Face

Genre: A Cappella, Live Music, Music
Venue: Spotlites
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe

Low Down
Blending modern popular tunes with complex harmonies, brilliant beat-box rhythms and superb singing with more traditional songs, Face Vocal Band take their audience on a musical journey and it’s fantastic fun.

Review
Walking around Edinburgh during the Fringe you see a lot of things you may not see anywhere else. Everything from amazing circus acts to inspiring theater performances and confounding close-up magic acts. A recent arrival to the city caught my attention performing outside their venue to a small but enthralled group of onlookers. Unamplified and unencumbered, Face were holding court and proved themselves true kings of the street. I decided I had to see what else they had to offer.

From the very beginning we knew we were in for a treat. There was an infectious energy in the air. Excited chatter buzzed around the space as we waited for our musical face-time. The flyer had promised us “high-octane vocal rock” and I, for one, couldn’t wait to experience first-hand the multi award-winning group in their international debut performance. Their heritage is impressive – opening shows for Robin Thicke, Rick Springfield, Bon Jovi, Culture Club, and even Manhattan Transfer. Their YouTube channel and social media pages have over a half a million views. Six guys from Boulder, Colorado (who average over a hundred shows a year in the US which is equally impressive) strode out on to the stage and there was an instant connection – smiling faces and twinkling eyes suggesting a mischievous love of what was about to happen. But even with all of this preamble we were not quite prepared for the vocal explosion that was about to take place.

If we thought we knew what to expect we were wrong. Throughout the show our preconceptions were expertly dismissed as tune after tune thrilled and entertained us, transporting us from rural American folk songs through country music, pop and rock culture, and back again. We found ourselves humming along to well-known tunes such as House of the Rising Sun, clapping to the upbeat numbers, and reveling in the lovely blend of these six voices. Later in the show we were treated to a very fun “drum off” which pitted two of the singers against each other in a beat-box competition unlike anything you’ll have seen before. Special mention should be made of band member Mark whose extraordinary solo beat-box singing montage was nothing less than breathtaking.

A particularly moving moment in the show was their homage to the Scottish people whose home they are sharing this week before heading off to other European shows when they performed their version of the traditional song ‘The Parting Glass’ and I longed to hear more. With such skill in the group it would have been particularly interesting to hear their take on more traditional part songs, such as Monteverdi or Dowland, or even other Celtic folk songs. Overall though this show is one not to miss. The complex musical arrangements mixed with tight choreography and soulful singing stands out above the crowd. These guys truly put the heart in heartland America. Catch them while you can!

Published August 25, 2015 by Luke Tudball - FringeReview

When people ask how the six members of the vocal rock band Face met each other, they say eHarmony.com and it always gets a chuckle, says Mark Megibow, the vocal drummer of Face. After 14 years in the works, Face has come to be loved by their fellow Colorado natives and continue to impress the music world with their a cappella roots and charismatic personalities.

Face is a nationally recognized vocal rock band and should not be mistaken for a cappella. Each member’s voice brings a unique sound to this even more unique group of guys. With a number of original songs and plenty of cover songs, Face has truly redefined what it means to be a rock star. But the real draw for the band’s fan base is their charisma on and off stage.

Face has a natural way of connecting with fans that keep them coming back show after show, despite the unique niche they fill in the world of music. Megibow says that Colorado fans will attend a majority of the shows they play in Colorado, but attend for reasons beyond just the music. Face will frequently poke fun at each other on stage and give shout outs to fans, who seem more like old friends. Fans tell Megibow that if they miss one of their shows, not only do they fear missing their favorite song but also the band’s hilarious interactions.

“We don’t play roles on stage,” Megibow says. “We interact with each other as ourselves on stage. We are best friends, and we are brothers with all the pluses and minuses that come with that.”

All of Face’s members have day jobs, but recently they have been focusing more on their music as they approach their first European tour. Stephen Ross, one of the high tenors of Face, just resigned from his teaching job of 12 years at Skyline High School in Longmont, and the rest seem to be following this trend. Forest Kelly, the band’s bass, has given up time working as a massage therapist, and Ben Lunstad, the baritone, has devoted less time working as a biochemist. As the band puts more energy into their music, they still strive to maintain their impression.

