Blitzen Trapper brings irresistible indie rock to Birmingham
Blitzen Trapper. Photo by Jade Harris.
There’s just something about the Pacific Northwest. Seattle’s music grabbed national attention in the early ‘90s as the grunge movement went mainstream, and there’s no shortage of talented bands coming from that region nearly 20 years later.
That includes Blitzen Trapper, a Portland, Ore.-based band on Sub Pop, the same label that launched Nirvana. The acclaimed Furr, released in September, is Blitzen Trapper’s first album for Sub Pop and fourth overall. It’s an infectious collection of electric indie-folk rock. The band played Bottletree last year with Dr. Dog and Fleet Foxes, and returned to Birmingham later in the year to open for Iron and Wine at WorkPlay. They’ll headline Bottletree on Saturday night, and we chatted for a few minutes with lead singer and producer Eric Earley.
Birmingham Box Set: According to your label bio, you’ve just been touring outside the west coast for the past year and a half. How has your national and international touring compared to the west coast?
Eric Earley: We never really toured the west coast even before that, just Seattle mainly [and Portland]. I think it’s changed our live performance because when you tour and play, you sort of figure out the things that work and don’t work. You just kind of figure out what it means to play in front of a lot of people.
[Crowds are] kind of different everywhere. It depends on where you are and what time of year it is. I really like the South … and also crowds in the west coast are really good to us as well. Over in Europe, that’s a totally different thing. People listen to music for different reasons there.
BBS: Like what?
EE: Over there, it feels like people are less into—they’re less interested in façade and scene. They’re more interested in the actual music, lyrics, substance. The clubs treat you a hundred times better than the clubs here. They feed you good food, a lot of times they’ll give you a place to stay. They’re also funded by the government generally, or subsidized. The sound people are all working there, getting paid, and usually they’ve gone to school for it.
BBS: Well, the club you’re playing here, Bottletree, definitely has great food!
EE: That’s one of my favorite clubs, actually. For a small place, it’s really comfortable.
BBS: You opened for label mates Iron and Wine in November, and when you last played Bottletree it was with Fleet Foxes and Philadelphia band Dr. Dog. Of those, only one band is not from the Pacific Northwest, and only one is not on Sub Pop. Is it the region or the label that lends itself to so many quirky, fascinating bands?
EE: I think it’s a combination of a lot of things. There’s a lot of bands in the northwest because it’s a cheap place to live. I don’t know, it’s just kind of set up perfectly. And Sub Pop’s been set up for years. And they kind of already know what’s going on.
Blitzen Trapper plays Bottletree at 8 p.m. Sat., March 7. Alela Diane will open. Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 the day of show, available at thebottletree.com. Sample the band’s sound on its Sub Pop artist page or on its MySpace page.
