King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – Nonagon Infinity
3rd May 2024The NAACP Image Awards 2024
4th May 2024String Cheese Incident has earned their place on the jam band scene through tireless touring and strong connections to their fan base. Their dedication to musical creativity extends far beyond just performing live concerts; their efforts help foster community spirit as well as charitable endeavours.
Lend Me A Hand is an example of the band‘s dedication to songwriting as an interactive process.
The Story
The String Cheese Incident rose to fame thanks to their blend of acoustic bluegrass and world music roots, becoming one of the most acclaimed neo-hippie jam bands west of Mississippi. They built up a following among fans who followed them from show to show and created carnival-like atmosphere during festivals hosted by them.
But it was the group’s relentless touring that truly tested them to their physical and emotional limits. As they played for larger audiences, they realized the sonic landscape had begun changing.
And while they remained true to their ideals, there was an emerging sense that this wasn’t just a job or even career – it was becoming their way of life – like what had happened with Grateful Dead before them. Therefore they took steps backward and changed how they lived their lives accordingly; whether this meant temporarily ending musical career altogether or taking some time for reflection is unknown.
The Band
String Cheese Incident has achieved great success following in the tradition of Grateful Dead-inspired rock “jam” bands such as Phish and Widespread Panic by creating an enormous grassroots following for themselves in Colorado. Their music and fans are of primary concern to them; from making shows available for download online early on to opening companies such as ticketing services and fan travel agencies that serve their community, Colorado’s String Cheese Incident have gone the extra mile in their approach to fan service.
SCI has also taken to heart the ideals of hippie culture, cultivating an atmosphere of collective participation at their shows. Fans are invited to squat in the weeds at Red Rocks or decorate venues with hay bales and corn stalks for Horning’s Hideout; thus creating an experience that goes beyond entertainment into pure creative energy.
SCI is an impressive neo-hippy band of former ski bums with impressive corporate acumen. Maintaining control over its destiny takes as much savvy as crafting hot jams does.
The Music
SCI has earned a huge grassroots following over its 30-year existence by being pioneers in music and business innovation, always prioritizing their fans over themselves. Their record label SCI Fidelity was one of the pioneers to embrace downloadable music, while SCI has released numerous live albums from their extensive touring schedule.
Lend Me A Hand is an impressive example of SCI’s songwriting abilities, featuring beautiful lyrics accompanied by Phil Ferlino (New Monsoon). This track explores themes of love, loss and resilience.
Guitarist Bill Nershi and wife Jilian’s warm yet powerful sound immediately draw listeners in, inspiring all musicians and music enthusiasts.
Tours
Over its 30 year career, The String Cheese Incident has cemented itself as one of America’s premier independent bands. Hailing from Colorado and featuring relentless touring schedules across North America and Europe – their performances are famed for being larger-than-life New Year’s Eve and Halloween shows while Bonnaroo, Austin City Limits and Wakarusa festivals among many others have all hosted them as festival acts.
SCI will begin their 2024 summer tour with two Memorial Day weekend shows: Solshine Reverie-the newest expansion of Summer Camp Music Festival-in Chillicothe, Illinois (5/23-5/24) and then CaveJam at The Caverns (5/25-5/26) before hosting Electric Forest Rothbury MI (6/20-6/23 exact dates TBA), before heading back to Stubb’s Bar-B-Q Austin TX for three consecutive nights from November 2nd-4th.
Pre-sales for newly announced tour dates begin Thursday at 1 p.m. ET (no code necessary), with tickets going on general sale Friday morning at 10 am ET.
