGO 1)")
BAYLISS: There are certain moments on stage that feel so good that they kind of stick around in the back of your head as, oh, that was good. That's going to be something. That already has a feel like it's a verse, or this sounds like it's a chorus waiting to be finished. Sometimes I'll make a mental note of it or write it into my notebook. But in this case, it's bizarre that it took that long to find a home because apparently, it was a fan favorite thing.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "EXIT SIGNS (LEGO 1)")
UMPHREY'S MCGEE: (Singing) I'll shake off. I see the exit signs. I could stay up, but I can't drive.
SIMON: You were ad-libbing some of the lyrics, right?
BAYLISS: Yes, on stage playing the show, I started to hear a vocal melody. So I looked over, and there's literally the red and white exit sign by the back door. I started taking the melody and turning it into lyrically about the exit sign.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "EXIT SIGNS (LEGO 1)")
UMPHREY'S MCGEE: (Singing) If we can't play the parts we've been assigned.
BAYLISS: Then listening back to try and write concrete, real lyrics, I turned that concept in my head into the exit sign of a highway. So it became a couple in a car driving together.
SIMON: Let me ask you, in both the songs, "Concessions" and "Wide Open," you bring up some advice for sharing, don't you?
BAYLISS: (Laughter) Lyrically, yeah. Sometimes I'm just trying to give myself advice, 'cause I don't listen to myself. Maybe I can read it back in the lyrics, and it'll stick.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "CONCESSIONS (LEGO 3)")
UMPHREY'S MCGEE: (Singing) I'm sharing so much free advice. It's not easy to ignore. No one's gonna tell it twice. Thought I'd leave some in the drawer.
SIMON: And Joel Cummins, what's the future for this Lego concept of making an album? Want to try it again?
CUMMINS: (Laughter) Yeah, well, you know, I mean, as far as I know, this is the first-ever album by an artist that has been a complete collaboration with their fans. So I think that we'll definitely have more songs that come this way. But for now, I think, you know, we're going to kind of let it stand on its own as this pretty unique creation.
SIMON: How do you think of that relationship you have with your fans?
BAYLISS: Well, it's interesting because, obviously, without their support, we wouldn't be anywhere. We really owe all the success to them and them having the faith in us, and they keep coming back, and they encourage us to take the risks. So it's a very reciprocal kind of relationship. But there's also, at some points, the line gets a little blurred and you have to remember that as a band, our opinion is - should be the one that we factor in the most. I think when you start catering to a specific formula that works for your fan base, it might backfire eventually because it'll seem like you're just replaying the same old kind of vibes.
SIMON: Well, they depend on you to learn and grow, don't they?
BAYLISS: Yeah, and vice versa. The fact that they want us to improvise and they want us to keep producing new songs and they don't want us to keep playing the same things, it kind of puts us in a really good spot because the funest part is when you have a finished product, and you can look back on something that was once an idea and is now an actual vinyl spinning on a record player at your house.
SIMON: That's Brendan Bayliss and Joel Cummins of Umphrey's McGee. The band's new album, "Blueprints," is out now. Thanks so much for being with us.
CUMMINS: It's been a great pleasure.
BAYLISS: Thanks for having us.
(SOUNDBITE OF UMPHREY'S MCGEE SONG, "DEN (LEGO 2)") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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