Two years after releasing its self-titled debut, The Crooked Vines band is back. The local funk-pop group will release Alive on Friday, November 10 and host an album release party at The Howlin’ Wolf the evening before. Aaron Benjamin, another local funk-pop outfit, will open, along with local singer-songwriter Kathryn Rose Wood.

The Crooked Vines (2015) was mainly written by keyboardist/saxophonist Stephen Schwartz in an effort to secure better gigs for the band. Alive promises to be a much more fully fleshed out demonstration of the band’s sound, which borrows from genres across the board, from jazz to folk to prog rock.  “[F]or this new album, we were really writing and arranging stuff in the studio,” saxophonist Lori LaPatka told Offbeat in August. “We would present our own ideas and then go with it. It wasn’t finished when we went into the studio. We were still working off of each other when recording.”

This spirit of collaboration is clearly present on the two singles out right now, “Alive” and “Who to Be” (feat. Evan Thibodeaux). They each feature extended solos from multiple members of the six-piece ensemble, and funky, layered arrangements behind lead singer Mikayla Braun’s soulful vocals.

Thematically, the album is about looking back at past experiences, reflecting, learning to live with mistakes, and growing from them. The first album dealt with the same sort of subject matter, but the exploration is deeper and more mature this time around. The Crooked Vines are all grown up, and they want you to join them in celebration of their coming of age.

Tickets to the release party are available now for $10. Pre-order the album on iTunes here.