Vandoliers, the alt-country sextet formed a decade ago in Dallas, is, perhaps, the region’s most reliable purveyor of wheels-off good times.
That rowdiness is tempered, somewhat, by life’s realities on its gripping, sharply realized fifth studio album, Life Behind Bars. By cannily blending the moving coming-out story of singer-songwriter Jenni Rose as trans with its trademark fusion of punk, country and Latin sounds, Vandoliers has delivered its best record to date, which drops June 27 on indie label Break Maiden Records (which is distributed by Thirty Tigers).
“It’s heavier than our other stuff,” Rose said in a statement. “Why is this country punk band that’s usually a source of positive energy so melancholy? It’s because I was dealing with accepting my gender dysphoria, while also trying to get sober.”
Rose’s journey is acknowledged in language those unfamiliar with her story could easily mistake for a tale about a worn-down outlaw: “On the edge of oblivion/Sick of the cell I been living in,” Rose sings on the title track. “Hope’s a dangerous game/It drives me insane/Some birds can’t be caged/Still won’t fly away.” The band enlisted several long-time collaborators as co-writers, including Joshua Ray Walker and John Pedigo.
The urgency and vigor with which Rose and her bandmates — Cory Graves, Trey Alfaro, Dustin Fleming, Travis Curry and Mark Moncrieff — play the songs hasn’t diminished, and the band teamed up with Grammy-winning producer Ted Hutt to record at Sonic Ranch in Tornillo.
Some of that impassioned energy is part and parcel of Vandoliers’ sound and feel, but the band is also independently releasing Bars, and crowd-funded the money needed to work with Hutt in west Texas.
“We’ve been breaking rules in country for 10 years,” Rose said in a statement. “‘You play too fast.’ ‘You’re too loud.’ ‘You sing too high.’ ‘You’re more of a punk band.’ All that matters, though, is that people hear our songs and they help them in any way — that’s all we can hope for. I’m struggling so much on this record, but I hope that another trans girl listens to it and finds something in it for themselves.”
Tireless road warriors, Vandoliers is already touring behind Bars and will spend the summer crisscrossing the country. A sure-to-be-memorable homecoming for the six-member group is set for Aug. 16 at Oak Cliff’s Kessler Theater.
Vandoliers at Kessler Theater, Dallas. 7:45 p.m. Aug. 16. Tickets are $31.79.
Preston Jones is a North Texas freelance writer and regular contributor to KXT. Email him at [email protected] or find him on Bluesky (@prestonjones.bsky.social).Our work is made possible by our generous, music-loving members. If you like how we lift up local music, consider becoming a KXT sustaining member right here.
