Hurricane Party

The duo of rickoLus and bleubird are serving up an tipsy blend of soft rock and hip-hop they call "yacht rap"
Our recurring new music feature Origins tasks an artist with dissecting the inspirations that led to their latest song.

Hurricane Party is rickoLus and bleubird, a pair of prolific South Florida musicians who’ve amassed an impressive following via numerous solo projects and collaborations. Together, the duo make breezy, party-starting tunes that draw upon a tipsy blend of soft rock, electronica, and hip-hop. The duo describe it, appropriately, as “yacht rap.”

Longtime friends and only recently collaborators, rickoLus and bleubird say they entered the studio with designs on an EP, but emerged after a weekend with the bones for 10 songs. “It all just felt so fucking good,” bleubird told us over e-mail. Now, A mixtape is slated to drop with Wiener Records in October, and, in anticipation, they’ve shared lead single “LIVN”.

The track is, since you’re wondering, absolutely a reference to Matthew McConaughey’s Wooderson from Dazed and Confused. Just as the character does in Richard Linklater’s cult classic, the pair encourage listeners to stay L-I-V-I-N against a groovy beat fortified with a healthy dose of fuzz bass. In between, RickoLus delivers a soothing, seductive verse and bleubird offers up some predictably clever (and profane) bars. The chorus somehow manages to become more catchy as the song goes on, which is a good thing since the pair allow it to breathe during the song’s danceable outro.

Check it out below via its trippy music video, directed by Chris Hill of Digital Cypher Productions. It follows the pair as they don colorful mosquito masks, pound Modelos, and do business on an impressively majestic swan paddle boat. - Consequence of Sound

Eccentric duo Hurricane Party is here to remind us that the true essence of Florida is enveloped in its music, not in its mob film interpretations. Composed of rapper Bleubird and singer-songwriter RickoLus, Hurricane Party's appeal is found in the blend of soft rock, electronica, hip-hop, and much more in-between, creating a sound reminiscent of warm weather, palm trees, and drinking beer under the sun. Their newest track "Pamplemousse" is a perfect embodiment of this duo's carefree and celebratory ways of life, with the uniquely animated visuals premiering here today. Check it out below.
The visuals for "Pamplemousse" are addictively captivating in their ordered chaos. Strange and somehow fitting all at once, the video features newspaper and magazine cutouts of coastal sceneries and a blend of people, animals, and even fruit seamlessly moving along to the beat. Of course, it's hard not to move along to it. Composed of a hypnotizing sequence of drumming which is then effortlessly supported by soft guitar plucks and breezy vocals, it's an instantly striking single. The true charm of "Pamplemousse", though, is in the hook: "Girl| I'm all right| Taking our time| Settling down"- simple, smooth, and daringly catchy. Around the 2:45 mark, Hurricane Party gently remind us why they have penned themselves as "yacht rap" with an almost tropical break showcasing Bleubird (Jacques Bruna) weaving verses of lust and good times.

When explaining the origin story for the track and consequent video, the duo shares that "we were chilling at Johann Sebastian Bach's tomb in Leipzig, Germany. While sitting in the pew listening to someone play a giant pipe organ, Rick started dreaming about having sex in the cathedral. That was where the idea for this video started." Fearlessly cheeky and always sounding like they're having a good time, Hurricane Party's easy way of life will continue to be translated into audial gems with the release of their newest album on July 5th via Limited Fanfare Records, which you can pre-order today. - Earmilk

Any fans of deep Florida underground music are instantly familiar with the names Bleubird and Rickolus. South Floridian rapper Jacques "Bleubird" Bruna has for years been a leading light of a healthy Florida leftfield rap movement that includes the likes of Astronautilus and Paten Locke, and is a live favorite around these parts, while Rick "Rickolus" Colada is a delightfully skewed avant singer-songwriter with a gift for alien stage sets and onstage robots. And the thought of them collaborating is something that is simultaneously obvious and yet completely surprising.

The two came together as Hurricane Party during an impromptu recording session, with the only goal being, according to Bruna, "to make a bunch of noise and rock a bunch of shows." Mission accomplished in short order.

