Tonight: Blitzen Trapper At Off Broadway

You have two opportunities to see Blitzen Trapper tonight. The first is at Vintage Vinyl, at 6 PM, and this is your opportunity to see them for the low, low price of free! And then, later tonight, at Off Broadway, they will be playing with the Moondoggies from Seattle opening for them. Perhaps one is thinking about catching them at both places, being a BT glutton. I say I like the cut of your jib. Make it so.


Not in STL? Here are some other dates:
Mon 06/21/10
St. Louis, MO Off Broadway Nightclub
Tue 06/22/10
Kansas City, MO The Record Bar
Thu 06/24/10
Aspen, CO Belly Up Aspen

Appearing at "Telluride Wine Festival"
Sat 06/26/10
Telluride, CO Telluride Town Park

Mon 06/28/10 T
Tempe, AZ The Clubhouse Music Venue
Tue 06/29/10
Los Angeles, CA El Rey Theatre
Wed 06/30/10
San Francisco, CA The Fillmore

Appearing at "High Sierra Music Festival"
Thu 07/01/10
Quincy, CA Plumas County Fairgounds

Fri 07/02/10
Quincy, CA Plumas County Fairgounds

Appearing with Avi Buffalo
Fri 07/23/10
Portland, OR McMenamins Crystal Ballroom

Appearing with "Capitol Hill Block Party"
Sat 07/24/10
Seattle, WA Capitol Hill Festival Grounds

Appearing with Avi Buffalo
Tue 07/27/10
Minneapolis, MN First Avenue
Wed 07/28/10
Milwaukee, WI Turner Hall Ballroom

Appearing at "Beachland Concert Series"
Thu 07/29/10
Cleveland, OH Beachland Ballroom & Tavern

Appearing at "Newport Folk Festival"
Sat 07/31/10
Newport, RI Fort Adams State Park

Appearing at "Osheaga Festival"
Sun 08/01/10
Montreal, QC Parc Jean Drapeau

Appearing with Avi Buffalo
Tue 08/03/10
Toronto, ON Opera House Concert Venue
Wed 08/04/10
Detroit, MI The Majestic
Thu 08/05/10
Indianapolis, IN The Vogue

Appearing at "Lollapalooza" / Soundgarden
Sun 08/08/10
Chicago, IL Grant Park

Tue 08/10/10
Iowa City, IA Gabe's
Wed 08/11/10
Lincoln, NE Bourbon Theatre
Thu 08/12/10
Denver, CO Ogden Theatre
Thu 11/11/10
Muenster, Germany Gleis 22
Fri 11/12/10
Berlin, Germany Comet Club
Mon 11/15/10
Munich, Germany Kranhalle
Thu 11/18/10
Cologne, Germany Blue Shell

Blitzen Trapper Coming To Off Broadway In June

Well, I may have to see if I can just live at Off Broadway this june. or maybe they will allow me to do odd jobs around the place to help pay for all the shows I'll be seeing there?

You'll first find me there on June 15, to see Mumford & Sons. I've already posted about them here, but you can also read about them on Paste's site, if you want to find out more about this up-and-coming band.

And then, six days later I will be back to see Blitzen Trapper, on Monday, june 21. I can not resist. The last time they were in town, November of 2008, I caught them at Vintage Vinyl, before they played an opening slot for Stephen Malkmus at the Pageant, and wished I could have caught them later, but commitments called. They were wonderful, even in the low-key record store setting. Their new album will be out on June 8 on Sub Pop, and you can download a free MP3 by going to their official site.

And then another six days later, just long enough time to re-charge the mind and wallet, I will be back to see Black Joe Lewis on Sunday, the 27th.

I eagerly await who I should be seeing there on July 3, six days after that concert. I'm thinking it will be good, no matter who is there...

Blitzen Trapper: Black River Killer Video

Last Year's Blitzen Trapper release was by far my favorite of the year. Even now when a song comes on from shuffle on my ipod I sing along and turn it up. There's something familiar and yet contemporary about the songs. I keep hearing 70's overtones everywhere, but no specifics. It's gotten to the point where I long for a new album, but am afraid that it won't be nearly as good, so I'm not sure. I'm torn. But until that time, here's a new video:

Blitzen Trapper: Live At Vintage Vinyl STL

So I couldn't make Blitzen Trapper's proper gig opening up for Stephen Malkmus at the Pageant on Saturday night due to a wedding, but was excited to see that they would be playing a short in-store set at Vintage Vinyl Sunday at 1 PM. I showed up right at 1 PM and was surprised that the band was ready to go. Note to self: If a band plays an in-store the afternoon of a gig, they will show up 45 minutes late and play about a half hour after that since the van broke down, or they got lost, or some other story. If it's the day AFTER a show, the band has someplace to get to, so they are going to start pretty close to on time.

So on to the set, and Blitzen Trapper. Seeing them live, even at a record store, cemented a couple of things for me:
1. The band is really good, and bring more keyboards to the mix than I expected. They also have a lot of nice twin guitar leads that are melodic and toothy all at the same time. They have real songs that stand up, sounding like a combo of Gram Parsons, CSN&Y, and Pavement, with dashes of prog and Dylan thrown in for spice.
2. Listening to the band live also confirmed something that I have been thinking for a while: I think the band's latest, "Furr" is my favorite release of the year. It resonates with me, both lyrically and musically with a feeling of classic stories in a contemporary setting.
3. It was fun watching the 2 or 3 year old rugrats rocking out and playing with their hot wheels just a foot away from the band. Blitzen Trapper didn't mind, and the kids were cool as long as they listened to their parents and didn't go past the cords.
4. I really need a better camera than the crappy point and shoot that I was using. The pic above was the only one worth posting from about 8.

Pick up "Furr" and tell me what you think. These guys are the real thing.

Urban Outfitters Gives You Free Music

If you go here you can get 21 free songs from Urban Outfitters. Looks like these have been there for a little while, and I say take advantage of it. Starts to make up for any $30 trendy t-shirt you may have bought from them.

Of course, the music is just as trendy, with selections from the Black Kids, Dr. Dog, Blitzen Trapper, the Walkmen, and others. Enjoy!