How We Became SetHeads

Welcome to my Chemystry Set tribute page, or perhaps a better title would "How we became SetHeads."

How are you supposed to describe how music makes you feel? How do you accurately put it into words so that others can understand the impact something has had upon you? I'm a big believer that music is one of the things that matters the most in this world. When you're lucky enough to come across something that makes your spirit soar when you hear it, you should stop and acknowledge the fact that you've been fortunate enough to have found something special in your life. This is how my wife Kathryn and I feel about Chemystry Set.

My interest in Chemystry Set began when in the spring of 2003, Dickie Ogden emailed me out of the blue. Dickie had previously been the drummer for one of my all-time favorite bands, Cold Sweat, back in the mid-1990s. The last time we had seen him, was the summer of 1998 when he was working with his friend Bill Shramm who at the time was providing sound for the band Frostbit Blue, prior to returning to SUNY Potsdam to complete his degree in music performance. They played at the Brokedown Palace (Kathryn's father Joe Hammond owned the Palace & we were both working there that summer), and we were pleasantly surprised to see Dickie when they began to unload their equipment. This was the last time we'd seen or heard from Dickie until he decided to send me an email.

After exchanging a few notes, we came to find out that he was living in Oakland, CA and was now playing drums with a band called Chemystry Set, based out of the Bay Area in San Francisco. So of course, both Kathryn and I immediately went to their site and signed up to be on their mailing list. We resigned ourselves that while we could probably never get the chance to see the band, as they were 3,000 miles away, we would be happy vicariously hearing of their adventures through email. Well, we got a note from Sven Eberlein, the Set's guitarist and well-spoken wordsmith telling us of their plans to have a CD release party for their upcoming new album, "The Last Real Experience." (Buy this album on I-Tunes!!)

As fate would have it, Kathryn had decided to travel across country with her sister, who at the time was planning to relocate to San Diego, CA. The dates managed to work out, and she planned to show up and catch the CD release party and say hello to Dickie. Needless to say, he was a bit surprised to see her. She got the chance to meet the band members, and bought a copy of their CD. She flew home and I picked her up at the airport in Syracuse. Within minutes of getting in our car for the drive back home to Ithaca, NY, she was telling me all about having seen the band and we were listening to their CD. Between having seen the band perform the songs live, and also listening to the CD during what was left of her time on the west coast, she was already familiar with the music. This was around the beginning of July of 2003.

We both began obsessing over the CD and tended to sort of steal it back and forth from each other. The music was immediately accessible - melodic, joyous, well-produced and extremely positive. It began to represent something to us; freedom, elation, joy and most importantly, hope. Unfortunately, over the course of July and August of 2003, we were dealt some tough blows, including the deaths of both our beautiful St. Bernard Cassidy who we'd had for eleven years, as well as Kathryn's grandfather who we were very close to. This turned out to be a fairly tough time for us, filled with sadness and grief. One of the main things that helped us both get through this period, was the music on "The Last Real Experience." It just represented the notions of optimism, spirituality and joy that were really missing from our lives during this time. Suffice to say, it helped make a difference for us.

So, to make an already long story a bit shorter, fast forward roughly a year to June of 2004. We planned to return to San Francisco, CA for our vacation, as we'd done in the summer of 2002 (ironically, we were there and didn't know Dickie was living there, or we would have caught up with him then!). We got in touch with Dickie and told him we were coming and made arrangements to contact him when we got out west. Luckily, we had the chance to see him three different times when we were there. One night, Dickie, Kathryn and I went to see Tortoise, and another night Dickie, Patty, Kathryn and I went to see A Perfect Circle. The day we left, we spent part of an afternoon and evening with Dickie and Patty at their home and at McNally's, a great Irish bar near where they live.

Spending the few hours that we did with these two was just amazing. Besides the fact that they're just such great people, it was inspiring to see people that we knew really doing what they wanted to with their lives, and living in such an amazing place. It made it seem like it wasn't all that impossible for us, if we wanted to try to do the same thing. We said goodbye to them and drove to the airport feeling more excited and optimistic than we had in months.

Which brings us up to the present, July of 2004. Chemystry Set had booked a string of dates on an east coast tour, with one of them being at Valentine's in Albany, NY. There was no way that we were going to miss the opportunity to hear them play live. Upon arriving at the bar, the band members were outside, hanging out getting some air. We were expecting to maybe say hello and then just get the chance to hear them play, but much to our pleasant surprise, we got to spend time talking to all of them. This was the first time I'd met the rest of the band outside of Dickie and Patty (Kathryn had met them at the CD release party the year previous). It was like if you could take this magical, beautiful music and personify it in some way, you'd have all of the band members. Sven, Joel and Baba were all very friendly, and genuinely interested to talk. How cool is it when the band whose music you've been listening to compulsively for over a year is happy to hang out and talk to you?? Needless to say, we were both very impressed with their kind and gracious natures, and with how nice they all were.

See the review of the July 16, 2004 show here.

One of the highlights of being there, was being able to purchase a copy of their new CD "Live At The Sweatlodge," recorded on April 24, 2004. (Buy this album on I-Tunes!!) Dickie had said that he'd been working on the production side of things with it when we were out west to visit in June. He played us a small bit of what turned out to be "Cobblestone Below My Feet." I gladly handed Sven my money and excitedly went back over to Kathryn to show her what we were going to be able to take home with us. She was as happy about it as I was. Looking over the tracks listed, it was really cool to see there were a bunch of new songs we hadn't heard yet. New Set music to obsess over!!

