3/22/07 Stoutonian, "Jazzy jam band continues to redefine its sound" - Self described as “groove informed jazz/rock,” FGC blends tight, clean compositions with rich, thick grooves and simple, infectious funk. Although defined as a jam band, FGC creates a music all of their own that is uncannily fresh, intelligent, and jazzy. Click here to read entire article.
12/19/06 Jambands.com, "New Groove of the Month" - Possessing a stronger mix of grooves, tight songwriting content and a nod to the jazz elements of Steely Dan, the album and subsequent live shows have spread the band’s name to an ever-expanding audience. Click here to read entire article.
7/10/06 Jambands.com, "Vince Herman and Kris Myers Join the Family" - Over the weekend, Chicago's Family Groove Company invited a number of notable guests to the stage. During its late night set at Auburn, IN's Indiana Jam Bash Thursday, Vince Herman jumped onstage, adding to a vocal jam during FGC's organ driven instrumental, "Byron's Got the Time." Then, on Saturday, during Family Groove Company's set at Urbana, IL's Canopy Club, Umphrey's McGee's drummer Kris Myers joined FGC for an inspired rendition of the jazz/funk classic, "The Chicken." Click here to read entire article.
6/9/06 JamBase.com, "Summer Camp 2006: Bringin' da heat!" - This Chicago quartet is the best example I've heard of what it means to play as one. Their sensitivity towards each other's sounds is the un-fakeable product of honing a tight technical backbone and then improvising. Yet, unlike many players with high technical prowess, arrogance is totally absent in this band, and it makes it all the more enjoyable. Click here to read entire article.
2/23/06 The Spectator, Eau Claire, WI - "All
the world feels the groove" - Family Groove Company prides itself
on its live shows and its exploration of self and the audience. "There's
pleasure and satisfaction on a very personal level as I explore melodic
ideas in a solo, or hear a new tune come together for the first time,"
Wilkow said. Click
here to read entire article.
12/2005 Take One, De Kalb, IL - "In good company: The Family
Groove Co. loves its jam" - The grooves are derived from the
"jam-band" sound that the FGC displays throughout the Midwest and beyond.
Click
here to read entire article.
9/21/05 Jambands.com, Review of F.U.N.K. Festival - Family Groove Company welcomed the weekend of F.U.N.K. with their practiced, imaginative tunes. They strutted their way through a few numbers, flexing a new appreciation for rock along with their danceable funk, and pumping a ton of energy into their straight-beat version of ‘So What?’ Click here to read entire article.
9/1/05 Quad City Times, Rock Island, IL - "Family Groove is, isn't a jamband" - “When we were in school, pretty much all of us to varying degrees, were interested in jazz and jazz performance. Improvisation has really been at the heart of what we love about music for a long time,” Jordan said. Click here to read entire article.
7/21/05 Huntsville Times, Huntsville, AL - "No
senseless jamming in this family's Groove" - FGC receives musical
inspiration from two requisite jam band influences, Steely Dan and Herbie
Hancock's Headhunters, but the group adamantly maintains a credo of meaningful
improvisation rather than absurd jamming. Click
here to read entire article.
6/26/05 Jambands.com - "Summer Camp Festival
Review" - The quartet is a microcosm for what a band must do
to sound memorable: play as one. F.G.C. made playing together sound and
look as simple as it's said. The group tastefully unleashed high energy
funk, rock and soul, driving the surrounding crowd at the Camping Stage
to kick up huge dust clouds. Click
here to read entire article.
2/22/05 The Vermont Cynic, Burlington, VT - FGC's commitment
to their craft shows in all of their work. The humble group concentrates
first and foremost on music, unwilling to prostitute their talent or become
clouded by the distractions polluting the industry - just good people
making good music. Click
here to read entire article.
