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Pentatonix: Season 3 Champs

Rhondinella

By Rhondinella
in The Sing-Off [V]

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GirlvsTV
GirlvsTV

My big issue with that NY Times review is that I don't think the album should be reviewed as an 'acappella' album at all. PTX made a pop album full of songs intended to attract mainstream radio play.

Geeze
Geeze

Avi's new video Quarter Past Four  I read into it why he's stepping back.

debbydeb
debbydeb

@SrPab, yes the whole CASA facebook group discussion baffles me too. It reminded me in the visual art world they're squabbling about Contemporary Art when it first arrived too. But really, for a cont

Kromm

Kromm

(edited)
23 hours ago, SrPab said:

Jolene update: 36.5 hours after release, the vid's reached 4 million views on YT. I don't know if this trajectory is comparable to Cheerleader, but it is chugging along nicely!

ETA: 48.25 hrs after release, Jolene is just shy of 5.3M views.

It's been on the Trending page on YouTube pretty much since it came out (at the very top of it for most of that, but it's finally fallen a few places).

I suspect it's climbing the iTunes charts too, but the main place you'd expect to see it (the Top 40 US Country Songs chart) is going to be a hard nut to crack--it's #59 as I post.  

 

EDIT - Ah, it's actually doing better on the MAIN songs chart than the Country one. It's #24 as I edit this post, on the main songs chart.

Edited by Kromm
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SrPab

SrPab

(edited)
59 minutes ago, ptxnewsandstuff said:

RCA has released it under the pop genre. Why is it listed as a pop song though? It's #13 on that chart.

I think it's because RCA views PTX as a modern pop group--who just happen to perform a cappella--instead of an a cappella group who can masquerade as a modern mainstream pop act. Cynically, maybe RCA didn't want to "limit the appeal" of the track (or dilute the PTX brand?) by labeling it as Country. I suspect that, as often as is possible, they'll release anything from PTX as Pop.

Jolene update: >6.0M views--and not even 2.5 days since release (58.5 hrs).

Edited by SrPab
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Kromm

Kromm

54 minutes ago, SrPab said:

As I've been busy with other aspects of life, I just came across this a few minutes ago. I tend to agree with the speculation that PTX may have their own prime-time special airing on NBC this December--instead of them making a guest appearance on someone else's tv special.

It might be a bit of a stretch until you consider that it would by definition probably be a Christmas special (so the core of their mainstream success) and on NBC (their biggest corporate ally). 

That guy is a little vague about where he got that info. From a booking agent? And there's a large share of guessing.

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Sharpie66

Sharpie66

(edited)

A PTX Christmas special was the impression I got from the interview back in 2014 with the RCA exec who signed them--I believe the phrase he used was "long-form project" while discussing the other media push options they had for TCTM--but after the documentary came out, I presumed that's what he was talking about.  It would be great if they did get a special of their own!

Edited by Sharpie66
Sharpie66

Sharpie66

(edited)

FYI, if you go to the PTXOfficial twitter account, you'll get to see the cover art for the Xmas album and hear brief snippets of each of the 11 tracks.

Going just by my memory (I'm at work right now and can't double-check), the tracks are:

O Come, All Ye Faithful

The Coventry Carol (one of my fave carols!)

God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen

White Christmas (sung by Avi and also featuring Manhattan Transfer)

Up on the Rooftop

Two other covers of songs I am not familiar with

Two original songs

And two others I can't remember offhand, but they were major carols. ETA: (just got home and checked)

I'll Be Home for Christmas

Hallelujah (I guess this was a given at some point in their career...)

Edited by Sharpie66
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ptxnewsandstuff

ptxnewsandstuff

(edited)

Loved it!!! Gold was my summer jam. Never thought they would've covered it. The song was made for Mitch, he freaking sang that weird disjointed chorus, the whole arrangement is insane. So chill. It's on the very top of my favorite covers.

Seriously, this group is so under appreciated in the industry. 

Looking forward to SF & Xmas album next week. Also, if anyone is interested, someone who went to their special xmas taping grabbed audio of Hallelujah*. Tempted to listen but I'm trying and will probably fail in holding off.

*Edit: Lol. Doesn't matter anyway, taken down. People always find a way to get around the rules.

