Taking August

The one sticking point for my husband when we started planning our wedding was he wanted a live band. As you can imagine this does not come as inexpensive as a DJ. We were also concerned that the venue we had picked was very small and a larger band and sound was going to be too much for the guest list we had. We came across Taking August on wedding wire and watched a few of their videos they had done. The sound they have for only being a 2 person acoustic band was outstanding. We interviewed a couple other bands but ultimately were sold on Taking August due to their range of songs, their sound and because they included both ceremony and reception music in one package. Looking on their website you can see they become booked up very quickly and we knew we made the right choice. Kelsey and Daniel played our ceremony beautifully and the reception was outstanding. I am so thankful my husband convinced me to get a live band for our wedding and I am more thankful we picked Taking August to be part of our day. I would hire them again in a heartbeat if given the chance.

We got a ton of compliments about the music at our wedding - Taking August played a wide variety of music and were willing to learn everything we requested for no extra cost. They are very talented musicians! The only issues we ran into with Taking August was that they are not super communicative - they did not ever ask for a list of music we wanted for key moments or for a list of the type of music we enjoyed. They were very receptive and easy going when I sent this over to them but be prepared to take some initiative on this front. They also had to be cued by our photographers that it was time for our first dance despite having that info ahead of time - not a big deal at all but again just something to keep in mind. Overall we were really happy with the music at our ceremony, cocktail hour and reception and received a ton of compliments from our guests!

We knew we wanted a live band for our small wedding. We didn’t want a large band but something more intimate. Taking August was perfect! These two took over the room and had everyone either dancing or singing. Our wedding was intimate and casual and these two fit right in! So talented and very friendly and flexible. We HIGHLY recommend this amazing band!

We hired Dan & Kelsey for our whole wedding in August 2017 and they were a big hit! We had wanted live entertainment for the wedding but as we only had 30 guests we didn't want a full 5 piece band. Taking August was the perfect fit but in all honesty they could no doubt entertain a much larger crowd.

They were great at the ceremony and as my husband and I were not very organised we left it to them to choose most of the music and they did an exceptional job. They played for the drinks reception and although we didn't personally get to enjoy this, all guests gave raving reviews and said they loved the music selection performed and knew and could sing along to most songs and they were even up dancing.

They played the fist half of the evening live and the second half they DJed as requested by us and kept the dance floor busy even with only 30 guests.

The only thing I would do differently (which is of no fault of the band) is have them play more live music as we (the bride and groom) missed out on a large chunk of it due to wedding portraits. Maybe having live at the beginning of evening then some DJing for them to take a break and then maybe another session at the end would have been better or plan the day so that we could have heard some at the drinks reception. If I have any advice for those getting married it is to strongly consider this when planning what you want for entertainment.

My only tip regarding correspondence is to use Facebook Messenger to correspond with them as they seem to check this more and are more responsive to any queries.

They were fabulously talented and great value and would hire them again in a heartbeat. I 100% would refer them to anyone looking for some great live music entertainment and hope one day we get to hear them perform again!

Thanks Kelsey and Dan!

Jamie & Richard
ELK VIEW LODGE

We hired Taking August to play for a backyard wedding. What can we say - they were a huge hit. Many people complimented us on the band and everyone wanted them to play longer which they obliged. We found them to be professional and extremely talented. They played a great selection of music that they choose plus for the wedding itself they did a wonderful job on the songs the bride and groom picked. We felt that the cost was more than fair and their talent far exceeds their price. We still have people asking us how we found them. We would have absolutely no hesitation in hiring them again or recommending them to our friends and family to hire. Colleen & Ron. August 12, 2016

We hired Taking August for our wedding, and we couldn’t believe how amazing they were! Their musicianship was seriously incredible. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a cover band this good. They are very easy going and even learned two songs we specially requested! I would hire them again and again and again! Best decisions we made for our wedding!

My fiancé and I hired this band for our wedding and we could not be happier. They played the full day (from the ceremony until the end of the dance) and had everyone up dancing! They are incredible talented instrumentally. We had numerous of our guest comment that they were the best part of the day! I would hire these guys back in a second! They are very fun and easy to work with! Definitely will be hiring them again for a party!

Taking August was a huge part of our day! They worked with us to Tailor a playlist for the ceremony and learned all of the songs for that. We had so many comments of how beautiful the music was at the ceremony. They also had also saved us the money of rentals by supplying microphone and sound system for us to use at the ceremony. With that, the videographer was also able to use an input to their sound system to get direct voice from the microphone without disturbances. To follow they went out to the reception early enough to set up before cocktail hour, again setting up a microphone to their sound system for speeches as well as a direct feed for the videographer. They are a dynamic duo who play a wide range of genres and are very versatile when it comes to feeling the crowd for the appropriate music. They played beautiful soft music during dinner as background music and rocked it out keeping the dance floor packed all night. Following the first dance I had planned singing a song with the band, they learned this song and helped me to wow my new bride! They played a perfect combination of classic rock, country and new music with a unique own spin on everything they play. We found them to be very flexible mixing in a playlist we had built for a nice mix of Live and DJ music. They are both such fun and genuine people to be around and we thank them so much for making our wedding entertainment second to none. I believe this was one of the best parties I have ever been to let alone it being my wedding, putting my personal bias aside we were also told by many guests the same thing. Would highly recommend to anyone! Huge thanks again to Taking August !!!

Amazing sound and so friendly. Lots of back and forth from them to ensure we knew and they knew what we wanted. They also learned songs for us that sounded amazing.
Wedding guests couldn't stop complimenting and talking about them.

These guys are awesome! I saw them at one of their shows in Cypress and I wasn't leaving until I asked if they'd do my wedding! Everyone loved them and was definitely the highlight of everyones night!