String Cheese Incident Rules Eugene’s Intimate McDonald Theatre For Two Nights (SHOW RECAPS/PHOTOS)

It is a rare opportunity to be a firsthand witness to a major crossroad in a band’s evolution, especially when the band has been in the music game for 22 years. Fresh off the busiest year of touring that The String Cheese Incident has done in almost a decade, there is much rejoicing in Cheese land as SCI is recapturing the fire and passion that once made them a must see national touring act .

Since returning from their hiatus of 2007, there has been a much more limited and predictable nature to their touring schedule. The formula has seemed to focus on a few high profile summer festivals, and weekend runs around Halloween and New Years Eve. Playing a few shows over a couple month gap has seemed to hurt some of that connectivity and continuity within the music.

Happily, we have begun to see that predictability change, and it is an exciting time for fans of SCI. In the last 12 months, SCI has released their first studio album since 2005, A Song in My Head, and have scheduled a total of 56 shows. During the previous five years, they averaged around 16 shows per year. This drastic increase in touring and studio time indicates a rededication of the band to their music, and the future of Cheese looks great. The String Cheese Incident seem clearly invested in pushing their music farther, and the payoff has been evident on the quality seen in their recent performances.

The second stop on the 2015 Winter Carnival tour takes Cheese through Eugene, Oregon for two nights at the beautiful McDonald Theater. This venue is incredibly intimate, with a capacity of close to 750, and the barefoot boys from Colorado surely delivered for the lucky fans in attendance.

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First Night highlights:

This night will be long remembered because of two monster jams in the second set delivered by two of SCI’s biggest songs – an extended “Rivertrance,” that was delicate at times yet driven and frantic, served as the mid-set musical entre’. “Rivertrance” whipped up the crowd in an Irish-jig inspired frenzy. As the song gained steam, they added an extended jam based off Daft Punk’s dance anthem, “Get Lucky,” that added a funky/soulful groove to the mix. Michael Kang was the MVP for this song, and was in top form for the two night run as a whole. Switching effortlessly between the fiddle and the mandolin, Kang’ soaring leads and multifaceted textures really pushed this song’s fiery limits.

The other song that brought the house down was the set closer of “Texas.” They patiently utilized the tension and release method of building up the energy and speed of a jam higher and higher until the song exploded to completion. Guitarist Billy Nershi’s tale of trouble avoided in a small town in Texas, has long been a fan favorite.

Both songs took new life, were built patiently and with collectively layered grooves, and peaked hard at the end. These songs demonstrate the direct benefit that occurs when musicians hit the road for extended periods and record together more consistently. The musical interplay between all of the members of the band was tight and on point.

Another highlight from this night was SCI’s clear focus on showing off their eclectic musical tastes, by paying homage to some musical inspirations throughout the evening. From the smooth instrumental Latin flow of Jean-Luc Ponte’s “Rhum N Zouc,” to their double Bob Marley homage with “Stir it Up” and “Could You Be Loved,” Allman Brothers Band’s classic rock instrumental “Jessica,” and classic Townes Van Zandt’s bluegrass/country staple “White Freightliner Blues,” SCI really took their time to honor musical inspirations of all sorts this evening, while showing off their own unique chops that carry across widespread musical landscapes.

First night “Almost But Not Quite”

“Joyful Sound” is sometimes a struggle. Even though it clearly is a song meant to spread positivity, it does feel a bit like listening to a lecture. On top of the lyrical lecture, the slow meandering flow of the composition seemed to derail the built-up energy of the set. Lyrically it seems to be the purest of peer pressure song, with a message of either sing along or be silently viewed as a grump. Keith Moseley sings this song with such positive intention, that it almost creates a guilty feeling to not be on the same page with the faithful.

On the positive side, there are always interesting aspects to the song, but it just takes so long to get to those points. Adding a drum/electronica EOTO style jam (led by Drummers Jason Hann and Michael Travis) seemed a bit out of place and made the overall section of the set take longer than usual. This combination of slow and dictating lyrics, to loud rhythmic and electronic beats seemed a bit choppy and out of place for the moment. Altogether this was a bit of an energy drain, but luckily the band didn’t end the set on that note.

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Second Night Highlights:

“The Desert Dawn” in the second set was a rocking monster. There was an intense build up in the jam that exploded back into the crescendo of the reprise, ending the song with an exclamation. Keyboardist Kyle Hollingsworth was on fire during this jam, and led us through a variety of musical landscapes before returning to the familiar refrain.

“The Round the Wheel” in the first set was powerful, and inspirational. Both Michael Kang and Kyle Hollingsworth stood out during the improvisational section of the jam, as they traded leads back and forth to push the pace and groove to completion. At times, it almost feels like this song is SCI’s unofficial anthem.

The second set “Shantytown>Rollover” set closer was another big 1-2 punch that took over half an hour, and explored many musical themes as they took their time, and built upon “Shantytown’s” spooky ethereal flow. The drumming Duo of Travis and Hann really took this opportunity to shine. They laid down a super tight rhythmic groove, that allowed the other members of the band to build off of it, and soar. Considering that “Shantytown” was inspired by the Oregon Country Fair that takes place a few miles away, it was a perfect choice for that slot in the set.

The cover of Roy Hamilton’s “Don’t Let Go” was the final encore of the run and it was glorious. Scott Law added in some of his own searing guitar licks to the mix, and they really took their time in jamming this out. Keith Moseley seems to love to lead an audience through beloved cover songs, and he seemed so happy during the extended version of this classic. This was a perfect encore to end the short but memorable run in the Pacific Northwest.

Night Two – “Almost But Not Quite:”

The flow of the second set was a bit off at times. The mid second set run of New Riders of the Purple Sage’s “Glendale Train” with “Sirens>Drums” was just way too long a period of the set to focus on slower music. It was nice to have Oregon’s own Scott Law sit in on the “Glendale Train”, but the tempo of the songs seemed to suck some of the energy built up during the heat of the “Desert Dawn.” This was not the end of the set, so this small energy hiccup was soon bypassed.

Photos by Greg Homolka