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 Family Force 5 is one of those bands that
you know is going to be fun, even before you have heard their music. It just
sounds entertaining. And if the band name is not enough to convince you, then
surely the member"s "titles” will deal the deal.
Soul Glow, Fatty, Crouton,
Nadaddy, Chap Stique – come on, who isn"t going to want to part-ay with these
guys? A cursory glance at the boy"s MySpace page is enough to confirm this—the
colors, videos and (most importantly) music have little trouble in getting
your attention, and keeping it.
ACED Magazine caught up with the guys,
for a typically fun and insightful chat about life, religion and – of course –
music. Still skeptical about the group"s appeal? Then let the boys from Family Force
5 convince you themselves!
 Drawing upon a myriad of influences
(ranging from Eminem and Vanilla Ice to Elvis and the Beastie Boys), this
Atlanta-based group is an energetic blend of eclectic sound. Ask the band
themselves, their music is a concoction they have labelled ‘crunk’, “It’s Crunk Punk. Our fans would probably
say that we were Scream-y Dance Punk.” Sounds strange, I
admit it - but it works!
Forming in Atlanta, Georgia, the band’s
potential quickly became obvious to record companies, and it is easy to see
what all the fuss is about. The ‘family’ section of the group consists of
brothers Solomon, Jacob and Joshua Olds, with close friends Nathan Currin and
Derek Mount making up the five. The force; however, is most definitely in the
music!
As the band’s name suggests, the ‘family
element’ is an important part of the group’s dynamics and their music. “We’ve (Soul
Glow, Fatty and Crouton) been together for a long time. It is awesome because we feel like
we know what each brother is thinking while we are on stage. We all seem to
have been born with a passion for being over-the-top. Anything artistic drives
us crazy.” As with all families, however, the brothers are not immune from
outbursts of emotion. “We got in a fist fight a week ago on the bus,” they muse,
“but we put on some Hall and Oates music to calm us down.”
Music,
ultimately, is what brings all the boys together, but religion too plays a
major part in the lives of the Forcers. When faith is part of who you are and
how you live your life, the boys explain, it will naturally become part of
your music. “All I know is that we love Jesus with all of our hearts and we are
not ashamed of it. Replace Me is a very strong message about asking
God to take away selfishness and replacing it with Him. Love
Addict is about being addicted to Jesus.”
Bizarrely, the band was both praised
and criticized for their debut album not being overtly Christian. Such
criticism, however, has not affected the group’s approach to their music. “We
don't have many problems with people saying we are a Christian band or not. They
just know we Love Jesus and we have fun. Critics are funny people to us.”
Fun,
certainly, is one of the big appeals of Family Force 5. If you are a fan of
moody, introspective ballads or wistful melodies, then take your search
elsewhere. With a fast, energetic beat, Family Force 5
make you want to get up on your feet and dance till your feet go numb. The
atmosphere of the live performances, according to the guys, is a big reason for
the group’s continuing success, “The ability to laugh and have fun on stage while making music really
brings us together. We give 110% at every show. When you come to an FF5 show you
will never be cheated.”
Exuberant dancing displays may be common at
live performances, but remains confined to live gigs. “We only dance on stage. You couldn't catch
us dancing to our stuff at a club or concert or something.” When it comes to
other artist’s music, however, there are no such qualms – for those eager to
get their feet moving, Soul Glow recommends ‘New Jack’ by Justice, “because it
rocks hard and you can dance to it”. Words from the wise there!
With
much success and a legion of fans clamoring for more, what does the future
hold for these ‘crunk punk’ boys? “We are doing our first headlining tour
called the "danceRAWRdance tour" and then we start on the second
record. We would love to own Japan in 5 years.”
Beyond that, fans can expect more
of the same quality music, as the Family Force 5 boys continue doing what they
love the most. “As a group we would love to produce music that challenges
people to do something with their lives. We also want to play to a stadium full
of people all wearing silver hulk gloves.”
Silver
hulk gloves? Well, perhaps that’s something best left for the next interview!
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