If A Story to Cling To is any measure of their potential, Set On Edge are growing up to become gentle giants. Their mild, mollifying music and pleadingly prayerful lyrics go down nice and smooth without being too eager to please. The gentle giant's gentle giant, Glen Campbell, said it best when he sang, "Gentle On My Mind."
I must warn those of my psychologist colleagues who specialize in patients who suffer from anxiety-related conditions. If this EP ever reaches your neck of the woods, and your patients happen to get their hands on it, you may eventually lose them as steady customers. This EP renews the mind as it smoothly soothes and restores the enervated soul. Give patients Set on Edge A Story to Cling To and they may no longer cling to you, forcing you to give up your day job as a shrink. Personally, I'm losing patience and sleep over the doleful prospect of losing my patients to this pocket-sized, circular shrink. It contains more cushion than a Freudian couch, and more healing power than seven shrinkin' Sigmunds.
The question is, just who are these gentle giants who threaten to put us shrinks out of business, and where can we find them? Well, to borrow a line from "The Weaker David," the EP's third track, they are a "work in progress." Early Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, once said "You cannot step in the same river twice, for other waters are ever flowing on." This analogy not only applies to their continually evolving style, but also to the less-than-consistent line-up of band members. Though finding the core band members may prove as elusive an undertaking as the quest to stop Glen Campbell's wanderlust in "My Elusive Dreams," one thing is clear: songwriter/producer/vocalist/guitarist Shannon Lewis is the Magi in the magic. He has the gifts of at least three wise men, and single-handedly possesses the reverence, wisdom, and humility of the original Magi, those three wise men who traveled so far from the far east to offer gifts before the baby king, Jesus Christ. He freely lays down his gifts before the king, and they are abundant. His voice is pristine, passionate, powerful and peaceful. It is harnessed by a trained ear, but emancipated by a heart that pines to draw forever nearer to the fountain of God's grace.
Now I'd like to discuss the remaining members, (or should I say the revolving members in a game of musical chairs)?-- the "c" that, when added to Magi, forms magic. I wish it stood for continuity in band membership, but while it does not, it does stand for something good -- coordination. Each added member's touch reflects protean capabilities. These are obviously extraordinarily talented, hand-picked musicians. Each arrangement is well executed and extraordinarily orchestrated. The magic in A Story to Cling To is made complete by the deft drums of Andy Womack. He doesn't miss a beat and he's got bursting bundles of energy to boot. Andrew Thurston's 7 string bass on "Story" and "The Weaker David" show signs of Herculean strength. Draw Lawson of Red Letter Blonde fills in with fecundity on his fretless bass on "Summertime," a live, bonus track. Steve Rieske's backing vocals on "Story" smoothly and seamlessly ally with Lewis' lead vocals. Together they are bound to win the battle for the heart and soul of every listener. Every trace of Patrick Davis' lead electric and acoustic guitar arrangements puts a graceful face on this musically told story, and beckon the listener to cling tightly to each strum and run. Emily Beam's cellos combine with Daniel Claason's violas to add a comforting, if hauntingly melancholic dimension to the EP's low-key story line.
Lyrically speaking, "The Weaker David" is the strongest link -- thanks, in part, to its soul source of inspiration, Dr. Larry Crabb's book, The Silence of Adam. The rest of the songs flow like prayerful poems, each telling stories of their own. Each song reveals an abiding intimacy between a devoted, if spiritually depleted, disciple and God, the divine source and open-armed recipient of his devotion.
It has been said that every picture tells a story. Though this picture is still in the works, it foreshadows an auspicious, burgeoning tale of triumph. I am eagerly anticipating Set On Edge's next chapter. From what I hear, it will likely take the form of a full-length CD tentatively titled Falling On Deaf Ears. A Story to Cling To has sharpened my hearing, ensuring that my ears will not be among those deaf to their message or to the ongoing story of these gentle giants.
3.5 tocks
Other coverage for this album
Opus 2002Reviewed by Jason MoreheadAllow 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…The Phantom Tollbooth 2002Reviewed by Dan SingletonSet on Edge exudes the same impressions I often get from Phil Keaggy. That is, particular tracks assure the listener the band is talented, but one can't help but wishing Set on Edge would go to that well more often. Like Keaggy, Set on Edge, or at least this album, A Story to Cling To, offers a little too much straight-ahead modern folk blues for artists capable of so much more. The band whets…The Phantom Tollbooth 2002Reviewed by Brian A. SmithThe brainchild of Shannon Lewis, Set on Edge returns with its cast of thousands on the EP A Story to Cling To. At times folky and acoustic, at others laid back and almost jazzy, Set on Edge gives eight songs this time out with themes of maturity, fear, love, and loss. "Passing Into Life" recalls other indie artists such as Mary's Den or First Water, and deals with individual growth, stating that…Similar sounding releases
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