FORK: PINK NOISE (FINLAND)
EDINBURGH FRINGE FESTIVAL
ASSEMBLY GEORGE SQUARE, EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND
Thursday 25 August, 2011, 18:05
Finland’s a cappella rock stars, Fork, have been breaking all the rules of a cappella since their conception in 1996. With a focus on stretching the boundaries of what is perceived as possible with a cappella, Fork advanced to performing professionally full-time in 2004 and just keep hitting new heights. Now one of Finland’s most popular a cappella groups, Fork have developed an enormous fan base from all walks of life. With an extensive Scandinavian touring schedule the group have also wowed audiences in New York, Dubai, Monaco and Stockholm. Full of every technical trick in the book their latest album ‘Pink Noise’ will blow your mind!
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Performing in outfits that are a cross between Eurovision and Lady Gaga, you know straight away that Fork is here to entertain! As consummate performers they’ve left no stone unturned to make sure their audience have that jaw-dropping ‘how did they do that?’ moment! Synced to precision with moving video screens, a fantastic lighting plot and every special effects pedal, voice modulator and distortion tool at their disposal their show’s success owes enormous credit to the fifth member of the group, their master magician of sound, Gregory Maisse. For the a cappella purists out there, Fork’s extremely tech heavy show is a long way from ‘singing in the church style’. All the technology not only enhances their vocal lines by creating a full and complex sound but also acts to hide any limitation in each singers’ own natural vocal tone and accuracy of pitch.
The four singers in Fork (Jonte Ramsten, Kasper Ramstrom, Mia Hafren and Anna Asunta) all embody the stage presence of Rock Gods complete with brilliant comedic timing and energetic choreography. Keep your eye out for Mia’s flexibility which allows her to demonstrate probably both the best high kick and back bend in a cappella! The hilarious antics during their Pink Noise show range all the way from Mia singing ‘I Kissed A Girl’ in pink knickers while striding around the stage with a whip in hand, to Jonte climbing over the audience during their mash up of ‘She’s Got The Look’ and ‘Hey Jude’, through to their version of ‘Thriller’ complete with a background film clip of Fork as monsters.
Set on the beach, their contemporary dance inspired film clip of ‘Hello’ clarifies any questions the audience had about whether Fork actually believe that they are their on stage rock God personas showing that they have in fact been taking the mickey out of themselves for the entire show! Using the video as a chance to sneak backstage and change costumes, Fork returned to the stage only to remind the audience that every sound during their show is performed live, leaving us wondering how they managed to change outfits while singing. Check out their YouTube video filmed backstage during ‘Hello’ to see how they pulled it off!
Never afraid of a challenge, Fork don’t simply take on some of the biggest rock and pop songs out there but once they’ve used every trick in the book, they re-write the rules, give it their unique a cappella twist and nail their performance to great acclaim!
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Reviewer: Amelia Alder
http://www.fork.fi
http://www.myspace.com/forkacappella
