Spring Break
Band built on word of mouth, continuing to grow
Craig Bidiman
Issue date: 1/9/09 Section: Diversions
What started five years ago as a glorified solo project has turned into a house party favorite. Now, chemicalwarbear has been representing Corvallis as a full band for more than two years.
Brainchild of guitarist-vocalist, Gabe Norris, chemicalwarbear has been working hard to establish its new name, adopted last April. Norris recorded his earliest album, "Sincerely Goodbye," while finishing his senior year in high school. He played solo and acoustically for several years after that, leading him into college where he established himself as a solo artist.
Rounding out the band is Ben Collins on bass (formerly of Wolves Bound for Rome), Cole Fingerut on guitar and Kaycee Kay (of I Never Heard the Bullet, formerly of Wolves Bound for Rome) on drums.
The biggest challenge the band has had to face is the ever-present difficulty of changing a name. Going from their songwriter's locally known moniker, the group has been working hard to create their own style and function as a cohesive unit.
"We started off playing all of Gabe's songs but with a full band," Collins said. "Then we started writing together, which was turned out to be really easy because we are all best friends."
Trust is a major part of the group as well.
"I asked Cole to be in the band without even having heard him play guitar before," Norris said. "It was just one of those random things that wound up working out in the end once we jammed together."
Norris, an online-ordained minister, wanted the group to focus on creating music that wasn't trying to imitate anything.
"My point of us becoming a band was that we weren't going to try to copy anybody," Norris said. "I know everybody says that, but in reality it is real hard for some kids to foster that creativity to be original."
Norris started writing songs in high school and has matured into writing about a number of personal experiences after he found that songs written by the band Minus the Bear weren't based on real-life events, but merely a novel-project by the band.
Brainchild of guitarist-vocalist, Gabe Norris, chemicalwarbear has been working hard to establish its new name, adopted last April. Norris recorded his earliest album, "Sincerely Goodbye," while finishing his senior year in high school. He played solo and acoustically for several years after that, leading him into college where he established himself as a solo artist.
Rounding out the band is Ben Collins on bass (formerly of Wolves Bound for Rome), Cole Fingerut on guitar and Kaycee Kay (of I Never Heard the Bullet, formerly of Wolves Bound for Rome) on drums.
The biggest challenge the band has had to face is the ever-present difficulty of changing a name. Going from their songwriter's locally known moniker, the group has been working hard to create their own style and function as a cohesive unit.
"We started off playing all of Gabe's songs but with a full band," Collins said. "Then we started writing together, which was turned out to be really easy because we are all best friends."
Trust is a major part of the group as well.
"I asked Cole to be in the band without even having heard him play guitar before," Norris said. "It was just one of those random things that wound up working out in the end once we jammed together."
Norris, an online-ordained minister, wanted the group to focus on creating music that wasn't trying to imitate anything.
"My point of us becoming a band was that we weren't going to try to copy anybody," Norris said. "I know everybody says that, but in reality it is real hard for some kids to foster that creativity to be original."
Norris started writing songs in high school and has matured into writing about a number of personal experiences after he found that songs written by the band Minus the Bear weren't based on real-life events, but merely a novel-project by the band.
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