A musical concoction with a twist: Straight No Chaser performs at Van Wezel

Straight No Chaser is known for (among other things) putting on great live shows, so they’re always a treat to see.

But the end of the year is probably the best time to see them. Like it or not, mid-November now counts as the beginning of the holiday season, and SNC does the holiday season better than almost all other musical ensembles.

The nine-man a cappella group first made a splash with a holiday album in 2008, “Holiday Spirits,” and three of its six full-length albums have been Christmas records (including “Christmas Cheers” in 2009 and “I’ll Have Another ... Christmas Album” last year).

But if you’re not ready for Christmas, SNC’s Thursday night show at Sarasota’s Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall ought to be safe. It’s not billed as a holiday show, and the group has plenty of non-Christmas material to choose from.

Their albums include startlingly fresh versions of old standards (“Over the Rainbow”), Motown classics (“I Want You Back”), country standards (“Jolene”) and hits by such acts as Queen, Beyonce, Oasis, Adele and Leonard Cohen. So expect a lot of those songs and more like them, probably with some holiday stuff in the mix.

Whatever the song selection, count on phenomenal singing, inventive harmonies and tasty arrangements.

Details: 8 p.m. Nov. 16, Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. $49, $61, $66, $76. 941-953-3368, vanwezel.org.

This story was originally published November 15, 2017 at 2:37 PM with the headline "A musical concoction with a twist: Straight No Chaser performs at Van Wezel."