Edited by ptxnewsandstuff
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SrPab

SrPab

(edited)

Family matters can be such a drag...

Just watched their vid of Gold; then watched original. I have no prior knowledge of the original song but I really like PTX's arrangement. The original has spare (sparse?) production values and their arrangement does, too (but big shout-out to the creative decision to make Avi's bassline prominent in the mix). I think Mitch's lead vocals and the backing harmonies are great. But another stand-out feature is whenever Avi joins for 4-part harmony, producing those lush crunchy chords.

A tight arrangement executed brilliantly.

ETA: Is Superfruit's Bad 4 Us an original song?

Edited by SrPab
Sharpie66

Sharpie66

(edited)

Just downloaded the new Xmas album. My take upon my initial listen:

1. O Come, All Ye Faithful: adding a world-music vibe to the choral aspect is pretty refreshing. Gives Kevin a nice spotlight for his beat boxing.

2. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen: love the traditional arrangement with the added fillip between the verses. Nice and complex! 

3. White Christmas (with Manhattan Transfer): just so lovely! But I have been a Transfer fan for at least 35 years, so this was right up my alley. A terrific blend of the two groups. 

4. I'll Be Home for Christmas: loves me some doo-wop. 

5. Up on the Housetop: never one of my favorite carols, but it is a decent version. Liked that they included all of the verses. I also liked the build with the reindeer names. 

6. Christmas Sing-Along: original song that is really quite forgettable. I hope that repeated listening will change my mind, but I am keeping my fingers crossed that they don't try and push this one as the main single from the album.

7. Coventry Carol: might be my fave! Then again, this is one of my fave songs, period. I love the thigh-slapping as the percussive element. Just gorgeous.

8. Hallelujah: this was the one I wasn't too sure about, due to its vast overexposure in the past 15 years. That said, this is a really beautiful version. Tons of emotion from everyone, especially Avi. 

9. Coldest Winter: after the preview, I was a bit iffy on this one. Not to worry! I am not familiar with the original version, but I like the harmonies here, and the changing tempos. 

10. Good to be Bad: original song, Kirstin lead, and she kills it! I hope this is their single. Very cool old-school vibe here.

11. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays: reminiscent of the final cut on the original PTXmas. Acceptable, nothing to write home about.

 

ETA: New video out today! For Hallelujah, and it is a gorgeous setting (I am guessing salt flats somewhere). Really nicely filmed, and it includes a "Hey!" greeting at the end!

Edited by Sharpie66
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Kromm

Kromm

(edited)

Mixed feelings on A Pentatonix Christmas.

 

O Come, All Ye Faithful - No problems here. I think they really brought something original to this, while still leaving it recognizable. The Lion King like backdrop isn't anything that would have occurred as an approach, but it worked perfectly.

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - So conflicted here.  Were big portions of it MEANT to sound so much like "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy"? I loved it, but it sounded like a retread (within their own great Grammy winning space)

White Christmas - It's got a bunch of Avi, so it's gonna be at least good, but to be honest it was kind of boring. Yes, even the Manhattan Transferesque part later on. Then again, to be fair, I'm not a Manhattan Transfer fan. (EDIT - I didn't even know that actually WAS Manhattan Transfer themselves, but... it doesn't change much for me... it's just not my taste)

I'll Be Home For Christmas - Quite liked this, even though the arrangement is nothing unique. Doo-Wop may not be the classic way to do this song, but it's not surprising. But it's a very clean sound and I enjoyed this a lot. 

Up On The Housetop - Okay, that was wild. The default version of this song isn't a very good song. But this totally reinvented it as something really funky and fun.

Christmas Sing-Along - Is it the greatest new Christmas Song written in recent years? Not by a long shot. But it's pretty good. I think I may have liked this a lot more than Sharpie66. I think it's the kind of song that's going to play really well with a live crowd, getting people TO sing along (even though only PTX fans would really know the words).  It's a bucket of aural cliches, but is that always a bad thing?

Coventry Carol - I'm generally not a fan of actual Christmas Carols (vs. Christmas Songs) but I can see the talent it took to pull off this interpretation, even if it's not to my personal taste.

