Sonos members (from left) Benjamin McLain, Kathy Hoye, Jessica Freedman, Rachel Bearer and Christopher Given Harrison serenade NIC SUB audience members with smooth a cappella vocals during the ASNIC-sponsored event. Ethan Schlussler/Sentinel
One may not immediately realize the unique and powerful instruments the five members of Sonos possess, when they stand on stage with no instruments in hand.
The vocal group Sonos performed in NIC’s Student Union Building Oct. 12. The evening show consisted of popular hits remixed in Sonos’s own fashion, as well as a set of originals.
ASNIC, which booked the show, initially planned for a crowd of around 150, and ended up with over 200 attendees.
“We’re having a hard time finding seating right now,” said Hayley McDaniel, second year member of ASNIC, before the show. “It’s something that anybody can get into.”
The five members of Sonos have been together for more than three years. Christopher Given Harrison and Rachel Bearer are the only original members from the vocal group that started in 2006. Benjamin McLain, Kathy Hoye and Jessica Freedman joined later on to create the current group. An a cappella group from Los Angeles, Sonos uses original arrangements and effects pedals to create a unique sound that has been stirring up the vocal scene.
“When the sound is good and the people are bountiful and interested, it kind of can’t go wrong,” said Harrison.
Sonos has been successful enough to compete on NBC’s “The Sing-Off,” for two episodes. For those who watch the show, Harrison said to put your money on the group The Pentatonics.
Wednesday night’s set began with Sonos’s cover of “Wicked Game,” originally performed by Chris Isaak. Though much of the heaviness of the song remained attached to the tone, Sonos’s interpretation of was more upbeat, unlike either the original or Stone Sour’s cover of the track.
Sonos is unique in the way they arrange songs. They are known for the style of their arrangements, fashioned so that each member is able to utilize his or her voice, showing their own important essence within the song. While performing “Wicked Game,” Sonos set up Freedman as lead, Bearer and Hoye as harmony, Harrison as bass (using an effects pedal he literally sounded like a sub-bass), and Mclain on percussion, using his beat-boxing skills.
Throughout the show, Sonos played songs from artists ranging from Depeche Mode to a dub-step remix of Britney Spears to a soulful Bjork ballad.
“Looks like they were really smooth with each other,” said Wesley Saunders, 20, a second year NIC student, pursuing an A.S. in music with an emphasis on vocal performance. “They had great stage presence. They could move the beat well, and they could interact with the crowd well, which is really important as a performer. I think overall they had a great performance.”
Sonos was featured in the lower level of the SUB free of charge to any student or community member.