After patiently listening to the two opening bands, it was time for the Set to take the stage. Having borrowed amps, and various other equipment for their east coast tour that they hadn't even had the chance to even use, much less test yet, along with not being able to do a proper soundcheck, they began playing. As tends to be the case where local bands open for bands from out of town, by the time the 'foreigners' begin to play, the place had thinned out audience-wise. But, you would have never, ever guessed it based on how they played.

They played each song in their set with a genuine intensity that was just amazing to see and hear. It was a pretty cool way to be introduced to the new songs that were on the CD that we hadn't listened to yet. Technically, this band has chops to spare, and are incredibly tight. And yet, there's room for variety and improvisation that they heartily embrace with gusto. I'd imagine that while the overall song structures remain similar, the songs themselves sound different from gig to gig. As is written in the liner notes of their latest live CD, anything that sounds and is played the same way each time "...is just pop." What an accurate statement.

Hearing extremely talented musicians play on a CD is one thing; to see them playing the same music live, and not only be able to pull it off technically, but also be able to sprinkle in variety and spontaneity within the context of the original songs, is something very special to behold. Anyone can sound like a Rock God in the studio, but to be able to transfer that same passion, both from a technical and musical standpoint, into an amazing live performance, really shows you just what a band is ultimately all about. Watching each of them flawlessly playing their parts was enough to at times just make me laugh and shake my head, wondering "How the Hell do they do that??"

Seeing Baba Ndijhoni play mandolin is really a treat. When their set was done and we were talking to him, I told him that he had completely changed my whole perspective on the mandolin as an instrument on a permanent basis. He was very gracious upon hearing this, but my guess is that he must be told similar things on a fairly regular basis. And how could he not? I'd known that he played mandolin on the album "The Last Real Experience," but more often than not, had a hard time figuring out what parts he was playing. After seeing him play live, I realized that he used a variety of effects pedals and he came at the instrument in a very different way than I'd ever imagined anyone playing the mandolin before. He was nothing short of amazing. Next time that you listen to the song "Think," that kind of odd part after the first chorus is actually him playing all the way up the fretboard with a slide and generating those sounds. That really blew me away seeing him do that live. I will never look at the mandolin the same way again. Baba rocks, end of story. As Sven says while introducing the band on the live CD, "Give it up for Baba."

The rhythm section of the band is nothing short of outstanding. Joel Oppenheimer lays down a solid groove on bass. His sense of timing and musicality are extremely impressive. Hopefully the next time that we get to see them live, I'll have a better vantage point to see him play. I am always impressed right off when I see someone using a five or six string bass. To me, that says, "This guy knows what he's doing & then some." Sure enough, I was more than correct. More often than not, too many bass players just hang back and rely on simple eighth note patterns. Not Joel - he's all over the place & he's superbly tight. Having him come to the front of the stage and look directly at Kathryn and I and sing part of the lyrics to "Think" to us was really, really cool. And he's a helluva nice guy too!

And then there's Dickie, percussionist/drummer extraordinaire. I've seen him play countless times in the past when he played with Cold Sweat and he's never failed to impress. Well, just when I thought he couldn't raise the bar any higher, he went out of his way once again to confirm why he's one of my favorite all-time drummers. His ability to take a stripped down four piece drum kit and make it sound like something twice that size is unbelievable. Watching him play some of his fills, where his arms are nothing but a blur, and hearing how clean and tight he is, is just plain awesome. As I said to Kathryn that night, if I didn't love the guy so much, I'd probably hate him, due to a case of severe drummer-envy. His use of dynamics is wonderful. He can play something light and uplifting, and then turn right around and crush your skull with a powerful flurry of drumsticks and flying appendages. Watching him play, Kathryn said it's almost primal in a sense. Dickie Odgen rules, folks - accept no substitutes.

Sister Sagittarius, more commonly known as Patty Hughes, provides lush melody and aural textures on keyboards. Not only is she extremely proficient at her chosen instrument, she also provides a number of lead and backing vocals as well. Watching her calmly bob her head to the tempo of the music as she plays, she elicits a smooth and steady stream of that classic Fender Rhodes type of sound. From what Dickie told me, she's been playing in bands since she was in high school, and it definitely shows. Her personality is as sweet as the music she makes.

Last and hardly least, is Sven Eberlein, the self-proclaimed "peacemaker." Now I don't know Sven very well, but from everything I'd read from him, and having spent even just a short period of time with him, I'd say this was an accurate title. The songs Sven writes are wonderfully uplifting, from both a musical as well as lyrical standpoint. He strikes me as a proficiently positive person, who is trying to make the world a better place through his music - and I'm here to tell you, that it's working. Now factor in the notion that he also rocks his big body Gibson guitar with precise rhythms and steaming leads, and you have a complete package. After seeing them play live, I felt compelled to specifically thank Sven for writing the song "Think" (which I did, by the way).

So there you have it. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it. Finding a band whose music ends up making some kind of difference in your life is a very lucky thing, I think. Finding a band like this, that's also made up of such real, friendly, warm people is an extra bonus. Listen to Chemystry Set, see for your self. These are five wonderful people who specialize at bringing joy into the lives of those whom they touch. Luckily, we're two of them.

All images are taken directly from http://www.chemystryset.com/ and http://www.ogdenpark.net/

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