Blue Plate Special: ThePETEBOX

Winner of both the 2005 BBC Radio 1 Beatbox Championships and the Channel 4 Talent Awards in the UK, ThePETEBOX uses loop pedals, his voice, and occasionally a guitar to create his music. I first discovered him in early 2012 because of his cover of ‘Where Is My Mind’ by the Pixies, one of my favorite bands. His videos have tens of millions of views, and he’s toured extensively over the years. In December of 2012, I flew from Seattle to the UK for a technology event (SharePoint Saturday Nottingham) and was able to catch his hometown show in Nottingham. I brought along my oldest son, Preston, who had also become a huge fan. After connecting with him through social media and letting him know we were flying over to catch his show, Pete was gracious enough to meet us in the pub at the venue. He gave us a signed CD of his first album and a t-shirt, and dedicated his last song to us (Where Is My Mind) up in the balcony. It was an amazing show, and both Preston and I continue to be fans of his 5 studio albums and ongoing live performances from around the world.

Here are some PETEBOX essentials:

Where Is My Mind – from the album Future Loops (2012)

This was the song and video that got me hooked – a cover of The Pixies single, the original of which was featured at the end of the film Fight Club. All sounds created by Pete’s beatboxing, vocals and guitar through 2 Kaoss Pads and loop pedal. Another video that is all recorded live in one take with no pre-recorded sounds or anything added post recording… it’s all live!

 

Cherry Blossom Girl – from the album Songs From the Vaults (2017)

Cover of the song by the band Air, with the video shot in one take. Incredible!

 

Crimewave – from the album Future Loops (2012)

An amazing cover of the song by the band Crystal Castles, all in a single take.

 

Skydive – from the album Use The Fire (2018)

An original song recorded for his 5th studio album. This version was recorded live for The Beat at the BBC.

 

Wishing With You – single with violinist Yasmine Azaiez (2018)

From his 2018 collaboration with violin virtuoso Yasmine Azaiez, including beatbox, voice, loop pedal and violin.

 

Fly Like Aces – single from the ATP World Finals Soundtrack (2016)

This is the official music video. The song was written for the ATP Tennis World Tour Finals. The video directer, Duncan Trevithick, used a process of 3D depth capture to create a 3D image of Pete that reacted to the music.