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Chris Trapper performs at the Minstrel Cafe Nov. 9. (Photo Liz Linder)
Contributed
His words and music can best be described as an interesting blend of 1950’s pop, 1990’s rock and old-timey jazz with the ever-present under story of Chris Trapper’s distinctive baritenor. It’s intricate power-pop with a compelling knack for telling everyday stories.
For Trapper, it all traces back to those first, halting, joyful songs, when he found another language in music–a deeper language – that connected him to others in a way more profound than ordinary
conversation.
“Especially when I was a kid, but it’s still true–I’m kind of desperate to get thoughts out in a complete way. Songs do that for me, so I know how much they can mean. It’s important to me to be inclusive, rather than perceived as intellectual or clever or so creative that people don’t get it. I really want to reach people and do it in a way that makes them feel part of what I’m trying to say. Because, like I
said, I know how much songs can mean.”
His ability to craft songs that are both elegant and accessible is evident on each collection. His organic understanding of classic pop melody is infectious. There is a smart, honest quality to the lyrics that never panders.
Trapper’s talent as a singer and storyteller stems from what some might call an eclectic apprenticeship. A native of Buffalo, New York, by grade 9 Chris had found his voice, and his older brother’s guitar.
“I’m a stutterer,” he says, “and I used to get picked on a lot in school. One day, after I’d been called on to answer a question and just couldn’t spit it out at all, and the whole class was laughing at me, I went home and picked up my brother’s guitar and started writing this kind of whiny song about how everyone picked on me. It wasn’t a very good song, but I’d found this incredible outlet to express how I felt. So that’s how it began, just a couple of chords and a bad day.”
Trapper will be performing live at The Minstrel Cafe Nov. 9.
Tags: chris trapper, Minstrel Cafe
