by Lauren
A capella music, I think, falls into the geeky category - at least it is something that I geek out pretty hard over. I mean who isn't excited about Pitch Perfect 2?
Saturday night, I got to see Pentatonix live in Atlanta at the Tabernacle. I brought two of my best friends and my 16 yr old niece. It was one of the best concerts I have ever been to. You know how you hope a band you love sounds as good in concert as they do on their albums -yeah, they are BETTER live. And (with the exception of Kevin's amazing cello) the entire concert is 100% vocal magic.
Saturday night, I got to see Pentatonix live in Atlanta at the Tabernacle. I brought two of my best friends and my 16 yr old niece. It was one of the best concerts I have ever been to. You know how you hope a band you love sounds as good in concert as they do on their albums -yeah, they are BETTER live. And (with the exception of Kevin's amazing cello) the entire concert is 100% vocal magic.
Pentatonix, for those of you who don't know, is a five-person a capella ensemble who won the NBC vocal competition show The Sing Off three years ago. Since then, they have released five albums and an endless stream of (award winning) YouTube videos - and toured the world.
Last year's Christmas album That's Christmas to Me, recently went PLATINUM. For a few days, that album was #1 on the iTunes charts, dethroning Taylor Swift. An a capella group. Oh, and they won a GRAMMY for their Daft Punk Medley. No big deal.
Last year's Christmas album That's Christmas to Me, recently went PLATINUM. For a few days, that album was #1 on the iTunes charts, dethroning Taylor Swift. An a capella group. Oh, and they won a GRAMMY for their Daft Punk Medley. No big deal.
The absolute ridiculous talent each of the members should frankly be illegal. Scott Hoying has a soulful R&B voice that is the core of the lead trio. Mitch Grassi has a voice like a knife and a range comparable to any and all of the great pop & R&B divas. Kirsty Maldonado, the only female in the group, has a smoky, Top 40 voice with a smirk that perfectly blends and balances with Scott and Mitch (they all grew up singing together in Texas.)
In my opinion, what makes PTX truly great are mega-bass Avi Kaplan and vocal percussionist and cello-boxer extraordinaire Kevin K.O. Olusola. You can barely hear Avi in concert sometimes because of all the screaming women - seriously the only thing that could make that guy hotter would be if he had a British accent. When he drops the base, it shakes the room. At the mid-point of the concert, Kevin brings out his cello and plays some of his original 'cello-boxing' arraignments. His instrumental and rhythmic skills are off-the-charts amazing. Speaking of charts, his new solo album, Renegade, is currently #1 on the iTunes classical charts.
In my opinion, what makes PTX truly great are mega-bass Avi Kaplan and vocal percussionist and cello-boxer extraordinaire Kevin K.O. Olusola. You can barely hear Avi in concert sometimes because of all the screaming women - seriously the only thing that could make that guy hotter would be if he had a British accent. When he drops the base, it shakes the room. At the mid-point of the concert, Kevin brings out his cello and plays some of his original 'cello-boxing' arraignments. His instrumental and rhythmic skills are off-the-charts amazing. Speaking of charts, his new solo album, Renegade, is currently #1 on the iTunes classical charts.
Together they are undeniable.
The stage production on this tour reflects their success over the last year, with more lights, effects and staging than their 2014 tour. But all of the extra glitz doesn't take away from their set, which includes mostly their up-tempo covers and original songs. If I had any critiscm at all it would be that some of their ballads are favorites of mine that I would have loved to hear live. This tour is meant to be an a capella rock concert and it is. The show is only about 90 minutes - any longer and they would burn out their voices for sure - but they give everything for the whole time, with barely any chit chat or filler.
Here is one of my favorite numbers they performed - their cover of Imogen Heap's Aha! from PTX Volume 1.
Here is one of my favorite numbers they performed - their cover of Imogen Heap's Aha! from PTX Volume 1.
They also announced that they are recording their next album currently , which will be all original music and they they will be the opening act for Kelly Clarkson in the fall.
Needless to say, if you ever get the chance to see them in concert, I highly recommend it.