Paul Lannon may have graduated from DU, but his heart is still on campus. Specifically it’s with the Idiosingcrasies, the a cappella group Lannon led during his last three years at DU.
“I am so sad. Honestly, it’s been my favorite thing at school for the past four years,” says Lannon, who has gone on to join two Denver-area a cappella groups — Confidential and the 17th Avenue Allstars — since graduating in early June.
“It was the thing I looked forward to most and put all my time and energy into,” Lannon says. “The group means a lot to me, and I’m definitely sad to be graduating from that.”
Luckily, Lannon has something to show for all the time he spent rehearsing, arranging and performing with the group: The Idiosingcrasies’s debut album, DUly Noted, was released at the group’s spring concert in May. Featuring all-vocal renditions of songs like Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” Guns N’ Roses’ “Sweet Child O’ Mine” and KT Tunstall’s “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree,” the album was five years in the making and features various incarnations of the group on each song. It is available in CD format now via the Idiosingcrasies website and should be on iTunes by the end of June.
Lannon says the album cost $20,000 to produce; funds were raised through concerts, contests and private donations. It was recorded at Denver’s Sonic Audio with noted vocal music producer Tony Huerta.
“We’re very fortunate that he worked with us because he is arguably one of the best a cappella mixers and engineers in the country,” Lannon says. Huerta has worked with NBC a cappella singing competition “The Sing-Off” and Denver’s Harmony Sweepstakes contest, as well as doing live sound for past “Sing-Off” winners Nota and legendary a cappella group Take 6
The Idiosingcrasies have big plans for the CD, using it as a calling card for bigger concerts and maybe even a “Sing-Off” audition. They’re also submitting it for possible inclusion on the prestigious Voices Only compilation, which features the best college a cappella groups each year. And Lannon says he’s heard nothing but good things from fans who have picked up a copy — some of them amazed by the real-band sound the group achieves with its mix of singing and vocal percussion.
“We have gotten nonstop response from people,” he says. “The latest one I just got today from one of my friends was, ‘I got your album and I was really excited to hear it, but I was expecting a cappella.’ And I told him, ‘It is a cappella; there are no instruments in there.’”