Incubus, one of Santa Barbara’s favorite live bands, returned to the Santa Barbara Bowl on July 15, on a beautiful, crystal clear Friday summer night.

The hastily arranged concert, which was not part of a national tour, quickly sold out when the show was announced. In fact, there wasn’t even time to find an opening act to play the scheduled 7 p.m. starting time. Consequently, fans waited patiently, chatting, eating and drinking, and savoring the summer twilight, until the band finally arrived on stage just after 8 p.m.

Led by singer Brandon Boyd, the band wasted no time, launching straight into a string of some of their biggest hit songs. The band has always been a maverick of sorts, selling more than 100,000 copies of their first album, Science, virtually by word of mouth alone — with no help from radio stations or MTV.

The band has had a long love-hate relationship with MTV, which, after ignoring the band’s early work, used its song “Privilege” on MTV Sports PlayStation releases. Subsequent music videos followed until the band released a video for their 2003 “Megalomaniac,” which MTV viewed as an attack on then-President George W. Bush and banned the video. But by then, the band had become too popular to control and had a subsequent Grammy nomination, multiplatinum album sales and a much-publicized break with Sony.

Through it all, the band continued to grow musically and emotionally, and each subsequent album offered a new layer of sound and compelling lyrics. In 2003, bassist Ben Kenney of The Roots fame joined the group, adding a new funky layer to the music. His hip-hop sound is reminiscent of master Les Claypool at times.

Much like their last appearance at the Santa Barbara Bowl, two summers ago, the band played a compelling set, traveling through the time line of their rich catalog of material. Original drummer Jose Pasillas II and guitar player Mike Einziger laid down seamless rhythms, belying their strong ties and taking them all the way back to high school.

Chris Kilmore, with the band since 2003, added layers of keyboards and turntable skills, melding the complex music into new and adventurous territory. Kenney changed up the beat and at times seemed to lead the direction of the music.

The 95-minute set, ending well before the 10 p.m. curfew, actually seemed like it was much longer. This may have been partly because of the fact that many of the band’s favorite hit songs are short, four- or five-minute pieces, and that the band wasted little time bantering or tuning on stage and delivered the string of hit songs in lightning fashion.

A massive video screen mixed artsy music videos with high-definition live shots of the band, shot by a small army of competent cameramen. Add to this a stadium-ready light show and sound system, and the show became a multimedia extravaganza, captivating everyone’s attention in the crowd — all the way to the back rows.

Incubus often reminds me of an early R.E.M., in the way that lead singer Boyd blends complex lyrics into a trance-like dance, synchronized to an ever-changing rich atmosphere of sound that the band produces. In fact, Scott Litt, the producer for some of R.E.M.‘s best-known albums, took an interest in the band early on and helped them produce 1999’s album Make Yourself, including the hits “Drive” and “Stellar.”

But the band combines other elements of rock music that stretch from Pink Floyd, such as grandiose tracks, to funky Red Host Chili Peppers-type jams, all mixed into their unique sound. It is Boyd’s brilliant trademark vocal style that is the signature of the band, however, and is instantly identifiable on hit after hit of recorded songs. Just like he has done several times before, at the Santa Barbara Bowl, Boyd led the creative flow with a unique and impeccable voice and trance-like dancing that still seems to leave him possessed by, well, maybe an Incubus.

Setlist

Megalomaniac
Wish You Were Here
Pardon Me
Have You Ever
Glass
Consequence
Anna Molly
Promises, Promises
Circles
In the Company of Wolves
The Original
I Miss You
Drive
Under My Umbrella
When It Comes
Adolescents
A Crow Left of the Murder

Encore

The Warmth
Nice To Know You

— L. Paul Mann is a Noozhawk contributor. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk or @NoozhawkNews. Become a fan of Noozhawk on Facebook.