The two knocked out a clutch of infectiously weird numbers that sound nothing like anything either has been involved with and immediately booked a Florida, and then European, tour. Their joy in starting over and "cutting their teeth" with a completely new identity is just as palpable as their pride in repping their Florida roots. At one point during their conversation with Orlando Weekly, Colada summed up their aesthetic succinctly: "Super Florida, baby, we go from the top to the bottom." Bruna added, without missing a beat, "All counties represented."
How did Hurricane Party form?

Jacques Bruna: Rick and I have been friends for over 10 years. We met through Astronautilus. Rick grew up with Astronautilus, both of us have made lots of music with him, but for some reason Rick and I never thought to collaborate. Rick lives in Jacksonville and I live in Fort Lauderdale, and every time we've seen each other over the last couple of years, we'd say, "Hey man we should fuck around and make some music." That led to me finally rolling up to Jacksonville so we could go into his studio and record.

Rick Colada: It was meant to be something we'd do for fun. And very quickly we had sketches for 10 songs.

Was there are a sound or aesthetic you were going for?

RC: It took on a Florida vibe immediately. And then we came up with the name Hurricane Party, which was perfect because it's such a Florida-centric idea ... We talked to people on tour in Europe and they were like, "Is that a real thing?"

JB: And as far as Florida goes, [right now] I'm standing on a dock between two 300-foot yachts watching the sun go down and it smells like fried chicken and there's palm trees everywhere. This is Florida as fuck.

Thoughts on "yacht-rap"?

JB: When we started out, as a joke, we kept throwing the word "vape" around. We called ourselves "vape-pop." People were like what the fuck is that, and we were like "I don't know. It's cool right? It's vape-pop." But after one show someone came up to and said, "Y'all motherfuckers are yacht-rap." I mean I fuck with yacht rock ... It's not necessarily what we're trying to coin ourselves, we both just think it's a funny term.

You played Orlando recently, right?

JB: We played Lil Indies. Will (Walker) is a homie of mine, I used to live in Orlando and work at the old Will's. When I contacted them they were like "Oh yeah, you can play Will's." And I said, "This is a brand-new project. I'd rather play at Indies, and we'll make it free, We'll play a set and then DJ after." And Will was like, "Let's do it." We didn't leave the stage, we played and then DJed until closing. People just kept feeding us alcohols, fueling the fire.

RC: We like smaller shows. We have more fun playing in the crowd. Most of the time neither one of us is on the stage.

Will you be wearing the white jumpsuits on this tour?

JB: Fuck yeah we are. We did one show without them because they were filthy, and it just felt weird. We'll be able to wash them before we get to Orlando.

RC: We won't be that smelly. Or maybe we will?

JB: Maybe we will! That's the surprise. - Orlando Weekly

Accompanying press material pitches Hurricane Party as a yacht rap group. But you won’t find the Florida duo on a luxurious watercraft near Key West, lounging next to burly hip-hop behemoth Rick Ross, spitting rhymes about dirty guns and clean cocaine bricks.

No, sir. Instead, the pair – singer-songwriter RickoLus and rapper Bleubird­ – fuse elements of nerdcore, indie rock and synthwave into their own madcap concoction.
Nothing on Hurricane Party’s debut album Juice should work. Take “XOXOXO,” which starts out as a percolating, 1980s-style electro-pop duet between RickLus and guest singer Pink Chroline before a snappy drum break comes out of nowhere, prompting Bleubird to absolutely sledgehammer his eccentric raps into the mix. Yet the duelling styles synthesise into something offbeat but always gripping.

The group’s unrestrained rap-rock often sparks memories of alternative hero Mike Patton: check out the crisp drums and slimy-grimy production of LIVN. Elsewhere, Pamplemouse is a super-catchy, soft-filtered pop song, while the rumbling electronica of Orange Juice sounds like it could have been co-signed by A Tribe Called Quest’s Q-Tip.

