 Keyboardist Zac Lasher on U-Melt’s voice, jamming with moe., and takingbaby steps up the jamband ladder.
One unified voice
In the last year and a half [guitarist Rob Salzer] and I have adopted certain elements of each other’s songwriting styles. I think that’s a good thing because it allows us to create a more cohesive sound. At this point, we are both very composition-heavy and very groove-heavy and we both use lots of jazz harmonics. I think we try to do things which are trange and bizarre and which you wouldn’t normally find in rock music. Our lyrics, especially, have been gelling, and we are starting to write about many of the same subjects independently. I guess it is just a sign that we know each other a lot better than in 2004, but we really inspire each other a lot, which isthe important thing.
The moe. the merrier
Our friendship with moe. has progressed really naturally. We played a show in Syracuse, NY [onApril 2, 2004] and Al Schnier came and sat in with us. After that, Al started to come down and play with us in Manhattan after moe.’s shows Thanksgiving weekend. Then, last year, they invited us to play some of their festivals: snoe.down, Summer Camp and moe.down. moe.down was really great because we played a few sets in the small tent, which allowed us to really get in the groove insteadof just offering a short festival set and Vinnie Amico from moe. sat in. Being sandwiched between moe. and Umphrey’s McGee didn’t hurt either! [laughs] Finally last fall, when Al couldn’t play [due to tendonitis], Rob actually subbed for him onstage at [Sayreville, NJ’s] Starland Ballroom.
 Heady Concepts
Our next album is sort of a concept album. I think the songs are really about being on a journey—or a path—towards spiritual enlightenment. The songs pose questions and in some cases postulate answers about our place in a never-expanding universe, like how we fit in, whether our existence matters in the grand scheme of things, etc... The whole piece is really about a search for the ultimate truth.
Baby Steps
We play a lot of shows and I feel we take these little baby steps up. Youcan feel the difference in terms of the crowd and also the crowd’s energy each show. We are starting to be more comfortable onstage which allows us to take more risks and that’s what jambands do, they take risks. I think a big turning point was when we played our 300th show last year. We debuted a whole crop of songs, like “Ten Hours,” “The Fantastical Flight of CaptainDelicious,” “Question Matters” and “Panacea.” I think that is when everything started to click.
U-Melt will appear at a number of festivals this summer, including Summer Camp, Camp Barefoot, Gathering of the Vibes, Hookahville, Mountain Jam, Wakarusa, the Stonehenge Music Festival and Ashefest 2007.
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