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Most people think a cappella groups are limited to churches and the oldies circuit, but local vocal quartet Fourth Avenue has been trying to change that perception since forming in 1993. Unlike traditional minded acts, Scott Dawson, Maurice Hall, Ryan Holway and Gary Thompson focus on a diverse selection of energetic, contemporary songs.
"It's funny because when people hear we're an a cappella group they automatically think we're a barbershop quartet or a doo-wop group," Dawson said. "We love the human voice because it allows us to do a wide variety of music. You could find a country band that might slip into rap and then jazz, but it's rare. We're a vocal group so we can do those styles back-to-back with minimal effort and we enjoy it."
Fourth Avenue's new LP, "High Energy Harmony," was released in August and is the perfect sampler of this eclectic crew's approach. The album contains oldies such as "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "Lion Sleeps Tonight," all done in Fourth Avenue's energetic, modern style, as well unusual choices such as "Bust A Move" by rapper Young MC. Dawson also contributes several original tunes, such as "Never Again" and "Fast Track."
"We do have a diverse repertoire, from '50s, doo-wop and soul to country, rap, rock and more modern stuff," Holway said. "We listen to what works and what doesn't work."
Dawson and Holway, who produced the album, recorded more than 50 live shows and then whittled the material down to 14 tracks. These songs were mixed and mastered by Darren Rust in Lakeville, Minn.
"We recorded for a full year so it was a lot of stuff to process," Holway said. "When you go to the studio you know what you want it to sound like ahead of time. When you're recording live you have other issues to deal with but if you try to find the perfect performance of that song you're really shortchanging yourself. What's 'perfect,' you know? If there's not a certain energy and the sound is right, we'll sacrifice perfection for feeling. It's so much more about the feel and we knew when we heard the right version it was the right one."
"There is a whole visual aspect to what we do," Dawson added. "We move a lot so you're hearing these vocal tracks when we're moving so it was even more challenging. The singing may not always be perfect but it sounds like we're engaged."
For more information: www.fourthavenue.com.
ROCK INSIDER, by contributing writer Don Thrasher, appears weekly and gives a behind-the-scenes view of the Dayton music scene. Contact Thrasher by e-mail at donaldthrasher8@aol.com.
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