They are Rock and Roll Stars, and they probably went to your high school: Virginia Coalition is a five-piece band from Alexandria that seems to be pathologically addicted to incessantly touring the East Coast. A heightening local buzz and a steadily growing national fan base greet the release of their third album, "Rock and Roll Party."
VACO made a name for themselves largely through their spirited live performances, but unfortunately they have yet to find a way to capture that intensity on record. Their last album, "Townburg," was plagued by the annoying yet recurring tendency of groove-oriented jams bands to simply try too hard to tap into its elusive live energy. Tactics like call-and-response passages, let's-repeat-the-chorus dynamic shifts, and look-at-him-go conga breaks don't work nearly as well in the studio as they do in concert. Thankfully, the band has taken a more detailed approach on "Rock and Roll Party," and the songs are presented as polished and capable of standing on their own without relying on its live conventions.
For the most part, that is. "Jerry Jermaine," a recent fan favorite, boasts all of the aforementioned vices and even adds a crowd that is so overwhelmingly cooperative that one has to question its authenticity. Still, fans from way back when will be thrilled by the introduction. Hint:Think Stephen Hawking and pickup lines. It is a charming addition, but cannot make up for the conspicuous absence of the superb new salsa-tinged song "Gates of Wisdom." The raucous romp through "Martha Lu" recalls the concerts as well -- this time, however, because it is VACO-style country worthy of standing alongside the legendary "Wichita" and being included in great mid-set party.
This is a good thing, too, because the title track, "Rock and Roll Party," is nothing of the sort. It's a derivative, noisy, low-class blues concoction that grates on the nerves with its inane lyrics and third-rate attempts at Chuck Berry guitar riffs. It's astounding that they chose to draw attention to this track by naming the album after it, unless some perverse inside joke exists.
Guitarist and vocalist Steve Dawson's voice remains VACO's biggest weakness. The appeal of his juvenile singing, when there is any at all, is preciously out of place like Billy Corgan's, but with twice the coyness, a third of the emotional range and none of the grit. Singer Andy Wonder, on the other hand, has a pleasantly thunderous set of lungs, and by comparison makes it seem even harder to believe that Dawson has gone through puberty. Unfortunately, Wonder's vocal presence on "Rock and Roll Party" is minimal (indeed, practically nonexistent compared to past albums) and Dawson apparently felt quite comfortable taking over. It's a shame, because it both keeps a great singer away from the mic and also makes it all the more likely that we'll soon be hearing (you guessed it) another conga break.
There are a number of quality songs on the album, and unsurprisingly most are sung by Wonder. "Come and Go" and "Johnny Wonder" highlight VACO as the life of the party, while they bring on the funk in "Stella" and bring on the folk in "This Is Him (Hurricane Song)." Dawson miraculously manages to hold his own on "Referring Rosarita" and "Maggie in the Meantime," but usually makes for a forgettable frontman.
"Rock and Roll Party" is roughly on par with "Townburg," which translates to about 1/3 success, 1/3 promise and 1/3 disappointment. VACO may not yet be making wholly remarkable albums, but thus far they have made three good additions to any Rock and Roll Library and honed the art of performance to an admirable degree. That's good enough for now.
* * 1/2
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