Christian group to bring crunk sound to Hawthorne Theatre

Dance ’til you die.

That would be the most accurate way to describe the Atlanta band Family Force 5 (not to ment­­ion being one of their album titles).

The band will soon be heading to Portland to perform at 7 p.m. Thursday at Hawthorne Theatre, a place where guitarist Derek Mount said he and the band love to perform.

“Portland is one of our favorite cities,” said Mount. “There’s something about Portland and Portlanders that’s really cool.”

Fusing elements from electronic, dance, and post-hardcore genres, Family Force 5, often shortened to FF5, is a Christian “crunk” rock band from Atlanta, Ga.

Given their unique musical style, it’s no surprise that the band is famous for over-the-top and eccentric live performances where they often don wacky costumes.

The band was created by the three brothers in the band — Solomon, Jacob, and Josh Olds — who originally played in a boy band called “The Brothers” before the creation of FF5.

Mount said, “They decided to change up the sound and met with the (current keyboardist).”

Asked how the band writes its music with so many different sounds, Mount said, “All five of us write. Everybody has different tastes. It certainly plays a big factor,” he said.

“We draw inspiration from visual imagery as well.” They like to look at different kinds of art, getting inspiration from that, as well as cartoons, he said.

As far as lyrical inspiration, Mount said, “Relationships are a huge source of inspiration for our lyrics,” explaining that by being on the road non-stop, you don’t get to spend nearly enough time with your loved ones.

The band also actively participates in the creation of their music videos.

Mount said they have been meeting recently to discuss what they want in music videos they will be releasing.

The band just released a new album, “III”, in October.

Comparing the new album to earlier efforts, Mount said, “It sounds like Family Force 5,” but he said there are some new sounds in the mix. “There are more serious songs, and there are still the tongue-in-cheek songs.”

Although the new album has just recently hit the shelves, it hasn’t stopped the creative juices from flowing, and Mount said they are already writing new music while on the road.

This winter, the band will be performing their third annual “Christmas Pageant” concert and will play numerous songs from the Christmas album they released several years back.

Mount said one of the most rewarding things he and the band get from creating their music is changing people’s lives. He said they have seen numerous examples of when fans were going through tough times and have looked to the group’s fun and party-like music as a form of encouragement.

“Our music delivered them from that,” said Mount. “That means a whole lot more to me than a chart number.

“We love to create and share something with people, going on stage and watching everyone go nuts,” he said.