Portland, Oregon has a reputation for being different, reflected in the catch-phrase, “keep Portland weird.” As a hotbed of experiments in rock and roll, Blitzen Trapper plays its alternative country/folk/rock with passion.
Formed in 2000, the band currently operates as a quintet, with Eric Earley (guitar/harmonica/vocals/keyboard), Erik Menteer (guitar/keyboard), Brian Adrian Koch (drums/vocals/harmonica), Michael Van Pelt (bass), and Marty Marquis (guitar/keyboards/vocals/melodica).
Eric Earley is the brainy leader of the Portland band and has many obsessions: bluegrass, quantum physics, science fiction, God, fishing, camping and Neil Young. Blitzen Trapper is part of shaping a new Pacific Northwest rock sound, or, as Rolling Stone sums it in a headline, “hippie anthems for troubled times.”
Blitzen Trapper self-released its first three albums. Their third album, Wild Mountain Nation dropped in 2007 to much critical acclaim from critics such as Pitchfork Media, The Nerve and Spin Magazine. The excitement helped the group get signed to Sub Pop Records in the summer of 2007. Its title, “Wild Mountain Nation,” charted No. 98 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007.
The release of Furr in 2008 was a high-water mark for the group as their eclectic new songs received a two-page feature in Rolling Stone. The album was ranked No. 13 on Rolling Stone’s Best Albums of 2008 while the title track was ranked No. 4 on the magazine’s Best Singles of 2008. The albums Destroyer of the Void and American Goldwing followed to similarly high acclaim.
Two more CD’s followed by their Record Store Day exclusive, a live cover album of Neil Young’s Harvest record titled Live Harvest. Their eighth studio album, All Across This Land was released in 2015. Their ninth studio release–marking a return to the band’s own label LidKerCow–is titled Wild and Reckless. It arrived November 3, 2017.
Sacramento’s K-ZAP 93.3 FM is spinning the title to the CD, “Wild And Reckless,” plus “When I’m Dying,” and streaming both at K-ZAP.ORG/LISTEN. Take a look at the video, just below!
Discography
Blitzen Trapper (2003)
Field Rexx (2004)
Wild Mountain Nation (2007)
Furr (2008)
Destroyer of the Void (2010)
American Goldwing (2011)
VII (2013)
All Across This Land (2015)
Wild and Reckless (2017)
Video: “Wild and Reckless”
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Artist information sources include Wikipedia.org, Allmusic.com, Rolling Stone, magazines and newspaper publications.