WED Feb 20: Family Groove Company Live

Chicago’s Family Groove Company will be cooking up some funk/jazz at the Aquarium on Wednesday February 20.

This musical foursome made their debut in the area at 2006’s 10,000 Lakes Festival. Their comfortable sound has earned them wide audience appeal since they first rolled out their chops in 2001 on the West Coast.  While studying at the Musicians Institute in Hollywood, Jordan Wilkow (keys) and Adam Lewis (guitar) met Mattias Banck (drums) and Janis Wallin (bass).  They began writing songs and touring southern California. Soon, they had enough material to record their first album, Reachin’ (2002). 

The band relocated to Chicago a year later and have since toured throughout the country, catching other festivals such as Farmapalooza, Feel Good, and Summerfest. They also have chalked up a truck load of club gigs. Last spring, Family Groove Company released their second studio album, The Charmer. They have also distributed 35,000 copies of live recordings. This month, the band proudly unveils their first official live album, Live From Chicago. They will be showing off cuts from that album, many are already fan favorites, along with some unrecorded material. 

The music they make is fresh, dynamic, and always a good time. This is due to the interplay of Lewis’s intricate guitar runs with Wilkow’s keyboard work. Longtime collaborators, Lewis and Wilkow connected at the University of Iowa and both decided to leave their families back in Chicago and make the long trek to LA to hone their chops.

Adding a solid rhythm section, Wallin and Blanck filled out what was missing between Lewis and Wilkow. Wallin, originally from Pennsylvania, had played with a number of bands on the East Coast across a wide range of genres, from bluegrass to hip-hop to jazz to rock. Though Wallin has a background in classical piano, she picked up the bass easily, and soon found herself at the Musicians’ Institute not only learning depth with her instrument but also teaching bass. Her bass runs are more melodic than just rhythm because of her piano background.

Meanwhile, Blanck’s journey to the Musicians’ Institute was colorful. A native of Helsinborg, Sweden, he toured Europe with the Helsinborg Marimba Band. He later became the Music Director of the Swedish Army Drum Corps. When he ended up in LA, he quickly rose as one of the best and busiest drummers in the school, making him in high demand for a number of projects. Lucky for us, he chose the Family Groove Company as the vehicle to add his talents.

This summer, the Family Groove Company’s dance card is already filling. Not only is the band touring non-stop, but it is already confirmed to play Summer Camp 2000 in Illinois and Wakarusa in Kansas.  And, the four musicians are already working on another studio album, which is scheduled for a fall release.

Catch the Family Groove Company, tomorrow, Wednesday, February 20, at the Aquarium. The show starts at 11pm with a $4 cover at the door.