Singing in Jacob Collier’s World of Sonic Imagination
Jacob Collier was born in 1994 and grew up in North London. From a very young age he was musically influenced by his family. Collier’s mom was a violinist, conductor, and professor of music, and his grandfather was also a touring violinist. Jacob’s first foray into publicly releasing self composed music was through Youtube videos. He uploaded reharmonized compositions of “Pure Imagination” from the original Willy Wonka film, and "Don't You Worry Bout a Thing" by Stevie Wonder in 2011 and 2013, respectively. The latter of which caught the attention of Quincey Jones.
Since then, Collier Has released five albums: In My Room, Djesse Vol. 1, Vol 2, Vol 3, and Vol 4. Collier frequently utilizes complex harmony and reharmonization, and his music is influenced by sounds from all over the world. Categorizing his music is a difficult task, as it spans many genres and sonic landscapes. Jacob Collier’s music bends the rules regarding what music typically sounds and feels like, and his live performances surpass the typical expectations associated with live music. To see Jacob Collier live is not just to hear him perform his songs, but to experience a musical celebration in which everyone is involved.
Collier started the show at Aragon with high energy songs off of his most recent album, Djesse Vol. 4, accompanied by a full band. The beginning of the show was electrifying. Song by song, he tuned the energy all the way down to “Little Blue”, which he began alone with his guitar. As the song continued his background vocalists joined him for harmony. Jacob continued to command energy throughout the show. It was a testament, not only to his mastery of dynamic involvement, but his ability to keep people engaged. In addition to keeping things energetically dynamic, Collier played several renditions of popular songs, such as “Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon and Garfunkle and "Just the Way You Are" by Billy Joel. These covers allowed there to be something for everyone, even those in attendance who had not listened too much of Jacob Collier’s original music.
Many of the songs performed differed from their recorded counterparts. Instead of simply reciting the songs off of the album, they were full of embellishment, tempo changes, and harmonic improvisation. You never really knew what was coming next, which made it feel like being led on a sonic journey. The performance was full of surprises not only sonically, but visually too. For example, the lights matched the album covers for their respective songs. During the performance of “Time Alone With You”, bright beams were shone onto two disco balls hanging from the ceiling, giving the appearance of stars all around, similar to the album art of Djesse Vol. 3. Later in the show, two large inflatable tube men (like the ones outside of car dealerships) popped up on either side of the stage.
One huge highlight of Jacob Collier’s performances is audience engagement. Not only did the audience sing along, but Jacob quite literally conducted the audience in song. It started with simple claps, then rhythmic vocalizations bouncing between the left and right sides of the audience. By the end of the show, the entire audience was singing three part harmonies, led by Collier. Writing about this aspect of the show does not do it justice. To be a part of the music that you enjoy listening to, joined by thousands of people all around you, encompassed in the beautiful sound of the human voice, all the while being led by none other than Jacob Collier, is an incredible experience.
Jacob did not talk too much during the set, as the music seemingly engaged the audience more than sufficiently. Although he did at one point talk for a short while about the building blocks of music being similar to those of life, and how strange and weird our collective human experience is. He talked about the importance of listening to music and each other, and how the world needs to remain open and communicative, especially in its current state. I cannot recite everything that was said, but it was quite moving and felt as though it brought everyone together even more than we already had been.
Jacob Collier’s live performance can be summed up by a comment I heard from a woman who was standing nearby: “It’s like a movie,” she said to the person she was next to. I wholeheartedly agree with this statement. The show was like being cast in a film in which everyone, not just the big star, had an important role. It was like one of those feel-good movies that moves you into a place of happiness and joy. Everyone was so moved, in fact, that the space where we were all standing quite literally turned into a dance floor after the last song. I would participate in this movie a hundred times over, and highly encourage anyone considering to do the same.