Among an exciting lineup of activities during the weekend of April 23 was Loyola’s biannual, two-night Chordbusters show. Spirits were high as two a cappella groups, The Chimes and The Belles, shared their final performances of the year with sold-out audiences. McManus Theatre was filled with a special sentimentality during the Saturday night show, as six seniors performed with their groups for the last time.
As always, each group opened the night with a skit to get the crowd pumped for the entertainment to come. The Chimes, an all-male group, took this opportunity to show off their acting skills, and to get a couple of their members into dresses and girly wigs. The premise of their skit was a whodunit, as a group of guys visited a variety of locations on and off Loyola’s campus in order to get more information on who might have killed one of its members. The culprit wasn’t revealed until the very end, when one member in a motorized wheelchair stood suddenly and claimed that no one knew him as well as they thought, suggesting his guilt in the crime.
For the ladies’ opener, The Belles took this opportunity to create a twist on the “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” theme song, all the while donning vibrant ‘90s-style outfits. Singing their own lyrics, the group had fun moving around the stage and making shout-outs to many of its members, including the ones who returned after studying abroad the previous semester. The performance showed the girls’ creativity and ability to compose their own lyrics before taking on the songs of some great musicians.
After a minor intermission, The Chimes took to the stage, chanting the recognizable “ooga chaka ooga chaka” that prefaces Blue Suede’s “Hooked on a Feeling.” Other songs on the setlist included “Loving You Easy,” “Accidentally in Love,” and a couple of mashups including a combo of “Breakeven” and “Remedy,” as well as a mix of “Ain’t No Sunshine” and “Harder to Breathe.”
Halfway through the set, the younger chimes took a moment to honor seniors TJ Cook III and Ryan Glass, president and musical director of The Chimes, respectively. In between many embraces, humorous gifts were given to each senior, including a thrift shop CD that features Chordbusters music from the 1990s.
The love between members continued as Cook and Glass took on a rendition of “Guy Love,” a goofy song about the great “bromance” between Turk and JD in the medical sitcom “Scrubs.” The guys finished things up with a soulful rendition of “Brother” by NEEDTOBREATHE and Gavin DeGraw, proving the strong brotherhood that exists between the 12 men.
The Belles came on stage soon after, ditching their 90s wardrobe for spring-inspired dresses, with the four senior members wearing pink to differentiate themselves from the rest of the group. The set was softer in comparison to that of the guys, but The Belles proved yet again that they have the voices to give anyone goosebumps. Chart topping songs such as “7 Years,” “Ugly Heart,” and a fun mashup of “Roses” and “Sorry” were performed alongside deep songs such as Amy Winehouse’s “Back to Black.”
Similar to the guys before them, seniors Connor Sheehan, Jehan Slavin, Charlotte Williams, and Lindsey Bemis were honored with flowers and kind words from their fellow Belles before the seniors led a sentimental version of “Landslide.” Up next was “Rise Up,” a song that had been performed previously at past Chordbusters shows and during Relay For Life. To end the set, the talented group of ladies jammed to a throwback-filled medley of Britney Spears songs.
The Belles and Chimes came together for a final number, barefoot and a little bittersweet, performing Gavin DeGraw’s “Best I Ever Had.” The performance proved that the company of each group was truly the best they’d ever had, and that they will never be the same without each other.
Feature Image: Maria Appolonia Photo, Courtesy of Facebook URL
