The String Cheese Incident Kick-Off North Carolina Tour Opener with Debut of Kyle Hollingsworth’s “Carnival”

Photo: Larry Hulst

The String Cheese Incident kicked off the spring leg of the latest series of live dates on the Greenfield Lake Amphitheater stage in Wilmington, N.C., on Wednesday, May 14. The midweek concert served as the band’s first gig since their March tour closer on the West Coast and subsequent festival participation at Shamrock Rebellion in Tempe, Ariz. 

During last night’s fortified return, the band added a new song to their repertoire, borrowing it from keyboardist Kyle Hollingsworth’s solo archive and positioning it in the sixth position during set one. Prior to the first time play for the collective, they found the concert’s footing on “Vertigo” before turning their attention to a pairing of “Black and White” into “Dudley’s Kitchen.” 

The band continued to work through original material, including a tale told to the cotton picker’s daughter on “Cottonmouth.” Next, they time traveled some 20 years back to birth 1998’s ‘Round the Wheel cut, “MLT.” SCI positioned the night’s debut next, working through the Hollingsworth original, “Carnival,” which struck a jovial spirit akin to the high-energy aura the Colorado crew is known for. Hollingsworth’s tune was recorded in the studio and delivered as an independent single in 2024. Listen here.

From the depths of the new number, the band seized a combination of “Rollover” and “Valley of the Jig,” which took them into a set break. Upon their return, String Cheese Incident followed up with a myriad of originals that nodded to different eras of their 30+ year tenure, before finding an exit after the night’s encore, a cover of Bob Dylan’s “The Mighty Quinn (Quinn, The Eskimo).” 

SCI will resume their touring trajectory tonight. They will make one final appearance on the Greenfield Lake Amphitheater stage in Wilmington, N.C., before switching locations. For tickets, visit www.stringcheeseincident.com.

For those unable to attend tonight’s concert in person, a livestream is available via nugs.net.