A Story To Cling To by Set On Edge (Review)

Allow me a pretentious rock critic oversimplification, if only for the purposes of this review. While walking around the campgrounds at this year’s Cornerstone festival, it seemed as if there were, in fact, two festivals going on. On one side of the river of dirt that passes for the campgrounds’ main road, a motley assortment of pop-punk, hardcore, and rapcore bands duked it out for the attention of one youth group after another. Meanwhile, the kids worked hard to see which one could be more “rock” than everyone else, what with all of the tight thrift store t-shirts, multi-colored hair, rock fingers, and slamming into each other (i.e. dancing).

On the other side of the road, a second, quieter festival was happening. However, instead of youth groups, we had JPUSA kids, hippies, and people more predisposed to patchouli, Birkenstocks, and drum circles than spiked bracelets and Chuck Taylors. Oh, and basically everyone over 30. The bands seemed to encourage a strange behavior, as dozens and dozens of crowdmembers linked arms and danced away into the night. And everyone seemed so darned happy. It was a surreal experience to the say the least, ranking right up there with the legless man at the Soul-Junk show a few years back.

(Now excuse me while I remove my tongue from my cheek before proceeding on with the rest of the review.)

From the very first listen, it’s obvious that Set On Edge would blend much better with the “second” festival. That’s not to be snide or anything; there’s nary a drum circle on the album, and I have no idea of the bands’ liking for patchouli. But their folk-driven blend of acoustic rock, blues, and jazz would clearly be a stronger hit there (as opposed to one of the Encore Tents). Indeed, their music, despite the introspective look of the lyrics, seems better suited for outdoor concerts, where people in the crowd can praise, dance, or sing along to their hearts’ content.

With obvious nods to groups like Vigilantes of Love, Over the Rhine, and Counting Crows, Set On Edge’s music has its base in rock n’ roll. However, the group (made up of a constantly revolving membership) funnels it through acoustic guitars, the lovely moan of the Hammond, and deft piano and string flourishes.

Over it all are the vocals of singer/songwriter/bandleader Shannon Lewis. And this presents the album’s great hindrance for me. Words like “impassioned,” “dynamic,” and “emotional” are sure to accompany any description of Set On Edge’s music. And Lewis’ voice is definitely powerful and clear. Unfortunately, I often found myself waiting for a subtler, more restrained vocal approach on many of the songs.

During some tracks, Lewis’ vocals actually obscure the lyrics, especially the stilted, chopped delivery on “Passing Into Life.” His vocals can overdo it at times, feeling decidedly at odds with the delicate, introspective nature of many of these songs (the chorus of “A Story To Cling To,” for example). However, the vocals do feel perfectly suited for “Summertime,” a Gershwin cover that finds Lewis adopting a deep, swaggering voice. But I have a sneaking suspicion the cover is slightly tongue-in-cheek, simply because Lewis goes so over the top at times. Also, “4 A.M.” finds Lewis tempered by the sweet voice of Brittney Norris. Working together, their vocals enable the song to hit the emotional point that other tracks on the EP strive for so much, but never quite seem to reach.

I find it slightly ironic that the album’s most compelling track is its one instrumental, “To The Woman Whose Husband Will Never Come Home.” A haunting piano piece reminiscent of Linford Detweiler’s solo work, it perfectly echoes the sorrow and longing implied by its title without lyrics or a dynamic vocal delivery. I find myself looking forward to this track the most every time the CD starts up.