As a musician, philosopher and eater of Chinese food, Chris Chandler is, simply put, well... something else.
Born in Des Moines, IA on July 31, 1979, Christopher Edward Chandler has been a mere bump in the road of the Des Moines musical scene for many years. He rarely performs in public, and his occasional live appearances often spawn riots and looting for several hours afterward.
He began writing and recording music and the age of eight using a boom box recorder to yodel Jimmie Rogers songs. Since 1993, he has recorded seven albums, selling somewhere near 300 copies worldwide with absolutely no promotion and very little self-determination.
Along with some friends in high school, Chris founded the seminal Des Moines group Captain Violence with the help of a young man named Brian Thompson, who could make a noise like a dolphin. The group recorded five albums, released only on cassette and distributed through the halls of North High School. The group reunited in 2002 and released two suprisingly well-accepted CD, "Rock The Catbox" and "Songs In The Key of Whoo!", before retiring with an explosive final concert at Des Moines' House of Bricks, which was attended by many Des Moines bands and, most notably, Slipknot's Corey Taylor.
Chris was also a member of the band Jimi Pig from 2004 to November of 2005. He recorded several songs with the group and embarked on a multi state tour with the group in the spring of 2005.
In addition to a burgeouning solo career, Chris is also a member of Des Moines' roots-rock stalwarts Midwestern Remedy. The band is currently in the process of writing and honing material for their third CD, and can be seen live around the Des Moines area most weekends.
Chris also had a brief radio career from 1997 to 2001, both on and off the air on The Hawk 97.3 and 95 KGGO. He resumed that career in April 2007 with the Des Moines Radio Group, and can be heard evenings on 1350 KRNT, filling in for traffic all over the place, and occasionaly weekends on Lazer 103.3
Currently, Chandler is recording and refining songs for his eighth studio album, Pointless, which has been in the works since mid-2005. One track, "Waltz", was included on Ephemera, a "greatest hits" collection released in 2006.
And now, a few "fun" facts:
- Chris wasn't really "born" in the ueual sense. He was found abandoned in a basket, floating in some reeds at the confluence of the Des Moines and Raccoon Rivers.
- He was raised by squirrels.
- He was proficient from an early age with several musical instruments, including the kazoo, banjo, harmonica and various rocks.
- He wrote his first song while in the womb, entitled Whats This Thing Do?
- Annually, he sings Christmas Carols to the Deaf.
- He recorded his first album in 1994, entitled I Ate What?, which has sold seven copies to date.
- He once built a car entirely out of straw, which caught fire almost immediately.
- He owns the Worlds Smallest Hammer, which is invisible to the naked eye.
- Many refer to him as the cute one, more often than not when compared to Lyle Lovett.