WHO ARE THE TECHTONICS?
The Techtonics are a lower-voice A Cappella group from Imperial College London. Despite being entirely made up of STEM students, they have firmly established themselves at the top of the UK A Cappella scene and, thanks to their international tours and ICCA victory*, they are known far beyond their home country.
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So far, they have three studio albums, Groundbreaker, Clockwork, and the brand new Inertia (Live), two CARA nominations and one CARA award for ‘Best Male Collegiate Song’ for their version of Labrinth’s Earthquake. In addition to having a five-star sell-out run at the Edinburgh Fringe, they have toured the East and West Coasts of the United States, continental Europe, and even Hong Kong.
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As well as releasing their third album this academic year, they will be touring Spain in November, hosting the Open A Cappella Community in February and heading back to the Edinburgh Fringe in August.
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*Yes, that’s the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella, the competition the Pitch Perfect franchise is based off…
History
2008
Founding
The group was founded in the summer of 2008 by Christian Carter and Ed Brightman, who jointly lamented the lack of quality contemporary a cappella at Imperial College.
2010
First competition entry & Fringe tour
In 2010, The Techtonics entered their first competition: The Voice Festival UK, winning outstanding arrangement for Come Undone.
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The same year, the group unofficially went to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Why unofficially? Because at this point they hadn’t been recognised by the student union yet and so were technically on a “Croquet Society” tour…
Early 2010s
First studio album & international tours
Following the release of their first studio album, Groundbreaker, the group began touring internationally. Initially heading to Croatia in 2011, they soon made the United States their go-to destination: east coast in 2012 & 2013, California in 2014, and Northern USA & Canada in 2015. That same year, they released their second album, Clockwork.
2016
ICCA World Champions & Edinburgh Fringe
Having entered the competition just once before in 2015, The Techtonics made history when they became the first international group to win the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella in 2016. No other group from the international region (not North America) has won the title since.
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The Summer immediately after this, they returned to Edinburgh (this time officially) with their 5-star, sell-out show Don't Push the Button.
2017-2022
Tours & Competitions
With greater international acclaim following their victory in 2016, the group was able to tour in more regions, visiting Hong Kong in 2017 and heading to Switzerland in 2021 for the first of many mini-tours.
In 2020, they returned to the ICCAs, placing at the UK semifinals and releasing the single Chainsmoking.
2023
Tours & Inertia
Continuing on their successful tours, the group visited Switzerland for a week in April and headed to the West Coast of the United States in September. Between the two trips, they recorded their third album, Inertia, featuring songs from the past three years - including an archive rehearsal recording of I Wish I Was in New Orleans, mixed and mastered by our very own Tom Briggs.
2024
OAC & 44 Days
The Techtonics kicked off 2024 with a bang by hosting the Open A Cappella Competition 2024 at Imperial College London. As well as opening the show, they provided the interval act during the judges deliberation, where they previewed a segment of their Edinburgh Fringe Show.
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The show, 44 Days, centres around the ridiculous premiership of Liz Truss and was the brain child of Alex Christopherson. Cowritten and directed with Alex Li (together they were known as Alex²), it debuted at Imperial College Union on the 27th June and will be at Gilded Balloon Patter House from the 12th-26th August 2024.