This week’s warm weather is good news for The Coffis Brothers & The Mountain Men, the self-described “summer band” whose self-titled debut album is set to release Friday, June 17, with a concert at Don Quixote’s International Music Hall in Felton.
The five-man band features vocalist and pianist Jamie Coffis and vocalist, guitarist and harmonica player Kellen Coffis, backed by The Mountain Men — bassist Mason Hutchinson, lead guitarist Kyle Poppen and drummer Henry Chadwick.
All five band members grew up in the San Lorenzo Valley and graduated from San Lorenzo Valley High School.
Their music is built around traditions of rock, blues and American folk, a sound Jamie Coffis reluctantly labels as “classic rock.”
“We’re kind of old-school rock with a new twist,” he said. “A major influence for us was Tom Petty.”
Both brothers say they’ve been writing music for three or four years, whenever they were home from college on holidays and weekends.
“We’d end up at home a couple times a month,” Jamie Coffis said. “We found enough time.”
The brothers write an estimated 90 percent of the songs the group performs and share the lead singing duties.
“We’ve been listening to rock ’n’ roll our whole lives,” said Kellen Coffis, who recently graduated from Notre Dame De Namur University in Belmont. “It’s fun when you start to write your own.”
The group’s first live performance was in May 2010 and since then, they have performed in venues throughout the Bay Area, depending on which members — all college students — were in town.
The band’s biggest performance to date, the brothers agreed, was serving as the opening act in July for Peggy Young, Neil Young’s wife, when she performed at Don Quixote’s.
“That was the first time we played for a bunch of people that weren’t at our house before the show,” Kellen said.
The band’s debut album was recorded during four days in January at the Santa Cruz-based Gadgetbox Studios.
“We recorded it as live as we could,” Jamie Coffis said.
Kellen Coffis said it’s fitting that the album will debut in June, because Poppen, who attends college in Boston, will be able to join in.
“It wouldn’t be right to do this without Kyle here,” he said.
At a glance
What: “The Coffis Brothers & The Mountain Men” album release show
When: 7 p.m. Friday, June 17
Where: Don Quixote’s International Music Hall, 5275 Highway 9, in Felton
Cost: $10
Info: Don Quixote’s, 603-2294; or www.coffisbrothers.com
