Blitzen Trapper
Album: All Across This Land
Label: Lojinx
Tracks: 11
Website: http://www.blitzentrapper.net

I'm not quite a psychologist, but I know that part of the human condition is that we tend to enjoy putting things into groups for some bizarre reason. Apply that to music and you've got the debate of, 'which genre does each artist fit into?'. To really get Blitzen Trapper you need to cast off the notion of rigid genres and just enjoy their music for what it is. If you're struggling and in desperate need of a group to put them in, some people would say Blitzen Trapper are folk/rock, roots, alt country and art rock (whatever that is?). In any case their 2007 self-released 'Wild Mountain Nation' gained critical acclaim, followed by a two-page piece in Rolling Stone the next year on their fourth studio album 'Furr'.

Singer/lead songwriter Eric Earley once implied that he doesn't see the band as fitting a genre as such, just that the songs are honest and frequently narrative-driven. This really shines through on the Portland-based quintet's eighth studio album: 'All Across This Land'. The (art) rock elements are still there so fear not if you're partial to listening to AC/DC whilst faking a Monet. The title track for example, is full of Stones-esque guitar licks, aking for a riffer's delight.

This is a great album to have in the car by the way, seeing as it's claimed to be an album inspired by the road. Even the slower tracks seem to have a kind of driving rhythm - that's a clever trick for getting people hooked. Let me tell you it worked on me. There's also a definite undercurrent of wanderlust to songs such as 'Nights Were Made For Love' and 'Mystery and Wonder' - as the titles might imply depending on how you interpret them.

'All Across This Land' has stepped closer towards that slightly softer country sound as opposed to the "hillbilly gangster" of 2013's 'VII'. Softer is in no way scathing a remark to make though, as the stories told in each song lend themselves to a lighter vibe. One of the reasons it's so hard to pin a genre on Blitzen Trapper's waistcoat is that they experi-ment with such a wide variety of sounds. Psychedelic guitar echoes on 'Love Grow Cold' soon give way to smooth, movie style string melodies in 'Lonesome Angel'. Have a listen to the coda of the album, 'Across The River' which marries a noodling acoustic guitar, Earley's vocals and a little bit of harmonica in such a way that it wouldn't sound out of place on a Dylan album.

The genius of this latest release is that it really appeals to everyone. You've got too many instruments to list, songs of good times, heartache and adventure, and a whole load of sing-along-ability (yes I just coined a new musical term). 'All Across This Land' really is just that - a cohesive and eclectic soundscape spanning the North American continent. Blitzen Trapper's strongest release to date!

Lloyd Brown.
http://www.squarerootspromotions.co.uk