A dozen years since Straight No Chaser debuted to the world after a cleverly comedic take on “The 12 Days Of Christmas” broke the internet, the vocal group is back to its holiday roots with a batch of tunes tailor made for 2020.

Granted, the guys who initially formed at Indiana University couldn’t get together in person to record the perfectly-titled “Social Christmasing,” but their flawless harmonies and playful banter nonetheless remain palpable throughout choice covers and humorous originals, all destined to raise the tally on over 100 million YouTube views and streams.

Coming off a warmly-received virtual residency, original member Steve Morgan and newcomer Jasper Smith let Chicago Concert Reviews in on the selection process, stitching together everyone’s parts, their role in the latest a cappella explosion and all the enormous opportunities its afforded these local college buds turned global celebs.

First off, great album title! How much brainstorming did it take to come up with “Social Christmasing” or was it automatic?

Jasper Smith: Thank you! There was a little bit of brainstorming involved. Typically, we have some sort of drinking reference in our album titles. We had gone back and forth for a few weeks on some ideas that none of us were very keen on. When “Social Christmasing” was thrown out, though, we all knew that was the clear winner.

With such a large body of Christmas work, how did you wind up choosing new covers for this collection?

Smith: The running joke in the group now is “okay, what songs haven’t we done yet?” But in all seriousness, it really is a collaborative process. We found ideas that we were all excited about and brought them to the table. If a majority of the group was on board, we went ahead either arranging them ourselves or working with an outside arranger. This is the same for our original songs. We have five original songs on this album, [which is] the most we’ve ever had! The writer [or writers] would record a demo and get approval in the same way. 

Counting Crows’ “Long December” was an especially interesting pick. Even though it’s not a Christmas song per sey, can you speak to its lyrical relevance during this highly unusual year?

Smith: The credit for that idea goes to our manager, David Britz. We all understand that this year has been tough for everyone. The natural conclusion that December brings every year, is that while it brings sadness, it also brings so much hope for the future, and that’s what we’re all focusing on. That’s the theme of this song. While it’s been “a long December, [there’s reason to believe] maybe this year will be better than the last.” We’re all so happy with the way that we’ve seen humanity pull together. We can’t wait to get back on the road and see all of our fans again, safely and responsibly. Also, although it isn’t traditionally a Christmas song, if you listen closely, we’ve added sounds and pieces of other Christmas songs that add some good relevancy for the holiday season.

What was your vision for the originals?

Smith: I wasn’t a writer of any of the original songs on the album, but Christmas [is] such an all-inclusive holiday, my vision and interpretation of them covers all of the bases of what Christmas means for all of us! Fun in “Snow Globe,” love in “I’m Your Snowman,” family in “What Christmas Means” and “The Cold Don’t Bother Me,” and even how we’ve managed to avoid those fun, sometimes questionable office parties this year in “Office Party Blues.” Our writers in the group are so immensely talented, we were able to come up with songs that really cover all of the bases of Christmas for our entire audience.

Can you describe the process of all recording from separate homes, as opposed to when you’re all together in the same place?

Smith: Overall, it was what I would call “apropos” for this year. We all have our own recording setups at home. With technology today, it’s so easy to make music from home. All I needed was a microphone, recording software and my laptop! That definitely made it easier in terms of scheduling when to record my parts. As long as we had a reference track, the sheet music, and correct tempo for each song, we could record on our own time. Inversely, it definitely had its challenges as well. It’s tough to replicate the fun atmosphere that we have when we’re all in the studio together. Also, it lengthened each recording process. Rather than getting immediate feedback on a line of music, we had to record, send it to the arranger/producer, wait for feedback, make changes accordingly, and then wait some more. But luckily, we were able to get the entire album recorded in just a few months!

Steve Morgan: When everything shut down, Straight No Chaser, like all other performers of course, had to cancel all of our shows. But we wanted to find a way to keep singing and entertaining people, because that’s what we do! So we began what we called our “Quarantine Sessions,” where we all sang from home and then put a video together of the performances in “Brady Bunch” boxes. There was a distinct learning curve as we did this, but we quickly became more comfortable with the process. 

Ultimately, it is similar to how we learn music before going out on tour. A member does an arrangement, sings all of the parts to demo the song, creates the sheet music, and sends both the paper, and audio copy, out to other members. To be able to record from home, we added a click track to what was sent so that we all entered and cut off together, stayed in time, etc. The results were great and our fans responded very well to these videos, so we were encouraged to keep at it.

