Take a stroll down Santa Monica Pier, and you’re extremely likely to come across a group of young musicians jamming out in the vein of hard rock legends such as Metallica, Ozzie Osbourne, and Ronnie James Dio. More than just a talented ensemble, there is a deeper bond between them.

They’re Liliac, and they’re not just Rock and Roll, they’re family.

The five-piece band is made up of the Cristea siblings; three brothers and two sisters ranging from ages 11 to 19.

According to Melody Christea, the band’s formation is credited to the family patriarch.

“It all started with our dad; he actually is a music producer,” said Melody. “He was the one that created band. Basically, he gave us all instruments that we fell in love with, and then we found our genre of music and we fell in love with what we are doing right now.”

Father Florin Cristea, 39, also serves as the band’s manager.

He says that his kids “grew up around the studio.”

“I saw that they had a talent, that’s how it started,” said Florin. “I said for everybody to be involved, they had to play an instrument. So, I assigned each one an instrument, took them to Downey Music Center where they took lessons for three years, and then from there the band started.”

“At the beginning I was trying to give them an activity…if they stayed home, they’d just play video games every Saturday and Sunday, so on the weekend when they have no school there’s a chance to be out there performing.”

The Cristea’s are a common sight at Santa Monica Pier, having performed there most weekends for the past several years and drawing crowds of a couple hundred people while establishing their fan base.

Liliac consists of 19-year-old lead guitarist Samuel, 18-year-old drummer Abigail, 17-year-old frontwoman Melody on bass guitar and vocals, 12-year-old Ethan on rhythm guitar, and youngest brother Justin, 11, on keyboards.

The band name translates to “vampire bat” in Romanian, where the siblings’ parents are from; Florin even claims to have been born not far from the Castle of Dracula.

In addition to giving up most of their weekends, the Cristea children are also home schooled in an effort to dedicate as much time as possible to their music. Samuel, Abigail, and Melody also graduated early at 16 to free up precious rehearsal time.

The band’s number of fans has steadily grown with over 48,000 subscribers on YouTube, 20,800 followers on Instagram, and 8,400 likes on Facebook.

These fans also include a well-known member of an iconic rock band.

“Stewart Copeland – he’s the drummer for the band The Police – he’s a big known drummer,” said Abigail. “I still remember the day he came over and jammed with us; he got on my drum set and played. He’s an overall nice person, and he’s a fan of us so that means a lot.”

“It’s very insane. It’s mind-blowing.”

“He rides his bike every weekend by the pier and he saw us many times and stopped and filmed us secretly,” added Florin.

This led to an opportunity to be featured in a documentary alongside Copeland, which aired on BBC 4.

In addition to the upcoming documentary, Liliac is also looking forward to the release of their first original album, “Chain of Thorns.”

“The album is coming out on Jan. 25. It’s our first original album; there’s going to be six songs,” said Abigail. “We’re really excited for it.”

Creating their own music – of course – has also been a complete family effort.

“Basically, it starts with the riff. I’m the guitarist so I come up with the guitar riffs, then we show everyone. If they like it [Abigail] comes up with the groove,” said Samuel. “My dad and Melody come up with the melody lines for the songs and then we come together to write the lyrics. Then if we think the song is really good then we record it.”

“We try to write relatable songs that everyone can relate to.”

“Sometimes they have their differences,” added Florin. “But we always go for what is the best thing for the band. That is the final decision.”

Beyond all the exciting developments immediately imminent for the band, the group hopes to continue making music and to expand past the Santa Monica Pier.

“We want to keep making music and touring the world,” said Samuel. “Gaining more fans, the rock and roll life.”

For more information, visit www.liliacband.com.

Family band Liliac turns it up to eleven with first original album