The String Cheese Incident enjoyed a home-state hero’s welcome on Saturday for “The Colorado Incident” at Red Rocks Amphitheatre. The Centennial-State celebration marked the second of three themed concerts on the Colorado-born jamtrongrass fusion group’s annual homecoming weekend run.

After bringing in top talent Dumpstaphunk, George Porter Jr., and Tarriona “Tank” Ball (Tank and the Bangas) on Friday for “The New Orleans Incident“, String Cheese kept things close to home for “The Colorado Incident”. After a glowing introduction from painter and close friend of the band Jack Mento, Cheese oddly kicked off “The Colorado Incident” with a trip to “Texas”. While not loaded with much Colorado significance, the band did deliver a highlight jam on the title track to its 2023 studio album, Lend Me A Hand. Further down the setlist, Cheese brought out its first guest of the night, Dominic Lalli. The Big Gigantic saxophonist lent his horn to a cover of Post Malone‘s “Sunflower”—which Cheese debuted last month at its Electric Forest—and the throwback SCI original “Pack it Up”. Just as Lalli bid farewell, a new challenger emerged as vocalist Liz Oxnard came out to belt Deee-Lite‘s “Groove is in the Heart” and then help close the set by singing and contributing percussion to a roaring “Rosie”.

The String Cheese Incident — “Texas” [Pro-Shot] — 7/13/24

The starting six of The String Cheese Incident—Bill NershiMichael KangKyle HollingsworthMichael TravisKeith Moseley, and Jason Hann—took the stage unaccompanied to kick off set two with a lively “Valley of the Jig”. With the sun set behind the iconic Red Rocks, Cheese was given carte blanche to ignite the dance party with “Roll Around the Sun” before bringing out the third and final guest of the evening, Beats Antiques‘ Dave Satori. The multi-instrumentalist brought with him an electric saz, a long-necked stringed instrument popular in Turkish culture and Beats Antiques’ music, which fit right in on the ensuing “Bhangra Saanj”. Bereft of special guests, Colorado’s native sons of String Cheese handled the rest of the set in-house, catching a “Restless Wind” and going out with two big groupings of “Just One Story” > “The Big Reveal” and “Shantytown” > “Kashmir” (Led Zeppelin) with a dubstep ending orchestrated by none other than Jason Hann. Finally, to cross the midway point of the run, Cheese spread the love with the encore of “Sirens” and a quick reprise of “Just One Story”.

The String Cheese Incident returns to Red Rocks Amphitheatre tonight, July 14th, to finish the run with “The Nashville Incident” featuring Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, and Sierra Hull. Find tickets and a full list of tour dates on the band’s website. Check out a gallery of images from “The Colorado Incident” courtesy of photographer Kit Tincher along with some fan-shot videos from Steam Powered Aerodyne.

The String Cheese Incident — “Lend Me A Hand” > “Betray The Dark” — 7/13/24

The String Cheese Incident — “Let’s Go Outside” — 7/13/24

The String Cheese Incident, Liz Oxnard — “Groove Is In The Heart” (Deee-Lite) > “Rosie” — 7/13/24

The String Cheese Incident — “Valley Of The Jig” — 7/13/24

The String Cheese Incident — “Restless Wind” — 7/13/24

The String Cheese Incident — “Kashmir” (Led Zeppelin) — 7/13/24

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Setlist: The String Cheese Incident | Red Rocks Amphitheatre | Morrison, CO | 7/13/24

Set One: Intro by Jack Mento, Texas, Lend Me A Hand, Betray The Dark, Let’s Go Outside, Sunflower (Post Malone) [1], Pack It Up [1], Groove Is In The Heart (Deee-Lite) [2], Rosie [3]
Set Two: Valley Of The Jig, Roll Around The Sun, Bhangra Saanj [4], Restless Wind, Just One Story > The Big Reveal, Shantytown > Kashmir (Led Zeppelin)
Encore: Sirens > Just One Story (Reprise)

[1] w/ Dominic Lalli (Big Gigantic) on saxophone
[2] w/ Liz Oxnard on vocals
[3] w/ Liz Oxnard on vocals and percussion
[4] w/ Dave Satori (Beats Antique) on electric saz