The String Cheese Incident is definitely a jam band. But being a jam band has its rewards – namely, the reputation for being stellar in concert.

Although categorizations like these almost always generate negative stereotypes, the String Cheese Incident has been able to transcend them, creating innovative music.

Almost a year after the release of “Outside Inside,” the band’s fifth studio effort on their own record label, SCI Fidelity Records, The String Cheese Incident will be returning to Columbus to play Veteran’s Memorial Auditorium this evening.

“I remember at one point I was listening to the band play, thinking, ‘This show is amazing,’ ” said producer Steve Berlin in a statement. Berlin worked with The String Cheese Incident on “Outside Inside.”

Fans will be treated to the same mix of bluegrass, funk, calypso, rock, salsa and jazz they’ve come to expect from the band. These styles will all be incorporated into meandering and soulful improvisational jams spanning a wide range of emotions for the entire night.

“When I saw them live, it struck me that they listened really hard and worked off each other in a way that is really cool,” Berlin said. “They don’t mind working hard to get someplace and they don’t mind experimenting to see what else is out there.”

Although The String Cheese Incident silenced critics last year with “Outside Inside,” proving the band’s musical prowess could be transferred from the stage to the studio, the buzz this year is entirely different.

Following in the footsteps of such notable artists as Pearl Jam, this year’s tour, aptly titled “Spring Cheese 2002,” will be recorded and released.

The project, which is called “On the Road,” was developed to allow fans greater access to the band’s live material. Like most jam bands, The String Cheese Incident allows audience members the privilege of freely recording and trading audio versions of all performances.

But because all fans don’t have the technical knowledge, equipment and time to go on the road with the band to document the unexpected musical twists and surprises, the band is doing all the work.

For each show during the band’s tour, The String Cheese Incident will release a three CD recording covering the entire performance. The only exceptions will be unexpected technical difficulties and venue restrictions.

Fans can pre-order individual shows, groups of shows or the entire tour by visiting The String Cheese Incident on the Web at www.stringcheeseincident.com.

The band, whose 1996 debut “Born on the Wrong Planet” pushed them into the ranks alongside such legendary artists as the Grateful Dead, got its start in 1993 in the mountains of Colorado.

After 1997’s “A String Cheese Incident” and 1998’s “‘Round the Wheel” solidified the group’s reputation for being a creatively experimental band, The String Cheese Incident did what any other jam band would have done – they released a live album.

But while 2000’s “Carnival ’99” wasn’t as powerful as some – namely the Allman Brothers Band’s live epic “At Fillmore East” – the String Cheese Incident received critical acclaim and started attracting a constantly expanding fan base known as “pirates.”

In addition to gaining enough momentum to begin headlining their own tour, the band has had the privilege to open shows for artists such as Bruce Hornsby, Little Feat and Bob Dylan, many of whom have joined the String Cheese Incident on-stage.

Like all respectable jam bands, The String Cheese Incident is out to prove that they won’t be denied the ability to have fun and create unparalleled music at the same time. “Spring Cheese 2002” rolls into Columbus at 7:30 p.m. tonight at Veteran’s Memorial Auditorium. All tickets are $27.50 and are available at all Ticketmaster locations and the Veteran’s Memorial box office.