reCAP :: The String Cheese Incident :: 2014.11.11
There is quite an interesting dynamic happening at The Capitol Theater throughout the month of November! What began on Halloween night with the first weekend of a month long residency of Phil Lesh & Friends – with a different band line-up each weekend – continued this Tuesday night with a highly energetic performance from Colorado’s String Cheese Incident (SCI), the first in a two-night stand from the band. Also, there’s a number of performances that really capture the venue’s legacy, yet at the same time push it forward with progressive leaning bookings from the likes of not only SCI but also fusion jazz legend Pat Metheny and Australian rockers John Butler Trio. In another nod to the venue’s history, an all star line up of musicians from all genres of music will present a celebration and reinterpretation of The Band’s The Last Waltz, before the month culminates where it began, with Lesh bringing his residency to a close. Certainly a November to remember here at The Cap!
SCI has been performing together since 1993 and are proven masters of live performance, evidenced by a packed crowd in a sold out performance. Anything good is worth waiting for – and SCI made the horde of fans wait – beginning the show at 8:42 p.m. instead of the scheduled earlier start time, with quite a few rousing cheers of anticipation building and arising from the crowd at several moments throughout the wait. It was a wait that was well worth it however, and with a “Hello New York” from vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Michael Kang, the band rolled into the instrumental opener “Birdland” as a stirring, upbeat soundcheck.
The band had heard of the venue’s history and reputation, and was proud to finally have the chance to perform here, as both lead vocalist/guitarist Billy Nershi and bassist/vocalist Keith Moseley remarked early in the performance. On “Sometimes a River” Nershi performed on a lovely electric guitar for the first electric solo of the night, a mark of just how far this former bluegrass acoustic picker has come as a guitarist over the years. It also highlighted fine vocal harmonies amongst Nershi, Kang and Moseley. “Indian Creek” found organist Kyle Hollingsworth leaning heavily into his keyboard, raising a swelling church organ dirge, while Kang plucked at an electric mandolin and mimicked the instruments tone with vocal chants and calls. The title track to the band’s most recent studio recording, , “Song In My head”, was the only cut off to be played on this evening. As the staccato vocal chorus built to a soaring crescendo, Nershi could be seen waving his hands in circles around his head, clearly enjoying the rush of back and fourth energy amongst the fans and the band.
Set two of the night began with a rolling bass line from Hollingsworth that slowly glided into “This Must Be The Place (Naïve Melody)”, a Talking Heads cover and a nod to Jerry Harrison, producer of the band’s most recent studio session. Here it was easy to get enveloped in the oceanic feeling of the moment, as deep hues of magenta and jade were splashed against the backdrop that resembled underwater plant life, while still more dark colors lit the theater architecture above the heads of the crowd. Throughout the evening, the lighting was spectacular.
The band moved into dark and spacey progressive rock in the second set, showing just how far the sextet has come from their early nineties incarnation as a bluegrass picking acoustic band. Kang’s “Valley of The Jig” is mixed tracey, house music styled beats with Celtic fiddle playing. It’s an odd amalgamation of musical styles that shouldn’t work, but somehow brings out a tribal-tronic dance element from the band that draws extremely high energy and gyrations from an enthralled crowd. Situated on the general admission floor amongst a throng of captivated fans and the swaths of candescent colors amidst the venue walls and décor, it’s nearly impossible not to be taken to otherworldly headspaces.
Hollingsworth again lead the band into “Joyful Sound” with a rumbling bass line intro, and when his vocal line came around about “…and play a fat bass run,” it was indeed a joyful sound as the crowd sang along in unison on the chorus, “Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Naaaaaaa....” Even more joyful was SCI’s nod to the venues history, as they segued right into The Grateful Dead cover “Shakedown Street,” a rarely played nugget that absolutely raised the roof of the theater. Unlike the Dead’s original however, SCI’s rendition at the Cap was far more progressive leaning, with deeply resonating tribal beats and thunderous rhythms courtesy of Michael Travis and Jason Hann. Sad to say however, though he is in New York, there was no Phil Lesh sit in on this evening. Closing out the show just beyond the midnight hour, “Restless Wind” brought the evening to a poignant and soulful close, featuring lovely soling from each of the band members.