By: David Schultz

Over the past decade, Keller Williams has carved himself a nifty little niche as an incredibly creative and inventive live performer. On Dream, his ninth studio album, the man affectionately referred to as the one-man jamband doesn't try to go it alone, choosing to get by with a little help from his friends, including the String Cheese Incident, Bob Weir, Bela Fleck and Victor Wooten. Williams' penchant for looping machines and rotating between various instruments loses it appeal without the accompanying visual. Wisely, Williams doesn't even try to bring his stage show into the studio, working hard to create songs that can stand on their own without the use of any gimmickry.

On stage, Williams showcases his ingenuity, on Dream, Williams features his guitar proficiency, matching licks with banjo great Bela Fleck on "People Watchin,'" and guitar academician Fareed Haque on "Cookies." Williams works in a few of his customary guitar rolls that coast up and down the scale, but also stretches his guitar work to match prodigious masters like Haque, Charlie Hunter and Steve Kimock. His guitar makes up for his limited vocal range, which on past albums tends to manifest itself in a hushed monotone. Although he reverts to the style on "Celebrate Your Youth," and "Ninja Of Love," which features a similarly flat effort from Michael Franti, Williams works admirably to stretch his vocals as well as his guitar.

Intricate guitars plus serious guest stars could be a recipe for pretentiousness but the album's liner notes allieve any worries over Williams' ego: he seems just as amazed as anyone to have assembled Dream's all-star array. Plus, he deflates any astronomical illusions over his technological acumen in describing his amazement over recording with Bela Fleck, Victor Wooten and Jeff Sipe without ever being in the same room.

Williams' finger-plucking guitar style, though entertaining, can wear thin over the course of a few songs. In that sense, the inclusion of the wide array of guest stars gives Williams numerous interesting foils to play off of and keeps Dream from retrenching the same old groove. There's some straight-forward rock on "Play This," an "appeal" for radio airplay as well as some country on "Sing For My Dinner." On the latter, Williams joins his musical cousins String Cheese Incident for a lengthy tune that rotates between up-tempo bluegrass and sweaty, bluesy jamming. While Williams hasn't created a transcendent masterpiece with Dream, he has concocted his most varied, accomplished work to date.

Labels: Bob Weir, Keller Williams, Michael Franti, Steve Kimock, String Cheese Incident, Victor Wooten

By: David Schultz
Photo Credit C. Taylor Crothers via Madison House Publicity

Last summer String Cheese Incident helped organize the Jammy award winning Big Summer Classic, headlining a series of festival-like shows that featured Michael Franti and Spearhead, Umphrey's McGee, New Monsoon, Keller Williams, Xavier Rudd and the Yonder Mountain String Band. While savvy purveyors of the jamband scene were already familiar with String Cheese's touring partners, more casual fans, drawn by the Cheese, received gifts as glorious as Williams' one-man-band stage show and Franti's obsessive-compulsion for asking the crowd how they're feeling. As SCI's fans are well versed in the Grateful Dead, the Colorado sextet finds their roles reversed on their current summer tour with Bob Weir and Ratdog: getting a chance to play for Deadheads who can finally match the Cheese's music to their indelible name.

The sensibility of pairing Ratdog with String Cheese goes beyond the two bands' affinity for extended improvisational jams: String Cheese's traces its origins to the same Americana based music mined with great success by the Grateful Dead. Where the Dead mixed their bluegrass influences with folk, blues and psychedelia, String Cheese keeps their bluegrass heart front and center, often bringing in elements of calypso, Latin music and funk in the same manner the Talking Heads worked those same rhythms into their later work.



Anyone expecting straightforward rock and roll will be initially puzzled by String Cheese Incident's distinct style; probably spending a good third of the show wondering from where the band's plaudits derive. However, once SCI finds their groove, usually within the last third of their shows, they dispel all doubts. Their fusion of seemingly incompatible genres has slowly but steadily attracted a loyal following who thankfully leave the Cheesehead appellation to the Green Bay Packers. Their idiosyncratic sound results from the union of an unlikely group of musicians. Acoustic and lap steel guitarist Bill Nershi makes an unlikely frontman, possessing the skills but not the overblown charisma of your typical band leader. In the absence of a traditional lead guitarist, the versatile Michael Kang fills the role of the virtuoso, primarily playing mandolin and violin. Michael Travis and Jason Hann conjure up a variety of tribal beats and intricate rhythms, teaming up with bassist Keith Moseley to take over a sizable portion of some String Cheese shows. When Moseley's not keeping the beat, he pairs up with keyboardist Kyle Hollingsworth to take the Incident into decidedly Cheese-y directions.

