Above & Beyond - Acoustic (2014)

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Above & Beyond - Acoustic (2014)

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Earlier this year, the group performed some of their best-loved songs acoustically with a 12-piece band, across three sold out shows at London's legendary Porchester Hall. The response from fans was overwhelming and led to two sold-out nights at The Greek Theater in Los Angeles in October, described by Billboard Magazine as one of the finest and more memorable shows in EDM history. The acoustic project is a reconnection with the musicians that we were before we met, said Above & Beyond’s Tony McGuinness. The songs have been on an interesting journey to get here because we tend to write in a fairly acoustic way anyway. We don't just stick a bit of vocal over a dance track - that's not how we work. We try to start with a song and it's usually only later down the line that we take certain elements from that song and progress them into a more dancefloor-friendly version.
With Above & Beyond Acoustic, the group are putting aside their CDJs and lighting rigs to showcase their deeply-rooted musicianship and classical training. A band first and foremost,Above & Beyond are songwriters as much as they are DJs. Working with three singers, a string quartet, harpist, drummer and bassist, Above & Beyond are pushing the boundaries of EDM. Tony McGuinness sings and plays guitar, mandolin and ukulele, Paavo Siljamäki plays the grand piano and cello, and Jono Grant plays the Rhodes piano, guitar and vibraphone.