At first glance, the Gregory Brothers might look like any other musical act out there. For much of their performance at Ohio State on Monday night, they even sounded like one.
That is, until they started singing along to an auto-tuned video of Charlie Sheen.
The group, made up of siblings Andrew, Michael and Evan Gregory – along with Evan’s wife Sarah Fullen – played the Ohio Union Performance Hall on Monday in an event held by the Ohio Union Activities Board.
The group is most famous for its series of auto-tuned viral videos such as “Double Rainbow Song,” “Bed Intruder Song” and the “Auto-Tune the News” series. However, it opened its set on Monday with a handful of original songs it wrote far before its Internet fame.
David Taffany, a graduate student in molecular biology, said he enjoyed these unfamiliar songs.
“It’s kind of just the style of music that I like,” he said.
The Gregory Brothers’ stop in Columbus came in the middle of a national tour. While onstage, band member Evan Gregory said that getting a show of their own in Columbus gave them a chance to slow down for a bit.
“We’ve been touring on a giant bus, just coughing on each other and getting each other sick,” he said. “We wanted to indulge ourselves a bit tonight and share with you a bit of the Gregory Brothers’ history.”
After playing this original material, the Gregory Brothers started performing live versions of the Internet videos that made it famous. It was at this point the crowd grew livelier. When the band played “Double Rainbow Song,” the audience was invited to sing along.
“I thought the crowd was a little small, and it kind of took a while to warm up,” Taffany said. “Once they got into their video stuff it really took off.”
Matt Baird, a second-year student in electrical engineering, said he loved the entire show.
“It was incredible,” he said. “They were really personable with us, and it made us part of the experience.”
Taffany said he thought the live show was a better experience than sitting at home watching YouTube videos.
“I like hearing their voices and the harmonies they put out,” he said. “There’s just more energy when it’s live.”
Karthik Hari, a second-year student in electrical engineering, agreed that the live performance was preferable.
“I’ve seen their stuff online as well, and seeing them live is a whole different experience,” Hari said.
It was not disclosed how much the Gregory Brothers was paid for its performance.
