On March 29, Postmodern Jukebox transported the Osterhout Concert Theater back in time for an electrifying night of modern hits performed in an oldies style.
As part of their “Life in the Past Lane” tour, the traveling band transformed pop songs like Madonna’s “Material World,” Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy” and Sam Smith’s “Stay With Me” into jazzy, bluesy tunes from the 1920s to 1950s. Featuring talented multi-instrumentalists, Postmodern Jukebox delivered tap dancing, powerful vocals and backing instruments ranging from saxophone to guitar. The show brought audience members to their feet throughout the performance, with the master of ceremonies establishing one rule for the night, “You have to party like there’s no tomorrow.”
Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox was formed in 2011 by Bradlee, a pianist from New York City. The Postmodern Jukebox website identifies the band’s objective as, “to remake the pop hits of today into the classic sounds of the legends of yesterday.” Postmodern Jukebox has grown into an acclaimed production since then, having played over 1,000 shows across six continents. Their cover of “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus, featuring singer Stella Katherine Cole, has amassed 1.8 million views on YouTube since its release on March 23.
The band opened the night with an upbeat cover of “Thriller,” including unique accompaniments such as banjo, trombone and tap dancing. The performance then continued with a set of rotating singers and musical introductions for each band member. Set numbers included creative reimaginings of “The Power of Love” by Jennifer Rush, “Uptown Girl” by Billy Joel, “Burn” by Ellie Goulding and even the “Super Mario Bros.” theme song.
The performance remained fast-paced and ever-changing throughout the night, revealing the band members’ multiple talents. In a rendition of “Happy” by Pharrell Williams, a singer played three trumpets at the same time.
Janmariz Deguia, a freshman majoring in human development, wrote about the musicians’ dedication to their show.
“The performers were so impressive,” Deguia wrote in an email. “It was hard to know where to look because even with the star of one song, the backup musicians were always as entertaining. They all seemed so passionate about what they were performing. It really helped the audience connect with the music and [Postmodern Jukebox].”
Audience participation added a unique feature to the concert. The show encouraged audience members to stand, clap their hands and engage with the songs as much as possible.
Lisa Sokol, ’04, was an usher for the event. Sokol said audience participation brought a new energy to the show.
“The show was very engaging,” Sokol said. “I loved how every performer really brought each of the audience [members] in.”
Amber Rhodes, 24, of Nashville, serves as the front of house engineer and assistant tour manager for Postmodern Jukebox.
Rhodes said the show was more than just a concert, due to its theatrical nature and appeal.
“It’s almost theatrical in that there are different cues happening throughout the show,” Rhodes said. There’s an emcee, there’s a tap dancer, different singers for different songs. We’re also constantly switching out different singers for different shows, so it just keeps things exciting.”
Rhodes said working with Postmodern Jukebox has been “great,” and described what makes the team unique.
“I really enjoy working with them,” Rhodes said. “They’re a really nice group of people — they’re really funny. I like that we’re diverse and there’s a bunch of women on the tour as well, which I enjoy a lot. This is actually my first tour, so I’m really excited to work with them.”
The performance concluded with a few extra numbers to keep the show going for a little while longer. With songs ranging from a heartfelt rendition of “Angel” by Sarah McLachlan and a thrilling version of Imagine Dragons’ “Radioactive,” Postmodern Jukebox blended modern tunes with the sounds of a bygone era to create an entertaining, unique musical experience.