The veteran Colorado band that’s long been the “house band” at Michigan’s Electric Forest returned to the region to fire up a capacity crowd at Meijer Gardens on Thursday. Recap, photos.
Kaleidoscopic Incident: Fans young and old got into the spirit of String Cheese Incident on Thursday. (Photo/Derek Ketchum)
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The String Cheese Incident has been jamming away for more than 30 years, with the Colorado band cultivating a devoted legion of Michigan fans thanks to its status as the “house band” for Rothbury’s annual Electric Forest festival.
But after all those years of touring and all those memorable performances in the West Michigan woods, it came as bit of a switch on Thursday when the uber-talented bunch made its first-ever appearance at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, turning the 1,900-capacity amphitheater into a festival-flavored setting filled with genre-melding instrumental wizardry.
Jam fans of all ages turned Meijer Gardens into a playground of sound and color, with longtime followers bubbling with excitement for the chance to see a band they love in the Mitten State.
As the crowd roared, Michael Kang, wearing a camo hat, stepped to the mic to proclaim, “Wow, we had no idea how cool this place was and then we got here and said holy s–t, this is one of the coolest places. Let’s have some fun.”
From there, the band let their instruments do the talking as the August sun shined bright on the sold-out crowd. FMG provided an idyllic backdrop, both in person and streaming live on nugs.net for fans around the world to enjoy this long-overdue visit.
Kyle Hollingsworth’s bright keyboard strokes kicked off the night with “Rain,” followed by bassist Keith Moseley leading “Lend Me a Hand” into an expansive “Colorado Bluebird Sky.” Vibes of peace and love filled the air as guitarist Bill Nershi played barefoot all night, grinning through the grooves. The first set’s energy peaked with “Pirates” before the band gave fans a short break to rehydrate and gear up for more.
The second set opened with Kang picking up his violin to set the tone as the summer sun slowly faded and the crowd bubbled with anticipation of the light show. Nershi brought it back to earth with the bluegrass tune, “Cottonmouth,” and Kang stayed on violin for “Shantytown” as the lights reached full brilliance.
The rhythm section kept the momentum surging all night, with drummer Michael Travis and percussionist Jason Hann locking into thunderous grooves. A standout moment came when Hann broke up the jams with a solo played entirely with his hands, drawing cheers and awe from the crowd. Kang then closed with fiery guitar work that left no doubt about his continually evolving skills on the strings.
Hollingsworth took a moment to mention his new single dropping the next day, teasing future sounds while layering psychedelic joy into the night. The evening ended with some Irish flair during an encore that had the entire amphitheater clapping and jigging along. It was a high-energy finish to a show that felt like a true celebration for the band and the fans.
UP NEXT AT MEIJER GARDENS: CAKE returns to Meijer Gardens on Sunday (Aug. 17). The concert is sold out.
PHOTO GALLERY: The String Cheese Incident at Meijer Gardens
Photos by Derek Ketchum
