Family of the Year Jams to the Beat of Their Own Drum

Saturday, March 13, 2010, at the Beat Kitchen

By Lily Hansen
Published: March 19th, 2010 | 8:05pm

Wearing their trademark California cool look of shorts, Frye boots, and artfully disintegrating T-shirts, Los Angeles-based folk-pop band Family of the Year headlined an early St. Patrick’s Day show at Chicago’s Beat Kitchen. Despite arriving to dreary skies, the West Coast gang brought a much-needed dose of sunshine to the Windy City with their cheerful songs and charming attempts to engage the drunk-as-skunks St. Patty’s surviving audience members. (“So you guys have been out drinking all day? Ahh, those are my favorite days,” kidded lead singer Joseph Keefe.)

Keefe and singing counterpart Meredith Sheldon kicked off the set with the playful, tambourine-heavy “Stairs,” the namesake of a neighbor’s letter complaining about the band’s late-night shenanigans. The irresistible chemistry between the lead singers was obvious in the adorable “Feel Good Track of Rosemead,” a light-hearted pop song mimicking a squabble between a young couple who agree to disagree on just about everything. The song, like most others, features a collaborative singing effort of the “family members,” including drummer (and only real-life sibling) Sebastian Keefe and pianist Christina Schroeter.

Only after seeing FOTY perform live can one truly believe the deep-rooted affection the musicians hold for one another, from their subtle onstage hints of encouragement, to their tunes sweetly-titled after their fellow band members. Refusing to pose as musicians who believe their music can save the world, FOTY is forthright about their desire to create positive, upbeat folk music, which frankly, doesn’t even need every song title to make sense. (“I’m pretty sure the name has nothing to do with the song except we drank a bottle of wine while writing it,” joked Sebastian Keefe about the Woodstock-era sounding track “Chugjug.”)

Ending the night with “Jamesy,” aptly named after guitarist Jamesy Buckey, the California crew bid Chicago farewell with their lyrical reminder, “Tomorrow’s Sunday Morning.” While the audience may not have welcomed thoughts of the Monday morning blues, if they were in the least bit savvy, they had bought a copy of the band’s latest EP, Through the Trees, filled with enough feel-good tunes to get even the crabbiest 9 to 5-er to crack a smile.

--

For more photos, visit Venus Zine’s Flickr page.

Family of the Year official site

Family of the Year MySpace