We were due to get back in the studio in 2020, but once we realized that was an impossibility this year, we turned our attention to remote recording. We worked with a great producer, Kevin Killen, who is really knowledgeable of the technical aspects of recording. He was able to listen to each of our home recordings, give recommendations on gear or even just how to better set up our home studios. And we were off to the races!

What was it like to finally get together for your livestream residency?

Morgan: It has been fantastic to be back together. First and foremost, these are some of my best friends, guys I have known for over half of my life. But beyond the personal aspect, it has been so rewarding to get this music on its feet. Our show is and always has been about escapist joy, and this year, more than ever, I believe people need that. Each year at our shows, we hear how we have become a holiday tradition for families, so to be able to do these shows, and then go online and see families dancing together in their living rooms watching the shows, or kids singing along to their favorite song, quite simply, that’s why we do this.

Speaking of shows, the group is no stranger to Chicago, especially having started a mere state away. What comes to mind when you think of us? 

Morgan: Chicago is always a special place for us to perform. Because we started at Indiana University, the Midwest has always been a place where we really feel the love from the audience, and Chicago in particular, where there are so many IU grads. We always have a great time with the people there. From the Park West, to the Chicago Theatre, to the Civic Opera House, we always have a blast performing in “The Second City.”

Taking it back to the very beginning, Straight No Chaser are the OGs of viral YouTube stars. Your reflections on what that was like and where it got you? 

Morgan: Straight No Chaser was certainly lucky to be on the cutting edge of the YouTube platform. I always refer to it as the happiest of accidents. Randy [Stine] originally put the video of “The 12 Days Of Christmas” up for us to celebrate ten years as a collegiate group. There was no ulterior motive and the video sat there for nearly 18 months before things went crazy in December of 2007. It got seven million views, one of whom was the CEO of Atlantic Records, but watching the views climb was incredible. Each million was a huge milestone. I had the video sent to me at least three times by people who had no idea I was in it. I also remember doing a radio interview with a local station back in my hometown of Evansville, Indiana, and they asked, “what are you going to do next with all of this?” My answer was a very honest, “we have no idea!”

What role do you feel like you’ve played in the entire a cappella explosion of the 2000s?

Morgan: That’s an interesting question, because when I think about our beginnings, Straight No Chaser was founded almost in response to the strong a cappella traditions of the east coast and certain other small enclaves around the country. But when we came back together in 2008, a cappella was still very niche. There hadn’t been any “Pitch Perfect” movies. “The Sing-Off” hadn’t yet aired. We were at a time when production of music had become more computerized and processed than ever before. So when we emerged with not only an a cappella song, but a live performance of an a cappella song, there was, I think, a hunger for the purity of the voice, for something indisputably real. And hearing 1,500 screaming fans responding to every last thing during that performance made it even more so. 

I like to think that while we may not be the whole reason for the a cappella explosion of the last decade, we were catalysts to the powers that be, who saw what we were doing and acknowledged that a cappella was viable for commercial success. The overwhelming success of “Pitch Perfect,” and so many other shows, groups, etc., has then brought more focus on a cappella, making it more and more acceptable, and accessible, to a mainstream audience.

Give us a few of your ultimate “pinch me” moments from when the entire ride began to right now.

Morgan: We have had so many “pinch me” moments over the years, it’s hard to count them all. In 2017, we played Red Rocks in Colorado, which is a dream venue for any group. We were able to work with Mark Kibble of Take 6 as a producer for our album “Under The Influence” and now call the guys of Take 6 our friends. I wore out their tapes, yes, cassette tapes!, in middle and high school, so this was a dream come true for me. 

On our albums, we have performances from Sir Paul McCartney, Sir Elton John, Phil Collins, Stevie Wonder, Sara Bareilles, Kristen Bell, Seal, Jason Mraz, Dolly Parton, Colbie Caillat, CeeLo Green and Rob Thomas. Did we have dirt on all of them to make this happen? We’ll never tell now! We have traveled extensively through Europe, to Australia, and have performed on three of the Hawaiian islands, all thanks to a cappella!

[This year] has been so hard for so many people. While it has been difficult for us as performers, we have all been blessed to have remained healthy and had lots of quality time to spend with our families. But it has also been wonderful to be back on stage, performing for fans, and hopefully, helping spread some cheer this holiday season.

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For additional information on Straight No Chaser, visit SNCMusic.com.