“Probably the most inspiring thing that we get from people, and we’ve been hearing for years and from many different people, is that we come across as six ordinary guys with a little bit of musical talent,” Megibow says. “The image that we are bringing is that we are normal people.”

Their normalcy resonates well with fans and provides them with a belief that goals are not impossible to achieve, Megibow says. This does not necessarily mean joining an all-vocal band of course, but to stick with a hobby you love and seeing where it can take you.

“2014 was the first time we had over 100 shows in one year. We are also going to have over 100 shows this year. … People find that very inspiring that they see us following our passion and following our dream and being successful at it, and who doesn’t want that?” Megibow says.

Megibow says he recognizes that there are unbelievably talented musicians just in Denver alone, and that Face is extremely lucky to be where they are in the industry. He says that the music world is not always fair to these other musicians, but the lesson being, if you have momentum, then take it as far as you can.

“Right now, the spotlight is on us and we are going to do as much as we can to take that as far as that’s going to take us,” Megibow says. “Or else, why are we doing it?”

Regardless of some of the newfound attention Face has been receiving globally, the band remains humble and committed to the community. Megibow says that giving back to Colorado is very important to them, especially the youth music programs. And despite whatever future success, they vow to stay loyal to their Colorado fans: the fan base that really got their careers rolling in the first place.

“We don’t want to keep raising prices [for concerts] in Colorado,” he says. “We want to go make millions off the rest of the world, and keep our prices nice and affordable for the fans that helped build us to where we are.”

Face is full of big ideas and sincerely believes they can and will make an impression on fans no matter where they go, and they are thankful for that as well.

Megibow says that although he is not the only one in his family paying the bills, he is still able to say that he is a professional musician and mean it, and that makes him one of the lucky ones in the music world.

“If I had to pick one thing out of all of the things that I have done, one thing that I had to do for the rest of my life, [Face] would be it,” Megibow says. “I’m having the most fun that I’ve ever had, and I know that’s true for the rest of the guys.”

Published July 9, 2015 by Wyatt Carlson - Boulder Weekly

When performing live, the vocal rock group Face has all the force you would expect from a virtuosic seven-piece lineup. When the drums drop out or the bass kicks in during their winding arrangements, you can feel it in your gut. When all the members are working together, you can practically feel yourself being blown back from the stage.

Few groups with enormous amplifiers and state-of-the-art sound systems can rival Face for intensity. What’s really impressive is that this band draws its power from the use of just seven voices and seven microphones.

“we’re not an a capella group,” Face tenor/vocal percussionist Mark Megibow says. “When people hear ‘a capella,’ they think of barbershop or vocal jazz; no one thinks of what we do. ‘A capella’ literally means ‘all vocals,’ but we prefer ‘all vocal rock.’ People don’t understand right away.”

Indeed, you shouldn’t let a bias against all-vocal music or an irrational fear of men in matching bowler hats keep you away from Face’s live show, which stops in Longmont on Thursday. The band’s self-released EP, “Wake Up,” sounds crisp and professional, nut it’s nothing compared to seeing the band live.

Face creates a “wall of sound that you don’t typically hear from a vocal group. It leaves people wondering ‘How did they do that?’” Megibow says. Megibow, Cody Qualls, Jayson Throckmorton, Ryan Driver, Forest Kelly, Ben Lunstad, and Stephen Ross were all members of on-campus a cappella groups in college but with Face have taken things to another level entirely.

“We all wanted to do something professional, top-notch, extraordinary,” Megibow says. “We had lots of turnover, but the better we got, the better people we could attract.”

The current lineup, about two years old, reflects the high standards and talents of all the singers. The band’s feeling of consistent improvement was vindicated with a second place overall and audience favorite award in the 2005 Harmony Sweepstakes National Finals.

Winning such high honors “grants legitimacy to our marketing,” Megibow says, but also served as a huge “confidence boost” to the men of Face. The band performed only three songs at the national competition, but the work they put into those three pieces made everything else in their repertoire sound better as well.

