The Hurricane Party - Cat. 2 (2023)

A hurricane party is an event that is common to people who live along the coastal United States. The party is held when a group of individuals decide to ride out an impending hurricane rather than evacuate. The group expects power outages, which will cause food to spoil if left in the refrigerator. Instead, everyone gets together and prepares the food in advance and brings other supplies that could be needed for an extensive stay. Alcohol is noted to be a common theme in these parties, but participants are to pace themselves, both because it is recognized the storm could require a lengthy stay and to assure that everyone is cognizant and ready to react to emergency information.

It is in that framework, that The Hurricane Party works. The band from Richmond, Virginia finds themselves caught in many windy situations from hurricanes that make their way up the east coast from Florida to Maine. As might be expected from the description offered for the actual party atmosphere of these events, a band so named is going to bring high energy to any event.

The group’s lead vocals are shared by Jenny “Buttafly” Vazquez and Rocky Pleasants. Rocky shares songwriting responsibilities with Rob Marlowe from Gainesville, Florida. Rocky selected the musicians that he felt fit his vision of a party band. Matt Walton on guitar, Noah Boyle on bass, and Kelly Strawbridge on drums, keyboards and percussion rounded out the sound that Rocky envisioned.

The self-titled “Hurricane Party” opens the album with a taste of the funk and explains the purpose of the party atmosphere occurring in the middle of a natural disaster. “I’m Alive in the Night” talks about bar hopping and parties that spills into the streets all with a quiet, salsa rhythm. “Hey, That’s My Jam” lets Buttafly jump out in a duet with Rocky while a funky piano blends in with a group of guesting horn players.

The first cover occurs with Cracker’s “Nothing To Believe in”, an all-out 80’s style rocker. The second cover, “Small Waist”, is a blues classic from The Nighthawks”. Mark Wenner guests on the song wailing on his harp. Matt Walton plays a 1939 Martin D18 acoustic guitar on a torch song, “The Flame of Love” which gives Buttafly the spotlight.

On “Monster Movie”, Rocky is rattled by perceived noises while watching a late-night scary film by himself. Rocky takes on a strained voice as he expresses terror as “The monster is coming behind you” and Rob Marlowe guests on a ripping guitar. The third cover, “Truth’ll Set You Free” comes from hard rock group Mother’s Finest and is given a funky approach with Buttafly again taking the lead vocals and Matt burning up the frets. Each of the four verses on “The Barry White Song”, a tribute to the soul singer, is alternately sung by Rocky, Matt, Buttafly and Kelli in that order. Guest Ben “Wolfe” White offers some funky keyboard on the song.

Sly and the Family Stone’s “Underdog”, found on that group’s first album, keeps the funk up as Kelli steps into the lead vocals. Buttafly moves back into the lead on another torch song, “You Gave Up on Us”. The song is noted as having been recorded on a particularly hot day with the air conditioning turned off which provided some extra intensity from the then 9-month pregnant singer. The horns return for the closing number, “The Fireplace” and features a mix of guitar and keyboards with Kelli driving a strong beat.

If funk is your thing and you need something to heat up a party, invite The Hurricane Party to your event.