When rhythm guitarist Tim Lochner hosted an open mike at a bar in downtown Madison, Wis., he never thought a band would form.
After talking to a talented drummer who was looking to take his music to the next level and participating in a few more open-mike nights, the People Brothers Band was born.
“[It was] me and the drummer, and the next thing you know down the line, we added a percussionist, keys, a guitarist, and a female vocalist,” Lochner said.
The band, now consisting of seven men and one woman, has successfully toured around the Midwest and Colorado. It will play for an Iowa City audience at 7 p.m. Friday at the Yacht Club, 13 S. Linn St. Admission is $7.
Lead vocalist Teresa Marie said she loves being able to brighten the mood of everyone in the room.
“If people have had a terrible day, they could come to one of our shows, and they could forget about the troubles they had throughout the day,” Marie said. “We try to bring the love we feel in music and portray that.”
Marie described the goup’s sound as mostly soul and blues, with some Southern rock ’n’ roll.
Because the People Brothers Band has eight members, it gives the group a chance to expand the sound by adding congo and bongo drums, and a saxophone.
Lochner said he was always a fan of larger bands because they provide many more options.
“I naturally gravitated toward an eight-piece band, the differences and the textures that you can have and the energy you bring is something else with a bigger band,” Lochner said. “It’s hard to be at one of our shows and not dance.”
Another reason Lochner loves having eight people in People Brothers Band is the many different influences and inspirations that come out of each member.
“We all bring a different musical background,” Marie said.
The different musical backgrounds provide numerous tastes. Keyboard player Bobby G uses lyrics to bring his experiences to life as the group’s primary songwriter.
Bobby G said he has been writing songs since he was 16 and uses some of those songs for the band.
“Sometimes, I make up a song, sometimes, [a song] has a reflection on my life,” he said. “It usually starts with a chord change that I like, then I’ll sit down with that chord change and develop an idea of what I want the song to say.”
As an experienced lyricist, he knows exactly how to put a song together, but sometimes, the best songs are intuitive.
“The ones that I put less thought in always turn out to be the best and the ones that are keepers,” Bobby G said.
