"We were stupid, strange and young at heart, and all we wanted was to rock 'n' roll," singer and songwriter Eric Earley sings, with more than a bit of Bruce Springsteen's windswept, blue-collar spirit, in "Nights Were Made For Love," a throwback anthem of carefree youth in the heart of Blitzen Trapper's new eighth studio album.
For a band that has long experimented with how far it could stretch its sound, this disc finds Earley in a reflective mood that carries his nostalgia through the classic rock 'n' roll influences that shaped the Portland, Ore., band across the past two decades.
The opening "All Across This Land" bursts with rambling enthusiasm with a '70s arena-rock posture. In a blend of bluesy guitars and country melodies, "Cadillac Road" ponders the decisions of our past in the face of the future. And "Let the Cards Fall" finds peace with it all in the swirl of strings, grinding guitars and mournful harmonica and slide guitars.
01 All Across This Land 02 Rock And Roll (was Made For You) 03 Mystery And Wonder 04 Love Grow Cold 05 Lonesome Angel 06 Nights Were Made For Love 07 Cadillac Road 08 Let The Cards Fall 09 Even If You Don't 10 Across The River