Out Now: Trapper Schoepp’s ‘May Day’ on Grand Phony
OUT NOW, ON GRAND PHONY:
MAY DAY by TRAPPER SCHOEPP
Watch the video, “River Called Disaster”
Watch an acoustic performance of the title track,live at the Mequon Nature Preserve Watchtower HERE
“Schoepp’s new album is occupied with myriad shadows and specters… the music is compelling and the melodies memorable.”- No Depression
Photo by Mitch Keller
“Employing metaphor and an intimate understanding of the natural world, Schoepp unveils a fitting entrance to his post-pandemic resurrection.”- American Songwriter
“Confident and flourishing, Schoepp’s songwriting is influenced by classic rock songwriters but he has his own style and successful ways.”- Glide Magazine
“Rootsy, cinematic rock that charms as it soars.”- NPR Music
(New York, NY) Americana singer-songwriter, Trapper Schoepp, is thrilled to release the new album, May Day, on Grand Phony. The album explores themes of ghosts and rebirth, springtime and renewal. “May Day is an ancient holiday that celebrates the arrival of springtime, the natural world, and also workers’ rights. It’s also my birthday,” Schoepp says with a laugh. “After this trying and isolating winter, we found solace in making an album for the spring.”
The music of May Day is both a celebration of more hopeful times and a reflection of a darker past. The 10-track album was recorded near Schoepp’s hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, amidst the pandemic and citywide protests for racial equity. “In between vocal takes, I stepped outside in my surgical mask and saw a fleet of military Humvees driving by the studio to a protest,” Schoepp says. “Helicopters overhead. Surreal and scary for the people taking to the streets to stand up against police brutality.”
Photo by Abby Artish
This is the follow-up to Primetime Illusion, Schoepp’s acclaimed 2019 album produced by Wilco’s Patrick Sansone, which featured a serendipitous co-write with none other than Bob Dylan. On the day Dylan entered Columbia Studios in 1961 to begin recording his first studio album, he wrote a song about Wisconsin. The lyric sheet sat unseen with a former roommate, and was later unearthed and put up for auction. Schoepp saw the story and seized the opportunity to set music to words, and was granted Dylan’s approval to jointly publish the song, entitled “On Wisconsin,” leading to features in Rolling Stone and Billboard, as well as nearly a hundred international tour dates.
In 2020, Schoepp was still riding that wave, but when his European tour was canceled for obvious reasons, he was inspired to fill the personal and professional void with creation – working through the pains of the past year by hunkering down and focusing on songs and recording, resulting in his most personal album yet. Schoepp and band defy the limitations of standard-issue Americana by hopping genres and experimenting with drum machines, modular synths, and droning guitars.
For all the darkness surrounding May Day, Schoepp hopes it will be a respite for listeners he was unable to reach on the road. “The pandemic devastated the live music industry but the need to be transported through song remained. I hope May Day offers that sort of escape.”
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‘MAY DAY’ album art
MAY DAY TRACKLISTING
1. May Day
2. Hotel Astor
3. River Called Disaster
4. Yellow Moon
5. Paris Syndrome
6. Little Drop Of Medicine
7. Solo Quarantine
8. I Am A Rider
9. It Didn’t Take
10. Something About You