The inclusion of the song Sunset Jet-Ski, which is knocking about online, would have added to the festivities. Still, this is one of the year’s freshest, freakiest surprises. - The Irish Times

The natural evolution of the “Yacht Rock” revival starts (and probably ends) with the self-described “Yacht Rap” of Hurricane Party. The supergroup comprised of Duval-native Rick “RickoLus” Colado and South Florida’s Jacques “Bleubird” Bruna continues its rein as purveyors of Sunshine State feel-good (and possibly feel-weird) jammage. Their new single “Hurricane Party!!!” is a zesty mashup of dance beats, hip-hop, acoustic guitar thrummery, and RickoLus’ singsong delivery offset by Bleubird’s whip-crack word flow. But like the duo’s previous work, “Hurricane Party!!!” is hardly a conventional dance-floor ditty.

Thunking congas rattling at Adderall-BPMs, a weirdly elegiac melody of symphonic synth-washes, and vocal effects that seem to tip the techno-hat to Ween and Gibby Haynes’ octave tweaking from old-school Butthole Surfers’ tunes will shake loose any neurons as much as any entice those reluctant wallflower bootys. Does the world need another dance-hop band? Probably not. Does the world need an electronic-happy band that morphs out pop influences into solid tunes? Yes.

There’s a certain humor involved with Hurricane Party but the comedy is inclusive rather than VIP. A lazy writer (unlike this exalted journalistic juggernaut) would call the band “meta.” But that descriptor needs to be shoved down an abandoned mineshaft under a merciless moonlight. Hurricane Party are surely self-referential in the sense that they’re breaking new ground by breakdancing on familiar, old terrain. Stomp onward.

On July 5, the band released their debut full-length Juice on Limited Fanfare Records, pressed on limited-edition vinyl and CD digi-pack, as well as digital download for those who like to buy music in their underwear whilst fat-backing on their vintage futon. So there’s no excuse to not hurl thyself into Hurricane Party’s undeniable groove vortex. - Void Live

When you merge two artists like Bleubird and Rickolus, who aren't just credentialed but also interesting, the results could be exponential. Well, that cross-Florida collab, Hurricane Party, is winding up and bringing heat. Even though his many years of distinctive work have earned him 24K street cred with the indie-rap cognoscenti and a spot on the vanguard roster of groundbreaking hip-hop label Fake Four (who recently released the landmark solo debut of Orlando star E-Turn), Ft. Lauderdale luminary Bleubird continues to be one of the most underheralded MCs alive. Still, despite being perennially underrated, he continues to blaze his singular trail with style and flair as one of the preeminent and most original rap voices to come out of Florida. Jacksonville Beach's Rickolus is the intriguing X factor. Although he's got credits in the same alt-rap galaxy with releases on Fake Four and other collaborations with heavyweights like Astronautalis, he's a somewhat chameleonic alt-pop singer, musician and producer. Together, this relatively new cross-genre act is a chemical reaction that bridges rap and song in a way that crashes the hip-hop frontier with the kind of mischievous party splash that makes cats like Buck 65 seem like bookish squares. With a range of reference wide enough to go from 1980s pop to trap, Hurricane Party is a postmodern explosion that rains down like neon confetti. And they are Florida as fuck, oozing our essence and terroir in all its dazzling cliché like a hip-hop Miami Vice. Although Bleubird's greased cadence and Rickolus' smooth croon attack at different angles, they share a precision of comedy and charisma, making them ideal foils for each other in this audacious enterprise to shatter boundaries. Combined, these left-field party-starters are the intersection of humor and smarts, swag and art. By the third song or so, they had the room uncorked and dancing along. Splitting sides and shaking asses, Hurricane Party show that being the class clowns and being the cool kids are not mutually exclusive. Fortunately, Hurricane Party play Orlando with decent frequency for non-locals. But definitely watch for their next swing through because their upcoming new album (Juice) is slated for release early June on Limited Fanfare Records (the dope Miami label that just unleashed the Sh-Booms’ latest opus) so they'll be back for July release shows in Orlando and their respective hometowns. - Orlando Weekly