The year’s best music? Blitzen Trapper.
Maybe it’s not the best album of 2008 – that title is still open to contention, between Sigur Ros, Vampire Weekend, TV on the Radio… even Coldplay! But Blitzen Trapper’s Furr is a name worth considering in your top albums of the year. Here’s why.
Reason #1: they kinda sound like Lynyrd Skynyrd. Their sound is eclectic, a mish-mash of hippie grooves, deadhead twang and real rock. If you took The Band, The Grateful Dead, Pavement and…. Guided By Voices (of course) and mashed them all together, you’d get a band that sounded quite a lot like Blitzen Trapper. And in my book, that’s a great thing.
Reason #2: Furr is a consistently good album. BT’s last offering, Wild Mountain Nation, was a bit more carefree and rambling in tone — the result was an album that hit real heights in terms of sheer joyful rock, but occasionally misfired as the band veered sharply from one sound to another. Furr, on the other hand, has all the markings of a group finding its groove. The tracks are considerably more consistent, more solid – not necessarily hitting some of the whimsical heights of Wild Mountain Nation but not veering dramatically off-course, either.
Reason #3: Roots-rock is real rock. Each track deals with passion, God, wild craziness, reckless abandon and the other classic themes of twangy roots rock. As such it is a welcome diversion from say, Interpol. Furr has the unique, raw unfinished quality that makes indie music great, without being too wallowed in self-pity to enjoy itself.
There you go, three good reasons to consider this amongst the best new albums of 2008.
Here’s their myspace.
Their Sub Pop page has a couple of the tracks for free download.
Um, really?
Comment by MCQ — November 25, 2008 @ 2:10 pm
After listening to Blitzen Trapper, I must say I like them, but would not put them in the rock category, roots or otherwise. I think they fit more in the alt-country or folk type of space. They remind me a bit of the Posies, who I used to listen to a lot.
Comment by MCQ — November 25, 2008 @ 2:26 pm
heh MCQ, I have to admit that I was just trying to be a little provocative there. But it does remind me that it’s time for us to get our 2008 Best Of roundtable going.
Btw you don’t really get a sense for the band’s sound from just those clips. Actually I think the clip selection is a little unfortunate.
Comment by Supergenius — November 25, 2008 @ 3:40 pm
Dang. Once again I’ve barely listened to new music this year.
What’s happened to me?
What new tunes I’ve listened to have come from here.
Comment by Clark — November 25, 2008 @ 3:51 pm
Ladyhawk, Ladyhawk, Ladyhawk.
Not to be confused with Ladyhawke.
Comment by Susan M — November 25, 2008 @ 4:56 pm
SG, I feel your pain. I sometimes wonder who the idiots are that choose the clips for the myspace pages, then I remember that it’s almost always someone from the label or the publicist. Explains everything.
In BT’s case, though, it appears that even their own people don’t characterize them as “rock.” Their page says “Indie/Country/Electro.” Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
Clark:
I thought it was understood that you have become covered in dark chocolate. Makes it hard to get out as much, I’m guessing.
Comment by MCQ — November 25, 2008 @ 5:16 pm
Totally heard the Grateful Dead in their songs. Also some CSN (+/- Young).
As for any Lynyrd Skynyrd, I didn’t hear it (thank goodness!).
Comment by BrianJ — November 29, 2008 @ 3:01 am
Does this have anything to do with reindeer?
Comment by Kathy Soper — December 1, 2008 @ 1:05 pm
No.
Comment by Supergenius — December 1, 2008 @ 1:41 pm
Well, hold on there perfessor. I’ve heard deer hunters called “Bambi Blasters” in my neck of the woods. Perhaps in some quarters (the arctic?) they are referred to as “Blitzen Trappers.”
Comment by MCQ — December 1, 2008 @ 11:49 pm
[...] editor) after the jump. Also relevant to this discussion are previous 2008 music posts located here, here and especially [...]
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