The Rockville LP, the highly anticipated new release from O.A.R. (Of A Revolution) can be classified only as infectious, delicious music. Call it pop rock, call it Adult Top 40, call it anything you want, but you WILL call it fun and listenable. From the opener Two Hands Up to the closing sounds of I Will Find You, it’s clear that Marc Roberge and friends have done it again, this time with an issue that will appeal to both established fans and first-time listeners. The entire CD is filled with “radio friendly” ear catching tunes that will have you dancing in your seat as you drive, or tapping your toe as you listen at home or at work, and there’s really not a bad song on the entire CD.
Produced by CMA and Grammy award-winning Nathan Chapman (Taylor Swift’s Fearless), The Rockville LP is as smooth and technically flawless as it gets, and half the songs were co-written by Chapman, an accomplished writer and session musician in his own right. The first thing one notices when looking at the track list is that the songs are arranged in order of ascending length, with the first five tracks all clocking in at under four minutes, and the two longest songs at the end. There’s a bigger reason behind this, as the entire CD is about 45 minutes in length, what one would expect from a vinyl record, and indeed the rumor mill has it that The Rockville LP will indeed be a part of the “vinyl renaissance.”
Musically, the group changes beats and sounds from a few slower tunes like the advance hit Peace to the almost anthem-like closer. Roberge is as adept as a story-teller as he is as lead singer, and there were more than a couple of occasions that Jerry DePizzo’s saxophone was reminiscent of something from Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band. The Architect was a deliciously jazzy tune about hope, and Caroline The Wrecking Ball was a fun-filled romp down a back country road, top-down wind in your hair fun even while knowing you’re going to run out of gas at some point along the way. Yes, Caroline leaves in the end, but you knew it would happen all along and you still didn’t care, because you were having way too much fun in the meantime.
O.A.R. The Rockville LP Album Pros & Cons
Pros:
- Infectious and delicious music
- Smooth and technically flawless production
- Great variety of catchy tunes
Cons:
- Lack of groundbreaking new styles.
- May not appeal to all music tastes.
- No clear standout songs on album.
O.A.R. went back to the basics for this effort, and while it’s not Earth-shattering with new styles, it’s definitely a showcase for the band doing what they do best: having fun and playing one catchy tune after another. If you’re a fan of the band, or simply a fan of something you can pop into the CD player and forget about everything else til it’s over, this is the CD for you. Songs about love, songs about hope and songs about simply feeling good. Available on Vanguard Records, O.A.R. has done what fans have hoped for: a new collection of music that will brighten your day and keep you in a good mood for a long, long time.
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