Combining the sounds of Bob Marley and Shlomo Carlebach, yet remaining wholly original, Matisyahu's performance is an uplifting, powerful experience for all in his presence. His new album, Youth, is a compelling mix of ancient and modern sounds and ideas. The propulsive title track, with its rallying cry "youth is the engine of the world," draws upon Matisyahu's studies of Chabad Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneersohn as well as his own tumultuous past. "When teenagers rebel, the reason is because there is something wrong. Not with them, but with the environment around them. That song is about making the transition from being an angry teenager, to actually becoming a grown man or a woman, changing yourself and the system around you."

 

Founded in 1997 in the shadows of the Golden Dome of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, Umphrey’s McGee soon made Chicago home base, and set their sights on becoming one of the premier live acts in today’s touring circuit. Over the course of the last ten years, the band has performed at festivals such as Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza, and continues to sell out shows in the nation’s premier venues coast to coast. They have toured Europe multiple times and performed at Japan’s Fuji Rock Festival in 2006. As their sound evolves with every passing show, the live concerts sold on their expansive music archive site UMLive.net continue to be in high demand by their hungry fan base. The second decade of Umphrey’s McGee is fueled with Mantis in the tank, and the band shows no signs of letting up.