Eliot Chambers, 48, rock musician

After nearly 14 years of living in Switzerland, American musician Eliot Chambers has developed a steady following both as a solo performer and as the leader of a hard rock band called Dr. Cranknstein. He has also produced several CDs and is currently working on a concert DVD. According to Chambers, Switzerland is a great place for independent musicians. Eliot Chambers came to Switzerland with nothing but a duffel bag, a portable radio, a guitar and a sense of adventure. Originally from Detroit, Michigan, the singer-songwriter arrived in Bern in July 1995. In typical starving-artist style, he snagged a room at a hostel – where he later earned free lodging in exchange for housekeeping services. A Dutch guest encouraged him to try his luck as a street musician.
“I started busking on corners and got pretty successful,” says Chambers, who had played with a number of local bands all over the United States. Of course, Bern was quite a change from Chambers’ last port of call in Florida. The elaborate architecture made quite an impression on him, as did the girls sunbathing topless along the Aare River. For Chambers, it seemed there were surprises around every corner of the Swiss capital.
“Behind the Bundeshaus [parliament building], I remember seeing junkies cooking dope on spoons. You’d never see that behind the White House,” says Chambers. Meanwhile, the price of Coke – as in the soft drink – left him with sticker shock.
“I thought, ‘Man, how much have I got to pay for this Coca-Cola?’” recalls Chambers. Despite the high cost of living in Switzerland, he continued to pursue his passion for music. He spent more than three years in Bern before moving to Biel, where he played with an Iggy Pop tribute band called Raw Power. In 1999 he moved again – this time to Lucerne.
“That was my best move ever,” says Chambers. Indeed, he soon scored the role of house musician at the five-star Schweizerhof Hotel, a position he held for 18 months. Meanwhile, he also played bass guitar with a Lucerne band called BOREL. At the same time, he founded The Eliot Band – which toured actively from 1998-2004.
The year 2005 saw the birth of Dr. Cranknstein, a band specializing in melodic hard rock. With Chambers at the helm as lead vocalist and guitarist, the band also features Dan Hammer on the drums and Markus Stephani on the bass guitar. On top of that, Chambers has a new rock cover band called Sitting Bull.
Lucerne being the festival city that it is, Chambers and his bands have performed at the Blue Balls, Honky Tonk and Einhörnli festivals. As a solo performer, he enjoys entertaining at private functions like weddings and birthday parties.
While his repertoire of covers is extensive (everything from Aerosmith to Led Zeppelin), Chambers also pens plenty of original music. He has even written a funny song devoted to Spätzli, the popular Swiss dumpling dish. Chambers admits that his German is still terrible, but he makes an effort and speaks well enough to converse with club managers and concert-goers.
In addition to performing, Chambers has produced seven CDs under his own label, “Imperial Exile Music”. He is currently working on the latest Dr. Cranknstein album and a concert DVD. It seems many concert-goers are keen to take home a souvenir; Chambers has sold over 5,000 CDs just by peddling them at his concerts.
“I’ve been rebuilding my life from scratch here, but I’ve been very lucky,” says Chambers, who notes that the working conditions for musicians are better in Switzerland than in the US.
“In America, each guy performing with a small local band might get 50 bucks and a cold sandwich, free beer if they’re lucky,” says Chambers, “But here, each guy gets 300-400 francs and you usually get nice food, too. The Swiss quality of life rolls over into the conditions of working as a musician.”

After nearly 14 years of living in Switzerland, American musician Eliot Chambers has developed a steady following both as a solo performer and as the leader of a hard rock band called Dr. Cranknstein. He has also produced several CDs and is currently working on a concert DVD. According to Chambers, Switzerland is a great place for independent musicians. Eliot Chambers came to Switzerland with nothing but a duffel bag, a portable radio, a guitar and a sense of adventure. Originally from Detroit, Michigan, the singer-songwriter arrived in Bern in July 1995. In typical starving-artist style, he snagged a room at a hostel – where he later earned free lodging in exchange for housekeeping services. A Dutch guest encouraged him to try his luck as a street musician.
“I started busking on corners and got pretty successful,” says Chambers, who had played with a number of local bands all over the United States. Of course, Bern was quite a change from Chambers’ last port of call in Florida. The elaborate architecture made quite an impression on him, as did the girls sunbathing topless along the Aare River. For Chambers, it seemed there were surprises around every corner of the Swiss capital.
“Behind the Bundeshaus [parliament building], I remember seeing junkies cooking dope on spoons. You’d never see that behind the White House,” says Chambers. Meanwhile, the price of Coke – as in the soft drink – left him with sticker shock.
“I thought, ‘Man, how much have I got to pay for this Coca-Cola?’” recalls Chambers. Despite the high cost of living in Switzerland, he continued to pursue his passion for music. He spent more than three years in Bern before moving to Biel, where he played with an Iggy Pop tribute band called Raw Power. In 1999 he moved again – this time to Lucerne.
“That was my best move ever,” says Chambers. Indeed, he soon scored the role of house musician at the five-star Schweizerhof Hotel, a position he held for 18 months. Meanwhile, he also played bass guitar with a Lucerne band called BOREL. At the same time, he founded The Eliot Band – which toured actively from 1998-2004.
The year 2005 saw the birth of Dr. Cranknstein, a band specializing in melodic hard rock. With Chambers at the helm as lead vocalist and guitarist, the band also features Dan Hammer on the drums and Markus Stephani on the bass guitar. On top of that, Chambers has a new rock cover band called Sitting Bull.
Lucerne being the festival city that it is, Chambers and his bands have performed at the Blue Balls, Honky Tonk and Einhörnli festivals. As a solo performer, he enjoys entertaining at private functions like weddings and birthday parties.
While his repertoire of covers is extensive (everything from Aerosmith to Led Zeppelin), Chambers also pens plenty of original music. He has even written a funny song devoted to Spätzli, the popular Swiss dumpling dish. Chambers admits that his German is still terrible, but he makes an effort and speaks well enough to converse with club managers and concert-goers.
In addition to performing, Chambers has produced seven CDs under his own label, “Imperial Exile Music”. He is currently working on the latest Dr. Cranknstein album and a concert DVD. It seems many concert-goers are keen to take home a souvenir; Chambers has sold over 5,000 CDs just by peddling them at his concerts.
“I’ve been rebuilding my life from scratch here, but I’ve been very lucky,” says Chambers, who notes that the working conditions for musicians are better in Switzerland than in the US.
“In America, each guy performing with a small local band might get 50 bucks and a cold sandwich, free beer if they’re lucky,” says Chambers, “But here, each guy gets 300-400 francs and you usually get nice food, too. The Swiss quality of life rolls over into the conditions of working as a musician.”