Hallelujah - The best part was the Avi-heaviness of it. He killed it. The singing by ALL of them actually was superior. But this song is SO overexposed. And if I'm being honest they didn't manage to infuse anything super-original into it. Just a wonderfully sung thing we've heard a million times before. Actually the ACTUAL best part was after a long ass time hearing Avi say "Don't forget to subscribe" again on the music video they just put out for this (okay, that's cheating since it's not on the album)

Coldest Winter - Will this be regarded as some kind of Christmas Classic? No. But it's a nice interesting experiment. I applaud them TRYING stuff that others don't, and this qualifies. The crazy changing tempos shows they've got balls. I'd like to see if they can pull off the same approach with a better song.

Good to be Bad - Kirstin kills it. And it's a REALLY good original (better than Christmas Sing-Along, which I at least liked). This needs to be their single. Like White Christmas, it's got more than a few Manhattan Transfer-like riffs in it. But I like it a TON more here than in that song.

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays - A bit of filler, let's admit it. Well done filler, but filler nonetheless. It already sound like music you'll hear them singing in and out of commercial breaks on The Today Show. In other words, not anything you need to pay attention to.

In conclusion:

O Come, All Ye Faithful and Good to be Bad are the best tracks. Up On The Housetop is better than it SHOULD be. Hallelujah is audio candy, but as I said before I wish it was more original. 

Edited by Kromm
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Sharpie66

Sharpie66

(edited)

Definitely agree on Good to be Bad, Kromm! I am sticking with my high ranking of Coventry Carol, but then, I really love  those old school carols and arrangements--Mediaeval Baebes has a kickass arrangement of Coventry Carol. (And yes, I love the Baebes when they start singing 15th century songs, with or without lutes.)

Just saw Headline Planet's initial sales figures for this week: http://headlineplanet.com/home/2016/10/22/early-us-sales-projections-emerge-michael-buble-korn-pentatonix-chris-tomlin-tpr-albums/

PTX should be #4 or 5 for the week. 

Edited by Sharpie66
Sharpie66

Sharpie66

(edited)

That was great--Thanks, Kromm!!

Wonderful that Kirstin wrote Good to be Bad. What Kevin said about it sounding like a classic Christmas song was exactly my take on it. Actually, I thought it reflected, in a much sweeter, less gold-digging way, Eartha Kitt's "Santa Baby," by having a strong female lead character reveling in being naughty. 

Not surprised that Coventry Carol was Avi's idea and partially his arrangement (with Ben Bram). Definitely has his more lush style with tons of layers to it. 

I will have to check out Kanye's original of Coldest Winter and compare it to PTX's. 

Edited by Sharpie66
SrPab

SrPab

(edited)

Impressions after only one listen of each track in its entirety. I'm not in the mood yet to give *any* Christmas music repeat listens:

  • O Come, All Ye Faithful - I get a "World Music" vibe from the track...and I like it.
  • God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - Reminiscent of their Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy arrangement...but I love their execution of this track's arrangement.
  • White Christmas - I stalk/lurk several prominent a cappella insiders on FB, which is where I learned that this track was arranged by Jacob Collier (FB; YT). Have no idea how this collab with The Manhattan Transfer happened. This will be a rendition that grows on me over the years. All the stylistic changes and modulations are too much to process on one listen. One of the newer members of Manhattan Transfer, Trist Curless (who came on after Tim Hauser could no longer perform/died), used to be a sound engineer for PTX during their earlier tours.
  • I'll Be Home For Christmas - Love the doo-wop vibe of the track. Smiled at the bit where it sounded like they were coming through an old-timey radio.
  • Up On The Housetop - A cute bop.
  • The Christmas Sing-Along - I like it, but feel it may come across better being performed by a larger ensemble. If they perform this live at a concert, they'll get lots of people singing along with them. iTunes metadata says Scott and Kevin co-wrote it.
  • Coventry Carol - No prior familiarity with original song. It's different...it could grow on me over the years.
  • Hallelujah - The original song has never been one of my favorites through the years, but I'm taken with PTX's version. Kirstin's solo is my favorite part of the track. (I wish there was a fifth verse so that Kevin had a solo, too.)
  • Coldest Winter - Another song whose original I have no familiarity with. Another track that could grow on me over time.
  • Good To Be Bad - One of three of my favorite tracks on the album. iTunes metadata says Kirstin and Scott co-wrote it. And Kevin broke out his vocal trumpet for this track!
  • Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays - Love N*Sync's original; love PTX's version. This track will get lots of repeat listens in my household. (When I heard the original for the first time, back in the day, I thought it would stand the test of time and be as over-played as All I Want For Christmas Is You--and I love AIWFCIY.)