More than just receiving equal billing, String Cheese shared opening duties with Ratdog, even though seniority might dictate that the descendants of the Grateful Dead serve as the headliner. Weir, Nershi and company came to New York City's venerable Radio City Music Hall recently for a pair of performances. A delightfully wonderful venue for jambands, Radio City's cavernous arena has an enormous stage and a breathtaking array of colorful lights installed throughout the hall. For the Thursday evening show, String Cheese began the evening with a lengthy two hour opening set, making great use of Radio City's more spectacular attributes: inviting a pair of artists to paint on stage while skillfully incorporating Radio City's lights within their own to create a trippy, psychedelic atmosphere.

String Cheese opened the Radio City run with some appropriate selections: a cover of Bob Dylan's New York-centric "Just Like Tom Thumb Blues," and the timeless jazz standard "Birdland." The middle portion of the set belonged to Hollingsworth's crunchy, techno-style keyboards and Moseley's pulsing bass, hitting high notes on "Water" and a "Mouna Bowa" which seamlessly (of course) segued into "Eye Know Why." In finishing off the show with "It Is What It Is" and a rollicking, delightfully hillbillyish "Can't Stop Now," Nershi and Kang, who generally plays mandolin and violin, joyously traded guitar riffs; Kang demonstrating a deft proficiency for laying down a catchy guitar riff.

The styles of the two bands meshed well, as did the musicians themselves. Over the course of their dates together, guest appearances were the norm, not the exception. While Thursday's show saw only one small bit of overlap - Michael Travis hurriedly running on stage to join Ratdog drummer Jay Lane on an instrumental segue between "Cassady" and a cover of "Dear Prudence" - Friday night's featured members of both bands popping up left and right during each other's sets. The inclusive spirit embodied on stage spread into the audience; possibly to the disconcertment of Radio City security who may not have been entirely prepared for the single-minded focus of overly-dedicated fans to get close to the stage. After being thwarted by ticket checkers at the aisle, many quickly figured out that they could simply climb over the seats and get as close as they liked. Some may bristle at the ingenious tactics employed by some of the jamband scene's more dedicated participants: muttering the dreaded epithet "hippie" under their breath; for most though, it's simply part of the fun of a show and the reason why a jamband show, even one in such venerated a hall at Radio City, will always remain an experience or as the String Cheese fans would say - an incident.

Labels: Bill Nershi, Bob Weir, Ratdog, String Cheese Incident

Last summer, String Cheese Incident anchored The Big Summer Classic, a month-long tour featuring Keller Williams, Michael Franti and Spearhead, Umphrey's McGee, the Yonder Mountain String Band, New Monsoon and Xavier Rudd, that brought back the spirit of the touring festivals of the sixties. For their innovative efforts, SCI (and the others) were rewarded with a 2006 Jammy for Tour of the Year. While it appears that String Cheese will not revive the Classic this summer, their touring plans for the year are ambitious nonetheless.

The bluegrass influenced jam band, who serve as an inspirational model of self-sufficiency for indie bands, will hit the road on June 24 with Bob Weir & Ratdog for an intriguing double bill. The two groups will remain together for 14 shows over three weeks, playing a weekends worth of shows at Red Rocks in Colorado over the July 4th weekend as well as a pair of shows at New York City's Radio City Music Hall (July 13, 14).

The Cheese will then head to Minnesota where they will team up with old friend Keller Williams to reform The Keller Williams Incident at the 10,000 Lakes Festival in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. From there, the band will head north to Anchorage, Alaska for a pair of shows en route to Japan for the Fuji Rock Festival, where they will be on the bill with the Benevento Russo Duo.

Labels: Bob Weir, Ratdog, String Cheese Incident

At roughly 4:15, Umphrey's McGee, the Indiana based jamband took the stage at the Prospect Park Bandshell as part of the 2005 Big Summer Classic. The crowd, which was baking in the late afternoon sun, greeted the band by producing numerous beach balls and took great delight in batting them about while the band started to groove. The largest, a globelike green beach ball, made its way towards the sound booth and came to rest in an empty row. A squat bald overweight man came over and grabs the ball but rather than send it back amongst the crowd calmly pierces it with his lit cigarette. Fans O the Jamband: Welcome to Brooklyn!!

