VII

Alt-country-bluegrass-folk  (a genre that definitely needs a shorter nickname) is riding an insane wave of popularity at the moment – think Mumford And Sons, The Lumineers, Eddy Sharpe – but Oregon hipsters Blitzen Trapper, now seven albums deep, have been doing the soulful-lyrics-over-banjos business since Marcus Mumford’s guitar was just a glint in the eye of a pine tree.

Their latest full length. logically titled VII sees Blitzen Trapper lose a little of their edge. There’s a big difference between the comfort of familiarity and the comfort of formula.

With VII, Blitzen Trapper slide a little further down the country spectrum than on previous records, with plenty of head-nodding harmonica solos and bluesy guitar licks to complement singer Eric Earley’s twangy, visceral vocals.

From the foot stomping opener ‘Feel The Chill’, to cruisey jam ‘Ever Loved Once’, right down to the simple, laid back outro track ‘Don’t be a Stranger’, XII is a very visual album – it’s the perfect record to listen to while driving down a dirt road in the middle of summer, windows down, wind stinging your eyes.

But while there’s plenty to like about Blitzen Trapper’s sound, VII is kind of like travelling on an aero plane – the first time it’s pretty fun and interesting, but after that you mostly feel board and a little tired.

It’s a totally fine album, but ultimately and unfortunately, VII is nothing memorable.

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