Family Groove Company
Encyclopedia
Family Groove Company is an unsigned American four piece jam band
based out of Chicago
, Illinois
. FGC tours heavily and as of June 2006, they have played in 28 states totaling over 400 shows.
, California
. It wasn't long before they recorded their first demo recording and began performing throughout Southern California. The band began touring quite a bit throughout the Western U.S. with regular appearances in San Diego, San Francisco, and Portland
, Oregon
. In Spring 2002, the band released their 10-track debut album, Reachin'
.
With the number of markets available to the band limited by the vast expanse of the American west, in the fall of 2002, FGC made the decision to relocate to Chicago
, Illinois
. Since then, the band has pursued an aggressive touring schedule that has included headlining performances, "opening band" exposure opportunities, and high profile appearances at festivals like Summerfest
, the 10,000 Lakes Festival
, and Summer Camp Music Festival
in Chillicothe, IL.
After playing almost 400 more shows and adding over 50 songs to their playlists since their first release, FGC released their second studio album, The Charmer
, on April 25, 2006. The Charmer was recorded at Studio Chicago, in Chicago
, Illinois
in December 2005 with overdubs in January and February 2006. All that touring produced numerous songs. In all, fourteen songs made the cut and are on the album.
, with the more traditional song structure and consciousness of the hook revolutionized by the Beatles. FGC has avoided the jam band
formula of the hip-hop/funk
/rock
groove
combined with endless guitar solos. Their focus has been to supplement their passion for improvisation with an attentiveness to composition. FGC feels that compositional coherence and ingenuity are every bit as important as the "jam" that has come to be the namesake of their genre.
Jam band
-Ambiguity:By the late 1990s use of the term jam band also became ambiguous. An editorial at jamband.com suggested that any band of which a primary band such as Phish has done a cover of be included as jam band. The example was including New York post-punk band Talking Heads after Phish performed...
based out of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. FGC tours heavily and as of June 2006, they have played in 28 states totaling over 400 shows.
History
Family Groove Company (FGC) started out in January 2001 when Adam Lewis (guitar) and Jordan Wilkow (keyboards) met Janis Wallin (bass) and Mattias Blanck (drums) while studying music at the Musician's Institute in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. It wasn't long before they recorded their first demo recording and began performing throughout Southern California. The band began touring quite a bit throughout the Western U.S. with regular appearances in San Diego, San Francisco, and Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
. In Spring 2002, the band released their 10-track debut album, Reachin'
Reachin'
Reachin', released in 2002, is the first studio album from the jam band Family Groove Company.-Track listing:#"Agenda" – 5:19#"Just Like I Planned" – 5:48#"Christy" – 6:29#"As Abe Was Walking" – 8:01#"Flowers for Gisa" – 3:57#"I'd Sing" – 6:04...
.
With the number of markets available to the band limited by the vast expanse of the American west, in the fall of 2002, FGC made the decision to relocate to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. Since then, the band has pursued an aggressive touring schedule that has included headlining performances, "opening band" exposure opportunities, and high profile appearances at festivals like Summerfest
Summerfest
Summerfest is a yearly music festival held at the Henry Maier Festival Park along the lakefront in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. The festival lasts for 11 days, is made up of 11 stages with performances from over 700 bands, and since the mid-1970s has run from late June through early July, usually...
, the 10,000 Lakes Festival
10,000 Lakes Festival
The 10,000 Lakes Festival was an annual four-day music festival in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, at the Soo Pass Ranch that was held since 2003. 10KLF is currently on hiatus due to financial losses and was not held in 2010. Its name refers to Minnesota's nickname, "The Land of 10,000 Lakes"...
, and Summer Camp Music Festival
Summer Camp Music Festival
Summer Camp Music Festival is a jam music festival held each Memorial Day weekend at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe, Illinois. Developed by concert producer Ian Goldberg of Jay Goldberg Events & Entertainment, the first year of the festival was 2001...
in Chillicothe, IL.
After playing almost 400 more shows and adding over 50 songs to their playlists since their first release, FGC released their second studio album, The Charmer
The Charmer
The Charmer is the second studio album by American jam band Family Groove Company released on April 25, 2006. It was recorded at Studio Chicago in Chicago, Illinois in December 2005...
, on April 25, 2006. The Charmer was recorded at Studio Chicago, in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
in December 2005 with overdubs in January and February 2006. All that touring produced numerous songs. In all, fourteen songs made the cut and are on the album.
The music
Family Groove Company integrates the groove sensibility developed by James Brown and Herbie HancockHerbie Hancock
Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock is an American pianist, bandleader and composer. As part of Miles Davis's "second great quintet," Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the "post-bop" sound...
, with the more traditional song structure and consciousness of the hook revolutionized by the Beatles. FGC has avoided the jam band
Jam band
-Ambiguity:By the late 1990s use of the term jam band also became ambiguous. An editorial at jamband.com suggested that any band of which a primary band such as Phish has done a cover of be included as jam band. The example was including New York post-punk band Talking Heads after Phish performed...
formula of the hip-hop/funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
/rock
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
groove
Groove (popular music)
Groove is the sense of propulsive rhythmic "feel" or sense of "swing" created by the interaction of the music played by a band's rhythm section . Groove is a consideration in genres such as salsa, funk, rock, fusion, and soul...
combined with endless guitar solos. Their focus has been to supplement their passion for improvisation with an attentiveness to composition. FGC feels that compositional coherence and ingenuity are every bit as important as the "jam" that has come to be the namesake of their genre.
Discography
- Reachin'Reachin'Reachin', released in 2002, is the first studio album from the jam band Family Groove Company.-Track listing:#"Agenda" – 5:19#"Just Like I Planned" – 5:48#"Christy" – 6:29#"As Abe Was Walking" – 8:01#"Flowers for Gisa" – 3:57#"I'd Sing" – 6:04...
(2002) - The CharmerThe CharmerThe Charmer is the second studio album by American jam band Family Groove Company released on April 25, 2006. It was recorded at Studio Chicago in Chicago, Illinois in December 2005...
(2006) - Models and MetricsModels and MetricsModels and Metrics is the third studio album by American jam band Family Groove Company released in 2008.-Personnel:*Janis Wallin - Bass and Vocals*Jordan Wilkow - Hammond B-3, Rhodes, Piano, and Vocals*Adam Lewis - Guitar...
(2008)
External links
- Family Groove Company (official site)
- Family Groove Company collection at the Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
's live music archive