The Big Summer Classic is this year's top touring jamband festival. Finding its roots in Monterey and Woodstock, the Summer Classic's proper progenitor is the H.O.R.D.E. festivals of the mid nineties. Following the success of Perry Farrell's Lollapalooza concerts, John Popper and Blues Traveler created Horizons of Rock Developing Everywhere. Gathering their musical comrades like The Spin Doctors, Widespread Panic and the Samples, the H.O.R.D.E. festival toured the country spreading good vibes everywhere.

Jamband festivals have maintained their link to their 60's ancestors by fostering social awareness and political activism. War protestors, environmental activists and marijuana decriminalization supporters gather with the purpose of rallying their brethren to support their cause and using the momentum to achieve social change. The politics and beliefs of the crowd were usually echoed back to them by the musicians on stage creating one big communal atmosphere of peace and love. It is in this respect that the Big Summer Classic separates itself. Despite an unpopular ongoing war in Iraq, Michael Franti was the only one to even mention it much less denounce it. The 2005 jamband crowd doesn't seem to want to their groove disturbed by the outside world.

That is not to say that there weren't some relics of the old hippie festivals. Concert goers were encouraged to proceed through the "Karma Wash" in which Karma technicians would ward off the bad vibes from your person through their proficient use of feathers and goodwill. Relix magazine had a prominent presence with spontaneous drum circles erupting between sets by their tent. Most entertaining were the twenty foot high inflatable Sumo wrestlers, the symbols of the tour, that towered over the back of the park grounds. Although there was a good smattering of tie dye, the clothing of choice of today's concert-goer seems to be a simple T and shorts.

Oh yes, there was also some music -- a lot of good music. With the sun beating down on the stage, the early arriving fans fell into two groups: those crushing up against the stage to get as close to the band as possible and those laying back on the lawn in the shade with a beer. As the concert progressed and the sun set, more and more people abandoned the lawn to the get closer to the music.

San Francisco based New Monsoon opened the show to an enthusiastic response. Possibly owing to its brevity, the band's 4 song set, heavy on percussion and middle Eastern rhythms, was the tightest of the day. Amidst band staples Blast and Daddy Long Legs, the band covered Pink Floyd's Echoes in its near 18 minute entirety, creatively employing a balloon and the sides of their drums to achieve the spacey interlude.

Umphrey's braved the mean spirited beach ball popping troglodyte but still played an underwhelming set. Distracting everyone from the music, the band marred their set by bringing out a horde of dancing girls in ill fitting bikinis and fishnet stockings to writhe around arythmically and unsexily.

Michael Franti and Spearhead attempted to enlighten as well as entertain. The Umphrey dancing girls were put to better use as they paraded throughout the crowd with placards containing aphorisms from the likes of Teddy Roosevelt, Alice Walker, Ghandi, Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. Spearhead's set also contributed the only mention of the Iraqi war with Franti exhorting "Bush War 1, Bush War 2, Got a war for me and a war for you" during Everyone Deserves Music's We Don't Stop.

Musically, Spearhead brought the crowd to their feet with reggae infused socially aware songs like Yes I Will and Yell Fire. String Cheese Incident's Michael Kang joined the band halfway through the set, notably contributing his violin to a rousing version of Everlast's What I Got. In a stranger accompaniment, a large muscular gent with black militant shades joined the band -- for a flower arrangement solo, which didn't last long enough as it seemed there were some lilies to add to the mix.

Playing barefoot, Keller Williams brought his unique blend of acoustic guitar mastery and backing audio loops. Onstage, Williams is an overgrown child having fun with all his various bells, whistles and theremin. Like a talented and funnier version of Carrottop, he brings the instruments out at random intervals and adds them to the backing loop. The one drawback to the loops is that it is difficult to tell when Williams is playing and when you are listening to a recording.

