Things get funky this weekend in Oak Bay.
Oak Bay Tea Party 2014 headliners, Groove Kitchen, brings its brand of funk to the Upstairs Lounge Friday night.
“It’s a funk band so that’s maybe for this city a little bit different,” said keyboardist Adrian Chamberlain. “What we do is sort of contemporary and older stuff.”
They’ll blend James Brown and Neville Brothers with some more contemporary funk that they cherry pick from, such as Bruno Mars’ Treasure or Hot in Here by Nelly. Then they add goofy tunes for a laugh like Gettin Jiggy With It by Will Smith.
“We’re trying to make it entertaining, but it’s based in this funk … the rhythms are a bit different,” Chamberlain said.
Groove Kitchen is a funky, soulful dance band so they really do hope the audience gets jiggy.
“It’s really fun if people dance. This is not so much dinner music, where you sit back and enjoy,” he said.
They’ve been around about three years but have packed in some serious gigs aside from the Tea Party, Groove Kitchen also appeared at Swans in Victoria regularly. They’ve also played the city’s jazz festival and dragon boat festival in the Inner Harbour.
“All the musicians are experienced guys, which is nice to play with,” Chamberlain said. “It’s a fun band, all the guys have a similar sense of humour … We have fun – hopefully that translates.”
The Victoria-based band had some recent changes in the horn section, now Groove Kitchen’s lineup includes David Anderson on guitar and vocals, Pedro Arbour on drums, Chamberlain on keyboards, Steve Moyer on bass, and Eric Hughes on saxophone.
”It’s made it a bit smaller of a group, a bit more cohesive,” Chamberlain said.
Groove Kitchen performs Oct. 24 at 7:30 p.m. (doors at 6) in Oak Bay Recreation’s Upstairs Lounge, 1975 Bee St. Tickets are $12 in advance at Ivy’s Bookshop and Oak Bay Recreation or at aconridgeproductions.com online. Tickets are $15 at the door. Get a taste of the band at groovekitchen.weebly.com.