Face performs sometimes radically altered versions of Top 40 hits, ‘70s and ‘80s oldies, and the odd show tune. Hearing the band tackle a familiar song like Maroon 5’s “Harder to Breathe” or Train’s “Calling All Angels” is anything but predictable. The band breaks its song selections down and reconstructs them from the ground up. “Direct translations don’t work,” Megibow says. “If there is a way to make it work, we haven’t found it.”

What he means is that taking the song as originally recorded – having bass Kelly echo the bassline, Megibow the drumbeat, and the rest the guitars, keyboards and lead vocals – doesn’t add up to a satisfactory arrangement. “Something else has to develop in the music,” Megibow says.

Face uses a wide variety of tools, from gospel harmonies to hip-hop breakdowns, to keep its music fresh and interesting. As such, it’s a tremendous challenge for the band member who chooses to try to adapt a given song.

“Most of our arrangements were done in a few nights of hard work, because the arranger was inspired and loved the song,” Megibow says, adding that members of the band usually work alone on arrangements.

Face is, however, beginning to experiment with writing compositions of their own. One singer might come in with a hook or melody, and the rest will try to complement and expand upon it.

Although the Face repertoire has expanded to some 25 songs, the band is beginning to play lengthy gigs during which they need to perform every single one. Plus, there’s constant pressure to develop new material for “repeat customers.”

One of the most interesting aspects of Face’s sound is Megibow’s remarkable ability to keep a strong beat coming using only his mouth over the course of a five- or six-minute song. He says there’s a trick to it.

“Some sounds are produced on the intake of breath. It takes practice just like anything else,” he says. “Now I could do it forever…Well, eventually my mouth might get dry.” - Longmont Daily Times-Call

When you see the all-vocal rock band Face, your first job is to lose all preconceptions of a cappella music. Forget old-time gospel-hour tunes. Ix-nay on boat hats, candy-striped shirts and suspenders. In fact, if you check out the singers’ website to form an expectation, you won’t find the phrase “a cappella” anywhere. That’s because this sizzling group of seven guys just might be the original a cappella iconoclasts, busting the typical image to smithereens as they create a sound and style all their own.

“When people start thinking a cappella, their brain goes in a certain direction: doo-wop, vocal jazz, gospel or college a cappella,” says Mark Megibow, a former drummer and now Face’s vocal rhythm section (beat-box). “But that’s not what we’re doing.

“I start by saying we’re an all-vocal rock band, with six guys using the full range of what the voice can do to create sound, not (just) singing. It doesn’t sound choral, even though (the music is) all coming from the voice.” Clearly, the guys are hitting the right note, because audiences all along the Front Range are packing Face shows night after night. “We’re a live act, first and foremost,” says Megibow. “You listen to our CD, and there’s even a promo (video) you can watch, and it’s a little closer to what we are, but it still doesn’t get the point across. Not until you’re there at the show do you get this … ” He falters.

“We don’t know how to describe it,” he finally admits. “But we don’t question it because there’s something really cool going on. How do we appeal to all audiences, all ages? I have no idea. It’s not something we would have considered that we could do.”

But appeal they do. Teens, young adults, middle-aged, old — every listener becomes a happy vessel for the go-for-it attitude that Face pours into every song.

“Somewhere along the line we realized that we’re reaching people in a very real way, and it’s humbling,” Megibow says. “God, I wish I could explain it in a way that didn’t sound righteous. But every demographic comes up after the show and says to us, ‘You’ve inspired me to … ’ fill in the blank: relearn something I once knew, pick up an instrument, learn (beat) boxing. And it’s happened so many times now that we’ve taken it on as a mission, to share this with as many people as possible.”

These guys have it going on, and their horizon is bright.

“Obviously, we’re all performers, and we all fantasize about being household-word rock stars,” Megibow laughs. “But that would be the gravy. What inspires us is the fact that there’s some kind of magic going on. We so enjoy each other, we so enjoy making music, we so enjoy performing, we so enjoy our audiences, and we have so much fun. That’s what comes across so clearly to the audience, and they become a part of it.” - Elisa Bosley, GoColorado.com