Williams uses his technical and musical acumen to great effect and his "one-man band" is truly unique and something to see live. Quite likely, someone will eventually outdo Williams at his own game and gain a larger audience with a similar act. Hopefully, they will have the humility to acknowledge Williams as the progenitor of this inventive mix of man and machine. Until that time though, there is noone else doing this better

His set included his normal batch of eclectic originals as well as covers of Gin and Juice, Candyman and Fly Like An Eagle. The set also contained another standard of the jamband festival -- the seamless transition with the next act. As Williams wound his set down, he was progressively joined by members of the Yonder Mountain String Band. With the whole String Band finally on stage for the Steve Miller closer, Williams finished up, waved goodbye and without stopping the YMSB took off with an hour of their brand of bluegrass and country. The collaborations between the bands continued as String Cheese's Bill Nershi joined the band for last third of their set.

With the sun set, the show was closed by the undisputed headliner of the Classic, String Cheese Incident. While most of the Brooklyn crowd came to see the Cheese, a theory supported by the multitude of enraptured spasmodic arhytymic dancers, they failed to enthrall the entire crowd. String Cheese's studio sound is grounded in bluegrass but onstage their sound is reminiscent of Graceland era Paul Simon fused with an inspired jamheavy Miami Sound Machine with the whole conglomeration seeking Harry Belafonte's approval to use calypso.

This night, the band made some odd choices. In the musical equivalent of sitting LeBron James in the 4th quarter of a close game, Michael Kang, an amazing and inventive violin player, played mandolin and guitar for most of the set. The band was also ill-equipped to tackle their cover of Stevie Wonder's I Wish. Missteps aside, String Cheese does have moments where they command attention and did so during the closing tunes One Step Closer and Search. Frustratingly, the frequency of those moments pales in comparison to their predecessors like the Grateful Dead and Phish.

Bringing back members from Umphrey's McGee and Spearhead, SCI appropriately ended the show with an encore of the Beastie Boys No Sleep Till Brooklyn. Michael Franti came onstage mid song for a little free style before being joined by dancing trees who helped lead the crowd in a chant for MORE - TREES -- IN -- BROOKLYN!

Labels: Bill Nershi, Keller Williams, Michael Franti, New Monsoon, Spearhead, String Cheese Incident, Umphrey's McGee, Yonder Mountain String Band

Indie rock legends The String Cheese Incident will release their fifth studio album, One Step Closer, on June 28, 2005 on their own record label, SCI Fidelity Records.

One Step Closer was recorded at a friend's home in the hills of Colorado's Front Range, and was produced by Malcolm Burn (Bob Dylan, Chris Whitley, Emmylou Harris, Daniel Lanois). SCI says the recording experience proved to be cathartic for the group, and the high and low points of the process are revealed in an accompanying DVD that features 30 minutes of exclusive B-roll footage. The end result: a gritty, free-wheeling and powerfully honed collection of 13 original songs, and a band reborn and re-inspired to continue their legacy as one of today's most visionary and talented rock bands.

Look for The String Cheese Incident to headline the BIG Summer Classic 2005. The traveling festival, which will launch with two shows at Colorado's Red Rocks Amphitheatre on July 2 and 3, will make 14 stops throughout the U.S. during the month of July, visiting such markets as Chicago, New York, and Philadelphia. BIG Summer Classic will feature a rotating cast of some of today's top touring acts, including Keller Williams, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Yonder Mountain String Band, Umphrey's McGee, and New Monsoon.

The complete list of tour dates is as follows:

Sat July 02 Morrison (Denver), CO Red Rocks
Sun July 03 Morrison (Denver), CO Red Rocks
Wed July 06 Milwaukee, WI Summerfest
Thu July 07 Sauget (St. Louis), IL GMC Stadium
Fri July 08 Schaumburg (Chicago), IL Alexian Field
Sat July 09 Schaumburg (Chicago), IL Alexian Field
Sun July 10 Indianapolis, IN White River Park State Park Military Park
Tue July 12 Toronto, ONT Olympic Island
* w/ Xavier Rudd
Wed July 13 Ottawa ONT Cisco Systems Bluesfest
* w/ Xavier Rudd
Fri July 15 Richmond, VA Amphitheatre at Richmond Raceway Complex
Sat July 16 Masontown, WV All Good Family Picnic
Sun July 17 Cuyahoga Falls (Cleveland), OH Blossom Music Center
Tue July 19 Rochester, NY High Falls
Thu July 21 Brooklyn, NY Keyspan Park
Fri July 22 Philadelphia, PA Festival Pier @ Penn's Landing
Sat July 23 Mansfield (Boston), MA Tweeter Center for the Performing Arts
Sun July 24 West Haven, CT Yale Field

Labels: String Cheese Incident