A good bluegrass band can light up a room with speed and precision. A great one makes it feel like you’ve been invited into an inside joke, a shared history, a community.   

Full Cord has that rare combination of jaw dropping musicianship and easy, welcoming chemistry, and it’s been the engine behind their steady rise from West Michigan favorite to national touring standout. 

If you’re looking for a band that can honor bluegrass tradition and push it forward without breaking the spell, Full Cord belongs on your short list. 

Based in Grand Haven, Michigan, Full Cord began in 2008 and took its name from a moment every working band recognizes: an early show pile of instruments that inspired Eric to crack, “Looks like a full cord of wood sitting there.” It’s a fitting origin story for a group that brings real fuel to every stage. 

That fire caught on nationally in 2022, when Full Cord won the Telluride Bluegrass Festival Band Contest and followed it by earning the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Momentum Award (Band of the Year). 

The band has continued to build momentum with records that blend high level picking, harmony singing, and modern songwriting sensibilities. Their releases include Choreomania (2019), Hindsight (2021), and the Dark Shadow Recording album Cambium (released November 2023). 

2 new songs released summer of ‘26 with Billy Strings have grabbed attention with that Michigan bluegrass relationship between friends. 

Onstage, Full Cord is anchored by Brian Oberlin (mandolin/vocals), Eric Langejans (guitar/vocals), and Todd Kirchner (bass), expanding into a full, festival-ready sound with top tier fiddle and banjo players recent tours have featured acclaimed banjoist Max Allard and Chase Potter on fiddle. 

Billy Strings had this to say: 

Sometime in 2011, I moved away from my hometown of Ionia and headed up to Traverse City to see what kind of trouble I could find. I worked at a local hotel for a while before I got the call: I was on the clock, but I picked up anyway. The fella on the line said he was a bluegrass musician, and he expressed interest in playing tunes with me at some point. I was excited to make some new friends and meet some of the local pickers in the area, but I didn’t know I was walking into the inferno. At that first get-together, I met Paul Kirchner, who is a great banjo player and a walking encyclopedia of all things bluegrass. I quickly realized his kids are musicians, and his kids’ kids will probably play too. I was invited to stay for dinner and to come back and pick any time. I ended up hanging out with the Kirchners and their extended musical family quite a bit. They introduced me to Eric Langejans, and we hit it off pretty quickly, discovering our shared love of Flatpicking-guitar and the smell of flowers. Playing bluegrass music into the wee hours of the morning with them at bluegrass festivals across the region was a common occurrence. Shortly after I met Todd, we did a gig or two together, and Eric was always around singing and playin’ the hell out of that guitar. These fellas know some great tunes. It’s such a blast to make music with them, and it’s exciting to see what they’ve been up to over the last few years. I’ve noticed Full Cord ignite with rock-solid vocals, repertoire, and mandolin mastery of Brian Oberlin. The first play-through of this album made me want to grab my axe, drive up North, meet up with these guys, and jam till tomorrow morning like we’ve done so many times before. I don’t need to though, because songs on this record transport me back home. 

-Billy Strings

THE BAND 

ERIC LANGEJANS - Guitar / Vocals

Eric is a multi-instrumentalist with an exceptional ear for music. He has been in many bands including local favorites Down Home and Woodpile. Affectionately called “Fast Eric” by his peers, his lighting fast riffs on the guitar leave you wondering what he’s going to do next. Eric also plays mandolin and fiddle when the need arises. He has recently performed on stage with John McEuen of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. 
 

TODD KIRCHNER - Bass

Todd has played bass since his early teens and grew up picking bluegrass with his dad and brothers. He got his first upright bass from his dad as a Christmas gift and has not put it down since. He has played bass in many bands and has a deep appreciation for all types of music which you can hear in every performance. 
 

BRIAN OBERLIN - Mandolin / Vocals

Brian is an internationally acclaimed mandolin player and educator. During his decades-long professional career, Brian has been playing swing, bluegrass, and Italian classical as a solo mandolinist and vocalist. Brian celebrated the release of his 20th album in May 2016; Troubadour which features Brian playing solo and singing original music. Along with the myriad of award-winning bands (The Journeymen, GER Mandolin Orchestra with Mike Marshall and Twin Mandolin Slingers with Evan J. Marshall) and ensembles he has collaborated with throughout the United States and Europe, Brian is also the founder and director of the River of the West Mandolin Camp, the Great Lakes Mandolin Camp and the Oregon Mandolin Orchestra. Brian was a top ten finalist at the 2013 Telluride Troubadour Contest, an instructor/performer at the 2012, 2013, and 2017 International Mandolin Academy in Italy, a featured soloist at the 2014 EuroFest Plucked String Festival in Bruchsal, Germany, and a featured soloist at the 2015 Mandolin Upgrade festival in Berlin, Germany. When he is not performing, Brian teaches music to children and adults at art centers, cultural events, festivals, camps, music schools, and academies.  

More info on Brian can be found at www.mandoberlin.com