Faves: Good To Be Bad...Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays...God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.

Other thoughts:

  • I'm so impressed by Kirstin's vocals (especially her lead/solo work) across the entire album. Her vocal training is paying dividends.
  • Since he's usually underrated by the wider audience, I'll offer a personal shout to Kevin's work for the whole album. These arrangements would be so diminished, to my ear, without his contributions and artistic choices.
  • I want to peruse the liner notes of a CD to see who else contributed background vocals--specifically, any A Cappella Academy students.
  • Can the album sell 500,000 units (CDs + streaming equivalent) in a 9-week (before 12/25) or 10-week window (by 12/30) and get a Gold Album certification in the U.S.? I think I'm being realistic, instead of pessimistic, in thinking that it won't go Platinum this year. But I'd love to be wrong! Moreover, I'll be pleased as punch if A Pentatonix Christmas can top the Billboard 200 album chart for even one week from now through EOY. Perhaps Joanne will block A Pentatonix Christmas like 1989 did with TCTM?
  • Could Hallelujah be a viral holiday hit like Little Drummer Boy and Mary, Did You Know? It's off to a nice start on YT (around 3.75M views after 48 hrs.--10am Friday to 10am Sunday) and iTunes/Apple Music.

That's all for now.

Edited by SrPab
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Sharpie66

Sharpie66

Based on what Kevin said in his Snapchat, the choral bits were sung by professional back up singers, not Academy singers. 

Also, Trist Curless had been brought in by Avi's high school music program director to give the students a workshop, but more specifically to coach Avi on how to use the microphone effectively as a bass singer in acappella. So, Avi has known him for at least ten years. It must be great to work together on an album!

SrPab

SrPab

(edited)

College football is more my bag...but extending the PTX brand to the NFL could give them more (new) fans. I think royalty matters are why Sing wasn't licensed. Perhaps PTX got a one-time lump-sum payment for the Weekend Go derivative?

ETA: Read somewhere that PTX re-worked Sing's lyrics to turn it into Weekend Go. It makes sense to me to do that because Sing's lyrics don't have anything to do with football.

Edited by SrPab
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Reddust

Reddust

(edited)

Pentatonix got me good with this one.  I actually bought the video so I didn't have the commercial interruption from utube.  Yes, I'm obsessed, I think at least one million of the views are from me. 

 

It's not just the gorgeous vocals either, I love the whole video, the salt flats, the sky, their beautiful faces, the lighting.  It's perfect.

Edited by Reddust
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Kromm

Kromm

On 10/25/2016 at 8:46 AM, ptxnewsandstuff said:

Pentatonix to Sing NFL Thursday Night Football Opening Song - AP 

NBC will produce nine Thursday night games that will use PTX's song...PTX will sing the track "Weekend Go," which was inspired by "Sing"

It's interesting because it follows a weird pattern: Fox Football used PTX first (admittedly for a one off).

 

Then again, NBC (due to The Sing-Off tie in and no doubt some lingering contracts) has always used Pentatonix more than anyone else.

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SrPab

SrPab

(edited)

Another "even-handed" concert review: http://www.twincities.com/2016/10/26/pentatonix-dont-need-instruments-to-draw-a-crowd-to-the-x/

That last paragraph, though. If people want to spend their disposable income on a cappella music (and related merchandise/paraphernalia)--as opposed to, say, paying hitmen for assassinations--I'm cool with it.

Edited by SrPab
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ptxnewsandstuff

ptxnewsandstuff

On 27/10/2016 at 4:30 PM, Kromm said:

It's interesting because it follows a weird pattern: Fox Football used PTX first (admittedly for a one off).

Then again, NBC (due to The Sing-Off tie in and no doubt some lingering contracts) has always used Pentatonix more than anyone else.

Someone within the NFL must like PTX as an artist to use... So many other artists to pitch an yet PTX.

Lol. It's probably just a coincidence.

