One-Hit Wonders was this year’s theme for the Elon University Electric Ensemble’s spring concert, and judging from the audience’s non-stop participation throughout the night, it was quite a hit.
The concert opened with a high-energy rendition of “Play that Funky Music, White Boy” by Wild Cherry, and the momentum only accelerated from there.
The audience that practically filled the theater included a mix of young and old, from raucous students swaying and screaming in the front rows to a bus of elderly patrons that arrived 30 minutes early.
Maybe it was the impending mania of finals week, but this was by far one of the rowdiest concerts Electric Ensemble has put on yet.
Students, adults and children alike could hardly stay in their seats, and the constant cheering and yelling made the atmosphere a feel bit more like an outdoor arena than McCrary Theatre. One would have thought a big-name rock star was present on stage that night, from the explosive reaction at the start of every tune.
Last year, during the group’s concert of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” lead guitarist Jack Garno stole the show. This year, the sophomore outdid himself, and once again all eyes were on him. He ran around the stage feeding off his fellow performers’ energy and providing some to those who may be lacking.
With every solo, he went somewhere else entirely, and this really was something to watch. His energy and his passion for every note he played was absolutely infectious, and it is exciting to imagine what this young performer will do next.
Other showstoppers included the singing and impressive falsetto of the quirky and lovable sophomore Addison Horner during “Take on Me,” senior Sean Magee’s excitement despite being confined to the piano bench by his broken ankle and the moments of carefully choreographed background dancing.
The lead singers did a fabulous job of keeping the audience engaged and bringing intensity to every song, but their sweet harmonies were matched with a few notes and vowels here and there that were a bit too reminiscent of bad karaoke.
While it was relatively confusing to see a 2014 Grammy award winning song on a concert with such one-hit wonders as “Funkytown” by Lipps Inc. and “The Final Countdown” by Europe, “Royals” was the performance of the evening.
The ensemble’s rendition was unique and original and avoided any sort of expected downfall at covering such a popular, and perhaps at this point over-played, song. It’s not time to be sick of this song and move onto the next popular single yet. The Electric Ensemble’s version is an absolute must hear.
The concert competed for attention with nothing, and it even continued to pull in patrons until the last two songs.
The overall pacing of the concert was practically perfect. Each song moved quickly into the next with little lag, but this also meant there was little time allotted for taking a quick breather from the pounding of the speakers.
While the program was well orchestrated and, for the most part, well executed, the excessive noise levels detracted quite a bit from the overall performance. The bass uncomfortably rattled the entire room, and several audience members expressed concern for their hearing.
At the end of the night, unfortunately, the ringing ears and headache caused by such high decibel levels left a stronger impression on those leaving the show than the hard work of this talented group of musicians.
Thankfully, despite any damaged hearing, the audience gave the Electric Ensemble the standing ovation and screaming adoration its performers on stage worked so hard to earn.