String Cheese Incident to Headline Concert

CAA officials say they hope the event will have a strong turnout, adding that measures are being taken to make sure this year's concert runs more smoothly than last year's.

This year's concert will be held Nov. 7 in Memorial Hall. Homecoming weekend is scheduled for Nov. 9-11.

The Carolina Union Box Office will start selling tickets to students Friday, but both students and the general public can buy tickets online starting today, at http://www.stringcheeseincident.com.

Students can bring three extra UNC ONE Cards and get two tickets per card if they buy at the box office. The maximum amount of tickets one student can purchase is six. Tickets will cost $20 each, both at the box office and online.

CAA President Reid Chaney said he is pleased that half of the 1,600 tickets available to hear the bluegrass jam band play will be reserved for students. He also said students interested in the concert should get tickets quickly. "We feel that it will sell out," Chaney said. "The response so far has been very positive."

Chaney said that CAA has been planning for the concert since last summer. He said he hoped that planning for this year's concert far in advance would help avoid the problems of last year's Homecoming.

During the 2000 Homecoming concert -- with headlining performers Outkast -- musicians had to deal with malfunctioning sound equipment, including faulty microphones. Two of the acts scheduled to perform that night declined to play after hearing the sound quality.

Chaney said precautions are being taken for String Cheese Incident's concert to prevent similar problems.

"They're bringing their own people," Chaney said. "If they decide not to, the campus production will take care of it."

Kris Willett, director of this year's Homecoming celebration, said she is excited to get String Cheese Incident to play for this year's Homecoming.

She also said efforts are being made to schedule another concert for Homecoming weekend but that she has no leads on who the band might be.

But Willet said the confirmed band, String Cheese Incident, had recently been featured in Rolling Stone's "What's Hot" section for being a successful new band.

"I have read a lot of buzz about them," Willet said.

"We're hoping that we're getting them on the rise."

The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu.