Blitzen Trapper - Furr

Anyone who knows me knows that I’m rarely short on opinions. Those who know me well know that I usually form my opinions with speed, if not haste. That’s why it was all the more alarming for me that I took me nearly a week to piece together my feelings on Blitzen Trapper’s newest album, Furr.

Now, let’s lay it all out. I could have written a negative review on this album Friday morning, were I so inclined. The problem, of course, is that I have too much respect for Marc and Rory, which each independently recommended I check these guys out. You see, I had too much respect for their judgment to dismiss this album out-of-hand. No, I reasoned, there must be something I’m missing.

So I listened and I listened some more. What was it? What was it that kept me coming back? What was it that put me off. I’m not sure I quite have the formula down yet, to be honest, but here are some of my thoughts.

One, they listen to a whole lot of Dylan. All music is derivative, so I’m not going to hold it against them to have listened to a lot of great music, but it really comes through. Two, they do (or should) listen to a lot of The Jayhawks. I say this because they come across, to me, as Jayhawks-light (lite?). The melody’s aren’t as tight. The lyrics aren’t as good. But they’re definitely in that vein. Frankly, they fail where Band of Horses succeed.

Now, some of their songs really work for me. “Black River Killer” is among the better songs I’ve heard this year. It’s well written and puts me inside the head of a compulsive killer. Rather than writing about the crimes, he writes about the characters headspace. It’s a neat concept and they pull it off.

Other songs don’t fair as well. “Saturday Night” loses me in the first line. When he starts “Jump down, turn around…” I’m picking bails of cotton and trying to ignore what I find to be a grating melody. “Fire & Fast Bullets” distracts equally, as my mind wonders to “Masters of War,” Dylan’s epic indictment of the military industrial complex.

I don’t think it’s my job to sit here and tell people what to listen to. Certainly not when two men I respect for their musical tastes seem to disagree with me. Maybe I’m wrong. Still, my high hopes for this album were not satisfied.

I’ll listen to Blitzen Trapper’s next album. They’re not a bad band. I just think they need to find a voice.