Eric Earley is to Blitzen Trapper what Michael Jordan was to the Chicago Bulls. Sure, he's got a tight supporting cast, but this band would not be signed to Sub Pop without him. After spending a year's worth of breaks from the road holed up writing and recording in the band's hometown recording studio, Furr is finally ready for the world. The follow-up to 2007's self-released and critically acclaimed Wild Mountain Nation, Furr is a dizzying array of indie-pop, hard-driving rock, and BT's own brand of 21st-century Americana. Although Blitzen Trapper don't have as eclectic a sound as their label would like you to believe, each song stands out as a fresh idea and doesn't just regurgitate the same formula for success.
The album's opener "Sleep Time in the Western World" recalls the pop brilliance mixed with varied feels associated with Loose Fur. The song twists and turns with no clear-cut verse-and-chorus pattern while maintaining its purpose before finally returning to the opening hook. Elsewhere, the strummy acoustic title track jaunts through carefully-arranged rhyme schemes. Here, Earley attempts his best Dylan impression -- whether it's Bob or Jacob could be subject to discussion -- with a nice tambourine and kick-drum backbeat to accompany his harmonica and guitar.
Earley's vocals are reminiscent of Neil Young on "Not Your Lover," despite the song's premise about a faithful boyfriend who can't control his extracurricular nocturnal escapades. However, pure Earley-esque lyrics like "I'm a moon walkin' cowboy/ Dusty riding and I don't know what's in store/ All I know is in my sleep I'm not your lover anymore" forgive the obvious nod to "After the Goldrush." Then there's the disheveled old piano -- found by the band in the hallway of the now-defunct Portland telegraph building that houses their studio -- which makes a welcomed appearance on a couple tracks.
Although Earley's broad influences and varied compositional techniques are a breath of fresh air among all the one-trick ponies that litter many a blog postings nowadays, Blitzen Trapper would do well to embrace the cutting-room floor. Songs like "Love U" and "Fire and Fast Bullets" are nice ideas but lack the execution to keep Furr rolling along cohesively. To the band's credit, the album does warm-up to the listener with consecutive listens, but Blitzen Trapper will have to play some reputable live shows in order to distinguish themselves from the indie rock masses. A tough task given the company they keep in the Pacific Northwest.