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SrPab

SrPab

(edited)

I came across a tweet mentioning YT views/hits being included in Billboard Hot 100 Singles formula...prompting me to do a search. Here's an article from 2013. Why didn't I know about this already? By the way, Hallelujah had about 19.5M YT views at around 10AM US ET (Friday release-to-Friday current).

Excerpt from article (bolded emphasis is mine):

Quote

Billboard and Nielsen are adding U.S. YouTube data to their platforms, which includes an update to the methodology for the Billboard Hot 100, the pre-eminent singles chart. The YouTube data is now factored into the chart's ranking, enhancing a formula that includes Nielsen's digital download track sales and physical singles sales, as well as terrestrial radio airplay, on-demand audio streaming and online radio streaming, also tracked by Nielsen.

Billboard is incorporating all official videos on YouTube captured by Nielsen's streaming measurement, including Vevo on YouTube, and user-generated clips that utilize authorized audio into the Hot 100 and the Hot 100 formula-based genre charts: Hot Country Songs, Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, R&B Songs, Rap Songs, Hot Latin Songs, Hot Rock Songs and Dance/Electronic Songs. The adoption will further reflect the current divergent platforms for music consumption.

Edited by SrPab
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ptxnewsandstuff

ptxnewsandstuff

Woah. Hallelujah as the lead sing off the album was an excellent choice. The album moved 60k units, that's up by 30k from original projections. Not even into the holiday season yet and this was achieved with literally no promo. Can it do what its predecessor did, 1 million in a quarter?

Looks like a PTX will be performing a tribute to Dolly? Whatever it is, they are performing on Country's music biggest night. The 50th CMAs.

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Kromm

Kromm

(edited)
1 hour ago, ptxnewsandstuff said:

Looks like a PTX will be performing a tribute to Dolly? Whatever it is, they are performing on Country's music biggest night. The 50th CMAs.

Even though that commercial makes it look like it's just them, an earlier one gives the impression it's some kind of multi-artist tribute to Dolly. 

I'm betting they use PTX and "Jolene" as a tent pole for the tribute, then spin off into other songs sung by other artists, then have some grand finale with everyone on stage (possibly including Dolly--I suppose it depends on if its the kind of tribute which includes the artist, or the kind where it doesn't). 

BTW: If anyone doubts Dolly's still got it? She was on the Jimmy Kimmel show a few weeks ago singing a somewhat mediocre song from her new album, but because she's never going to be the kind of singer who leaves a crowd just with the one song for TV, did several other ones including a version of 9 to 5 which was as good live as anything on a recording. Or on that same West Coast visit, selling out The Hollywood Bowl and singing Here I Come Again, again as if it was playing right off a record (but you can tell it's not because she always ad-libs a bit). 

Edited by Kromm
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ptxnewsandstuff

ptxnewsandstuff

20 hours ago, Kromm said:

Even though that commercial makes it look like it's just them, an earlier one gives the impression it's some kind of multi-artist tribute to Dolly. 

I'm betting they use PTX and "Jolene" as a tent pole for the tribute, then spin off into other songs sung by other artists, then have some grand finale with everyone on stage (possibly including Dolly--I suppose it depends on if its the kind of tribute which includes the artist, or the kind where it doesn't). 

You are correct! PTX with the Leading Ladies of Country Music.

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Sharpie66

Sharpie66

I am going to beat ptxnewsandstuff here with the news I just saw on their Twitter: Pentatonix will be on The Voice on November 29th, singing Jolene with both Dolly and Miley Cyrus. 

I already have my DVR set up for tonight's CMAs and tomorrow's football game (Dad is having surgery today and I don't know when I'll be home, so thank you, DVR inventors!).

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SrPab

SrPab

I've read a number of tweets bemoaning one or more aspects of PTX's CMA performance: unbalanced mics, too much face time for Jennifer Nettles, PTX relegated to background vocals, etc. I was going into their Voice appearance with lowered expectations anyway. I'll adjust downward now--especially because I also agree with Kromm's take. This means I can either be happily surprised...or indifferent to it all. Having said that, I do appreciate they are getting these opportunities because, again, it never has to be a cappella.

Dec. 14 can't come soon enough. (But the sound mix had better be excellent.)

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