They call themselves “Blitzen Trapper,” and the band’s album features its name in that Van Halen arena-rock font, but make no mistake, mister, these fellas are guitar-blazing cowboys. The Portland, Oregon sextet wields enough country-influenced melodies with organic, bare-bones production on its new album, “Furr,” that if it weren’t for an occasional wayward synth, you’d expect them to ride into your town on horseback. “So I took the bus down to Rio Grande/And I shot a man down at the edge of town,” says lead singer Eric Earley, using some killer acoustic riffs as his pistol. Admittedly, Blizten Trapper relies just as much on West Coast stoner licks and power-pop energy as on the cowboy attitude, but there’s undoubtedly a down-home, western simplicity that underlies “Furr,” and the results kick ass—it’s one of the year’s better efforts. (Andy Seifert)
November 9 at Schubas, 3159 N. Southport, (773)525-2508, 9pm.
Brutal Finesse: A Preview of King Crimson at Ravinia There have been few new compositions from King Crimson these past two decades, but the live arrangements of songs from its catalog are often strikingly different than the recorded versions.
Cooling It: A Preview of Colleen Green at Cole’s Bar When Green strums power chords or chiming notes on top of her backing track, you might think you’re at Ramones karaoke night and Madonna is taking her turn.
For “Want” of a Change: A Preview of Rufus Wainwright at Ravinia Park Rufus Wainwright isn’t the first singer-songwriter to reinterpret earlier work through an orchestral lens. And much of Wainwright’s third and fourth albums, “Want One” and “Want Two”—whose twentieth anniversaries are the prompt for this new tour—is fully scored. But when Wainwright hits the Pavilion stage at Ravinia tonight, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra will be behind him.
Can’t-Miss Music Events (Fall Arts Preview 2023) This fall we get new albums and tours from iconic acts like Wilco and Kurt Elling, plus a Corrine Bailey Rae project inspired by Theaster Gates' Stony Island Arts Bank.
