A generous helping of Cheese and jam.

Byline: Serena Markstrom The Register-Guard

CONCERT PREVIEW The String Cheese Incident What: Bluegrass-heavy improvisational Opening: Railroad Earth When: 6 p.m. today and Saturday and 4 p.m. Sunday Where: Cuthbert Amphitheater, 555 Day Island Road Tickets: $35 per day; three day pass for $91

AFTER-PARTY PREVIEWS

Liquid Soul Information: 10 p.m. today, Luckey's, 933 Olive St., $5

Reggae and hip-hop DJ; the Latenight Freakout Odyssey Information: 10 p.m. today, band starts at midnight, Diablo's Downtown Lounge, 959 Pearl St., $6

The Panjea Allstars Information: Midnight Saturday, McDonald Theatre, 1010 Willamette St., $13 advance, $15 door

Zilla Information: 9 p.m. Monday, WOW Hall, 291 E. Eighth Ave., $12 in advance, $15 door

True fans of the String Cheese Incident are undaunted by the idea of devoting an entire weekend to immersing themselves in three of the band's famed "incidents."

You might even consider the entire weekend one protracted incident, only without the overnight camping.

When asked about the genesis of the late-developing three-day run at Cuthbert Amphitheater, guitarist Bill Nershi said the band wanted to continue its tradition of having a show in Oregon. And Horning's Hideout, west of Portland, stopped being a viable option.

"We were searching for a place and Cuthbert seemed like a really good idea," he said when reached at his hotel room just before sound check for an evening gig at Radio City Music Hall in New York. "Playing up in that region in summer has become a tradition for us.

`It's something that we look forward to every year."

The truly hardcore will have chances to supplement the three main shows at Cuthbert with after-parties at smaller indoor venues.

The truly in-the-know already caught a free show Thursday at CD World by Railroad Earth, the band opening the concerts today and Saturday.

String Cheese member Mi- chael Kang has taken to touring with his buddy Chris Berry, whose band Panjea will swell to include Cheese's Jason Hahn. Hahn, like Kang, will pull a double shift Saturday to perform with the Panjea Allstars late-night at the McDonald Theatre.

Percussionist Michael Tra- vis will perform with his side project, Zilla, on Monday at the WOW Hall. Zilla offers a very different sort of improvisational music than what Travis has been playing with String Cheese since that band started out in Colorado 13 years ago, swapping gigs for lift tickets at ski resorts.

Nershi said String Cheese doesn't usually play songs from side projects at main shows. But the members' ancillary gigs contribute to the sound because they venture out, learn new things, then bring that back into the mix.

Bluegrass, calypso, salsa, Afro-pop, funk, rock and jazz are all routinely melted into the band's fondue for a recipe fans believe is original. The band itself has described the blend as "sacrilegious."

The critics get on board

Prior to the String Cheese Incident's most recent album, 2005's "One Step Closer," mainstream critics weren't all that impressed with this jam band. Still, it grew in popularity and gained a reputation for original live shows that attracted passionate followers with their own set of quirks and tradi- tions.

Hula hoops are still a ubiquitous sight at SCI shows, all the better to encourage that wild "noodle" dancing. And for "One Step Closer," even the critics seem to have joined in the dance. They praise the album's tightly written and expertly performed original songs, which all members contributed to writing.

String Cheese always has run as a collective or democracy, but from the beginning, Nershi was the band's primary songwriter. Nershi's song "Big Compromise," about band interaction, is often cited in reviews as an example of the band's new direction.

To record the album, they secluded themselves in a house in the mountains, holed up with producer Malcolm Burn in a process reminiscent of the one the Band used to produce "Music From Big Pink" in 1968.

"The result is a strong body of compositions that range from heartfelt love songs to fairly esoteric reflections, usually performed as cohesive shuffles in a jam band groove," the All Music Guide writes in its four-star review of the album.

"No doubt (the songs) will be explored and extended further in concert."

Nershi assured that the jam tradition is intact, including with the latest crop of songs.

As it had done in the Horning's Hideout shows, Peak Experience will add drama and flair to the occasion (expect, according to the Peak Web site, `Where the Wild Things Are' meets Area 51 with a hint of `A Midsummer's Night Dream").

"The event is designed for people who are going to go to (all three shows)," Nershi said. `Every night will have a different personality for sure.'

New Jersey's Railroad Earth will open the first two shows. Cheese will go it alone on Sunday, Nershi said, including an acoustic bluegrass set.

"There's going to be festivities and eye candy," Nershi said. `It's going to be a festival atmosphere.'

You can reach Serena Markstrom at 338-2371 or e-mail her at [e-mail].