UPDATE 1/29: String Cheese has shared pro-shot video of their New Years countdown, with “Lands End” into “Glory Chords.” Enjoy folks!
Of all the musical events happening in Colorado on New Years, arguably no band has a more prestigious reputation in terms of production, creativity and musicianship as the String Cheese Incident. Known for their opulent displays of acrobatics and incredibly psychedelic lights and costumes, SCI has been steadily raising the bar for their New Years eve performances. Playing the holiday at the 1STBANK Center in Broomfield, CO for the third year running, the band showcased their talents at the big stage.
The crowd was treated to three full sets of Cheese, with no support, playing many crowd favorites right from the beginning with the opener, “Black Clouds,” followed by an early “Smile.” The show included a handful of selections from Song In My Head, including “Let’s Go Outside” and “Can’t Wait Another Day.” The steadily increasing energy and groove throughout the first two sets gave way to a transcendental experience when the ball dropped, when the energy burst at the seams and briefly turned the venue into a chimerical combination of a jam band show and Cirque Du Soleil.
Aerial artists resembling butterflies clad in shiny costumes glided from the rafters high above, dinosaurs rose from under the ground on LED dance floors, and a gigantic psychedelic Lotus Flower blossomed from the center of the ceiling, shedding flashing multicolored lights on the expansive sea of large pupils and dropped jaws. An array of pregnant nets of confetti and balloons which likely comprised the whole stock of all the Party City’s in the Front Range area let loose from the ceiling, and with all the commotion it wasn’t entirely clear whether the explosions I was hearing were balloons popping or actual cannons going off.
Right after midnight, the band played an incredible cover of Kool And The Gang’s “Celebration,” featuring the enchanting Liza Oxnard on vocals. The vintage covers and the uttering mind-blowing stage production crossed generations, and gave one a keen sense of how special the music scene we are all a part of is, and the incomprehensible directions that it branches out into with every passing year.
Faced with the seemingly impossible task of winding down from such a transcendental spectacle, the band jumped into the groovy Song In My Head tune, “Rosie.” They continued with two SCI classics, Paul Simon’s “Late In The Evening,” and the band’s traditional masterpiece, “Rivertrance.” They kept things going, finishing off their third set with one of their most celebrated covers, the Talking Heads’ “This Must Be The Place.” The song led into the original, “Just One Story,” which put a cap on nearly four-hours of genre melding bluegrass carnival spectacular.
For an encore, the guys returned to the stage to play “Bollymunster” and “Good Times Around the Bend,” alluding to the optimism we all felt after starting our year in such an incredible way. With nearly the whole crowd singing in unison, the venue felt as if it were about to explode (maybe from the cannons?…) from the sense of love and community that Cheese provides, and reminded me of why the crowd at Cheese shows seem to continually be the most collectively good hearted and friendly group of fans on the festival circuit.
It’s no coincidence that SCI has been able to carve out such a unique niche for themselves in American culture over the past 20+ years. They have broken down the borders of genres in a way that no other band has, artfully combining bluegrass and crunchy electronica into one genre-bending song. Their individual talent and unmistakable chemistry has earned them the reputation of being some the most proficient musicians on the scene.
Perhaps most important of all, Cheese has provided people with a sense of communion and love that you just don’t find enough of these days, and some fans say that the Cheese family is the one they identify with the most. Looking back during the show at the seemingly endless exchange of high fives, hugs and optimism, you realize that Cheese is giving something really special to people, the kind of good energy that will undoubtedly help transform this world into a better place in 2015.
Happy New Year Music Lovers!
[All Photos by Cody Deel]
Setlist from 1STBANK Center, 12/31
Set One: Black Clouds, Smile, Let’s Go Outside, Sweet Spot, Water > Kinky Reggae > On The Road
Set Two: Can’t Wait Another Day, Miss Brown’s Teahouse, Desert Dawn, I’m Still Here, Way Back Home > Fool In The Rain > Way Back Home > Jellyfish > Desert Dawn
Set Three: Don’t It Make You Wanna Dance, Land’s End, Glory Chords > Celebration w Liza > Rosie, Late In The Evening, Rivertrance, This Must Be The Place > Just One Story
Encore: Bollymunster, Good Times Around The Bend
[Via Friends of Cheese]
