Being able to beatbox well, while impressive, isn’t entertaining enough to command paying customers to sit through an hour-long show.
Professional beatboxers such as Beardyman and Shlomo have created their own brand of gig where they use a narrative or concept to showcase their natural talents in a way that doesn’t get too weary.
The shtick for Shlomo’s latest tour follows an autobiographical narrative through his discovery of beatboxing and the intergenerational interactions that have shaped his life.
His vocal percussion pieces were introduced by segments where he talked about the influences of his grandfather, father and his son George. It was very endearing and provided excellent context.
There was also a loose science-fiction theme that came as a result of his forbears being physicists, but thankfully this was not a show of beatboxed Star Wars music.
Instead it was a look into Shlomo’s musical influences: from Michael Jackson to Massive Attack and then drum ’n’ bass.
Musically, Schlomo’s ability to build layers of sound using just a loop station and his own voice is incredible. His talent is being able to move outside the limited range of bass genres that beatboxers usually work in and it made for a well thought-out and balanced show.
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