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02/25/09 Pearl Street w/ Alela Diane Northampton, MA
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02/26/09 Paradise w/ Alela Diane Boston, MA 02/27/09 Bowery Ballroom w/ Plants & Animals, Alela Diane -- SOLD OUT! NY 02/28/09 Music Hall of Williamsburg w/ Plants & Animals, Alela Diane -- SOLD OUT! Brooklyn, NY 03/01/09 First Unitarian Church w/ Alela Diane Philadelphia, PA 03/02/09 Black Cat w/ Alela Diane Washington, Washington DC 03/04/09 40 Watt Club w/ Alela Diane Athens, GA 03/05/09 Orange Peel w/ Alela Diane Asheville, NC 03/06/09 Mercy Lounge w/ Alela Diane Nashville, TN 03/07/09 Bottletree w/ Alela Diane Birmingham, AL 03/08/09 Hi-Tone w/ Alela Diane Memphis, TN 03/09/09 The Opolis w/ Alela Diane Norman, OK 03/10/09 Jackpot Saloon w/ Alela Diane Lawrence, KS 03/12/09 Hi-Dive w/ Alela Diane Denver, CO 03/13/09 Kilby Court w/ Alela Diane Salt Lake City, UT 03/19/09 The Parish -- NPR SXSW Day Party Austin, TX 03/19/09 Radio Room -- Sub Pop SXSW Showcase Austin, TX 04/12/09 Crystal Ballroom w/ Fleet Foxes!! -- SOLD OUT Portland, OR 04/13/09 Arcata Community Center w/ Fleet Foxes Arcata, CA 04/14/09 The Filmore w/ Fleet Foxes -- SOLD OUT San Francisco, CA 04/16/09 Rio Theatre w/ Fleet Foxes Santa Cruz, CA 04/18/09 Coachella Fest Indio, CA 05/25/09 Sasquatch Fest George, WA 07/31/09 Pickathon Pendarvis Farm, OR |
Originally scheduled to perform at the Varsity Theatre in Minneapolis, Blitzen Trapper outdid themselves with fan-age and the show was moved to the much larger First Ave. “Danceteria.” Even so, the club was packed—not packed in the fun way, when a girl can casually rub against a sweaty young hipster and still play coy, but packed like a big awkward sardine tin, with the majority of the crowd standing, immobile, clutching Red Stripes and sort of doing the head bob. Weird, huh. I mean, Blitzen Trapper are certainly no Dance Band, but you’d think they’ve earned a few arm thrusts, maybe some leg spasms, at least a pogo or two (the shit’s going to rain on me for that comment; pogo = bad)*.
Blitzen Trapper have been described as “experimental folk,” but I say this with a smirk, as it seems these days, any band that writes lyrics concerning farms or hills or serial killers is deemed “folk-y”**. Similarly, any band that uses synth as a garnish (and not as a main course, a la New Wave/proponents of New Wave), gets a broad ‘experimental’ tagged onto their name. Thus, “experimental folk” is born; though, I have some problems with calling a band whose frontman occasionally enters the Tom Petty sing-talk-groove territory “experimental.” 2008’s Furr may have folk-ish tendencies, but it also rocks (kinda) hard (“Sleepytime in the Western World” sounds positively 70s and makes me think of being inside some dive and throwing a drink in a man’s face).
On Wednesday, I managed to arrive at First Ave. just as opener Alela Diane was finishing her set (unreliable public transportation; cigarette). Unfortunately for me (and also for Alela Diane fans), the crowd chatter was so obnoxiously loud that instead of music, I heard entire conversations about bangin’ chicks (classy crowd chatter). The talking might not have seemed so obvious had Diane’s vocals and instrumentation been more suited to the large venue (the Varsity would fit her perfectly). It wasn’t her fault, and it wasn’t the crowd’s fault (maybe it was the crowd’s fault a little—give children more space and they feel the need to be unruly); still, the lukewarm beginning did not bode well for the rest of the evening.
By the time Blitzen Trapper took the stage most of the chatter had dissipated. This was the first time I’d seen BT live, but from what I’ve heard, they have a reputation as an inconsistent live act. General consensus within the blogging community has been ambivalence—this was not one of their stellar performances. Still, I would hardly call the show bad. For now I’ll give them the benefit of doubt: switching to a big, dirty historic concert hall from a smaller, curtain-festooned, lounge setting could potentially be vexing. I enjoyed live versions of “Not Your Lover,” “Black River Killer” (my favorite strange little gothic country narrative), and the abovementioned “Sleepytime in the Western World.” The band looked good (I made a comment about how singer Eric Earley sort of looks like Jeff Tweedy from a great, great, great distance), sounded good, played good. It was one of those “good” shows: no surprises, no special energy, no funny in-between song jokes, no extra credit. A solid B show (B- if you factor in the apathetic crowd).
Blitzen Trapper is currently on tour with Alela Diane supporting. The next few dates are East Coast shows; for more information, visit their Myspace or Website.
*At one point during the show I did notice that somewhere in the horizon, near the stage, far from our standing place, a small group of girls were doing something that resembled dancing!
**I’ve done it. More than once.
02/24/2009 18:25:02 ♥ lara (
/lara206.vox.com) ♥blitzentrapper.net ♥ myspace.com/blitzentrapper
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