Pentatonix at The House of Blues – Boston

Photos and review by: Aidan McCarthy
Show photos HERE
The highly anticipated winners of season 3 of NBC’s The Sing-Off, Pentatonix, arrived to a sold out audience at the House of Blues in Boston. They performed two shows on Saturday April 5^th, and Sunday April 6^th. Fans quickly filled the venue and with no pit providing separation between the fans and the performers, concert goers got an up close and personal experience with the a capella group that is taking the world by storm.
Pentatonix is comprised of lead vocalists Scott Hoying (22), Kirstie Maldonado (21) and Mitch Grassi (21), vocal bass Avi Kaplan (24) and beat boxer Kevin “K.O.” Olusola (25).
I have to admit, I didn’t know quite what to expect of this show, but the sold out signs adorning their tour schedule spoke volumes. It’s often easy to dismiss a group that is the result of a competition on cable TV, but there’s no denying the raw talent that the individuals in Pentatonix possess, and the power that they generate when they sing as a unit.
The show consisted of a split of original songs, mixed with more of their well know covers, such as ‘Telephone’ by Lady Gaga, ‘Royals’ by Lorde, and ‘Thrift Shop’ by Macklemore. A definite stand out performance was ‘Run to You’ (written by Pentatonix and Ben Bram), perhaps the most pure vocal performance of the evening. The focus is entirely on harmonizing, which when experienced live, is nothing short of breathtaking. So much so that one brave lad decided to propose to his now fiancé during this very performance. Congratulations to you both!
After Avi Kaplan gave a mesmerizing performance where he sang two notes at once, Kevin Olusola took the spotlight to demonstrate what initially caught Scott Hoying’s attention on YouTube and eventually prompted his joining of the group –  Playing the cello while beat boxing. Again, very impressive to see this in person, something that we have become accustomed to viewing in poor quality on the internet.
There’s just no substitute for seeing Pentatonix live. Simply stunning. YouTube will not suffice. Snatch up tickets if you can get your hands on them!