Much anticipation had been held on
my behalf in the weeks leading up to this gig. Portland, Oregon’s
Blitzen Trapper had provided one of my most listened to albums,
Furr, released in the latter half of 2008.

First up on the night, however, were
Adelaide’s Leader Cheetah, who have been making waves on the
Australian musical landscape since releasing their debut album earlier
this year. To be completely honest, I never gave the album much attention.
I’d heard a couple of songs, none of which really caught my ear.

Tonight was much different to what
I had heard and was expecting: a straightforward, alternative rock style
band. Instead, I was greeted to the sounds of a violin, amongst the
usual wares, and I was pleasantly surprised to say the least. It had
made turning up earlier all the more rewarding; destroying all of my
preconceived opinions of the band. The song I enjoyed most from the
set was 'Fly, Golden Arrow Pt. 1'. It showcased both the softer and
louder, more raucous sides of the band, with plenty of emotion. It was
a highly entertaining set and they've certainly gained themselves a
new fan in myself, if not many more.

The wait had finally come to an end, Blitzen Trapper walked onto
the stage to rapturous applause. And understandably so! It was the first
time the Portland sextet had graced our shores. Opening the night was
the slowed down a capella intro of ‘Sleepytime in the Western World’,
which differed from the recorded version of the album - the band boasting
their three part harmonies.

Upon completion of the song, someone from the crowd shouted out “Go
Portland!” to which singer Eric Earley replied “That’s right!”
with a gleaming smile. The setlist heavily featured songs off Furr
and Wild Mountain Nation, with the crowd familiar to many, evident
by the singing along.

Despite breaking a string midway through one of the songs, it had no
hindrance to the performance, and the band carried on with out a hitch.
It seemed that the string breakage saw an appropriate time for the non-singing
half of the band to disappear backstage for restringing and beers. This
left the remaining members with another chance to show the crowd the
three part harmonies they possessed and had displayed earlier. The band
then broke into a rendition of Dolly Parton’s ‘The Last Thing on
My Mind’ - lulling every one into a trance with the beautiful melodies.

Although the North Westerner’s were able to bring the tempo down,
that didn’t mean they couldn’t rock out. They had a great stage
presence, too, despite having six members in the band - resulting in
a lot less room to move. A non-musical highlight was the side burns
of rhythm guitarist Marty Marquis and the almost mythical looking beard
of drummer Brian Adrian Koch, who wouldn’t look out of place on the
set of Lord of the Rings. On the more musical side of things,
the use of the melodica is not something you get to see all the time. 

The only disappointment was the only half full Metro with the last two
elevated viewing areas being curtained off. On the other hand, it meant
that everyone present that night was there to see Blitzen Trapper perform,
and perform they did - leaving a lasting impression on everyone who
bared witness to their unique take on the on the ever ageing country/folk
style.

Photo Taken and Kindly Contributed by BenHur Reynauld