Blitzen Trapper's new title track soars nostalgically

By Patrick Prince

Fifteen years and seven albums later, the Portland, Oregon quintet Blitzen Trapper are set to release the full-length "All Across This Land" on October 2 via Vagrant Records.

Blitzen Trapper —– Erik Menteer (guitar), Michael Van Pelt (bass), Marty Marquis (guitar/keys), Brian Adrian Koch (drums) — have crossed boundaries into various styles over the years but the band always had a distinct sound of its own. Centering on "All Across This Land," it certainly has a nostalgic '70s feel to it.

In fact, the title track of the newest album is a 5-star song in the same vein as the great classic hard rock of the ‘70s which was southern fried and well-loved — think Molly Hatchet, Foghat, Edgar Winter Group and so on. On the song "All Across This Land" two guitars intertwined perfect the main riffs to create such a sweet sounding rock groove that is quickly-paced and fun enough to tap your toe to. Really, it’s glorious.

This is the song that stands out on “All Across This Land” — hopefully, there’s a single on colored vinyl in time for Record Store Day’s Black Friday this year? (hint, hint...)

The entire album is streaming for a period of time this week at ew.com. Check it out by clicking here.

In the meantime, catch Blitzen Trapper on the road. Here are tour dates:

September 30 – Bozeman, MT – Faultline North
October 1 – Billings, MT – Carlin Events Center
October 3 – Fargo, ND – The Aquarium
October 4 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
October 6 – Milwaukee, WI – Turner Hall
October 7 – Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall
October 8 – Ferndale, MI – The Loving Touch
October 9 – Toronto, ON – Horseshoe Tavern
October 10 – Buffalo, NY – Town Ballroom
October 11 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
October 13 – Cambridge, MA – The Sinclair
October 14 – Philadelphia, PA – Johnny Brenda’s
October 15 – Washington, DC – Black Cat
October 16 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
October 17 – Atlanta, GA – The Loft
October 18 – Nashville, TN – Exit / In
October 19 – Birmingham, AL – Saturn
October 21 – Austin, TX – The Parish
October 22 – Dallas, TX – Club Dada
October 23 – Norman, OK – The Opolis
October 24 – Lawrence, KS – Bottleneck
October 26 – Denver, CO – The Bluebird Theater
October 27 – Salt Lake City, UT – The State Room
November 9 – Eugene, OR – HiFi Music Hall
November 11 – Santa Barbara, CA – SOHO Restaurant & Music Club
November 12 – San Diego, CA – The Observatory
November 13 – Los Angeles, CA – Teragram Ballroom
November 14 – Felton, CA – Don Quixote’s International Music
November 15 – San Francisco, CA – The Independent
November 16 – Mill Valley, CA – Sweetwater Music Hall
November 17 – Arcata, CA – Humboldt Brews
November 19 – Seattle, WA – Neptune Theatre
November 20 – Vancouver, BC – The Biltmore Cabaret
November 28 – Portland, OR – Revolution Hall

For updated news and tour information go to: www.blitzentrapper.net

 ---

About Patrick Prince:
A longtime music writer and editor, Patrick Prince is the Editor of Goldmine magazine.