The members of North Shore Acappella are gathered in the dark back room of Bobby C’s restaurant in Melrose.
‘‘Well, I’m saying she told us two songs,’’ Guy Chiapponi says, taking a puff off his e-cigarette.
Baritone Vinny Straccia cuts in: ‘‘We’ll be doing three songs in a shorter time than the others do two songs.’’
Meanwhile, Paul Lopes just wants to run through a number, and Jimmy Martin, at 49 the youngest — and the most nervous — speaks up. ‘‘There’s too much talking in his group,’’ he says, which doesn’t do much to stop the chatter.
An outsider might think these guys are bickering, but this is how North Shore Acappella communicates. And the next day is a big day. They’re hauling themselves to the Paramount Center in Boston to try out for the third season of NBC’s ‘‘The Sing-Off,’’ a reality TV competition show for a cappella singing groups.
The stakes are high: The winning team will not only receive a Sony Music recording contract and a $100,000 cash prize, but untold opportunities through the publicity. Even finishing second brings rewards. The Beelzebubs, Tufts University’s all-male group, were runners-up in 2009. The next year, they provided the arrangements and background vocals for the Dalton Academy Warblers on ‘‘Glee.’’
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