I’m not sure why this band of former Colorado ski bums came up with its name, but it seems apt to me. String cheese is a bland snack with a little protein, a little fat, very little taste, in a form that’s attractive to children and those with unsophisticated palates.
The String Cheese Incident is a jam band, part Poi Dog Pondering, part Grateful Dead. They play a pleasant mix of funk, ska, reggae and generic rock with all kinds of rootsy influences. Four of the five members write songs and apparently sing too, though their individual contributions aren’t listed.
Outside Inside runs from the funky, organ-driven title track to the Tex-Mex influenced two-step of “Up the Canyon,” full of mandolin and accordion, with one lengthy detour for “Rollover,” an 11-minute jam about transformations, that swings from Latin beat to reggae and back again several times.
Throughout, the musicianship is impeccable if not terribly inventive. Bill Nershi is versatile on guitar, from the gritty slide of “Sing a New Song” to the funky wah-wah of “Black and White” and a searing electric solo on the opening title track. Kyle Hollingsworth coaxes a range of sounds and moods out of the organ, piano, electric piano and accordion, and Keith Boseley and Michael Travis lay down a steady and danceable beat on bass and drums.
Two strong tracks are instrumental: “Drifting” by Nershi is a pleasant acoustic guitar tune that lives up to its title, and Hollingsworth’s “Latinissmo” is a piano-driven Cuban-style ditty.
Lyrically, it’s all hippified lightweight platitudes and bland, zen-like peace-love-and-groovy nonsense. Moseley semi-raps gems like “I’m gonna aim for the sky/keep my feet on the ground/raise my voice to the heavens/make a joyful sound” on “Joyful Sound.” Hollingsworth intones “Open your mind, take the time to learn from your soul” on “Close Your Eyes.”
I can’t really recommend “Outside Inside” or the String Cheese Incident based on this recording. Quite possibly, like the Dead SCI is a band best experienced live. But if you’re curious about their other CDs, their Dead-like tape network or want to find out more, the band has an extensive website (http://www.stringcheeseincident.com) with lots of videos, information and opportunities to buy stuff.
(SCI Fidelity, 2001)
