Illustrator: Danielle Gibson.

On Vacation starts with the lighthearted musical "The Genocide Ball," which could just as easily be performed on Broadway as in a dingy club in Olympia, WA. Released on Olympia's 5RC Records, the album takes cues from the best of K Records' forward-thinking roster of artists. "Jesus and Hitler" and "The Republican Army" give a strong sense of singer Ryland Bouchard's desire to make a "shock and awe" indie rock Broadway album about the apocalyptic WWII era. By using a variety of instruments and sound clips, he paints a colorful picture with this 17-song, two-disc album. "Crispy Christian Tea Time" is a gloriously humorous ode to Bouchard's religious past, while "I Slept Through the Holocaust" and "Every Nazi Plane Has a Cross" highlight more of the wonderfully perverse climate in the singer's bag of tricks. The second disc is a remarkable change of pace, including the shimmering "Watermelon Sugar," the passionate pace of the eyebrow-raising "The Red-Haired Girl," and the dizzying orchestra of "The Tourist" and "I'm OK." Although sometimes uneven, On Vacation remains an album of beauty and quirky grace. ~ Stephen Cramer