It might be a scene from Werner Herzog: a man wades into a rural river toward a piano half-submerged in the water. Midway through performing a song he lights the piano on fire and continues playing. The river pays no mind as the musician, Trapper Schoepp, watches the keys melt in the conflagration. His trusty Gibson Dove guitar floats on by as if we have been transported to a Flannery O’Conner story.
If the near-subliminal chant of “Down in the flood, down in the flood” references Bob Dylan, that would make sense, connecting the dots to Schoepp’s 2019 collaboration in finishing up an old Dylan tune. Not unlike his mentor, Schoepp easily borrows from the canon of music past, singing the familiar line “I’m goin’ where the water tastes like wine, round here it tastes like turpentine.”
As a metaphor for the year when everything changed, owing to a pandemic, racial unrest and the turnover of a presidential administration, the metaphors of a river and a fire offer a sense of cleansing and hope for change to come.
The video for the song “River Called Disaster” signals the release for Schoepp’s upcoming album May Day, on Grand Phony Records. The album explores themes of ghosts and rebirth, springtime and renewal.
How has the lockdown affected your creativity?
We had a 25-plus date European tour cancelled, so that certainly opened up a window to work on songs. Spare time doesn’t necessarily equate to creativity, though. It’s a very heavy and tragic time.
The lockdown and forced downtime did lead me to finish material for my forthcoming album, May Day. With the support of our fans and a small indie label called Grand Phony, we were able to safely record an album in Wauwatosa at Wire & Vice recording studio. We followed the Recording Academy guidelines and wore masks at all times, except when I was tracking vocals in the live room.
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It was definitely surreal to record amidst the pandemic but also the citywide protests for racial equity. In between vocal takes, I stepped outside in my surgical mask and saw a fleet of military Humvees driving past the studio to a protest with helicopters overhead. It was a scary time for the people taking to the streets to stand up against police brutality.
Aside from the album, I also felt inspired to participate in the Bandcamp Friday series with four covers that felt especially of the moment: “Mr. President (Have Pity on the Working Man)” by Randy Newman; “Walls” by Tom Petty; “Keep Me In Your Heart” by Warren Zevon and “If It Makes You Happy” by Sheryl Crow.
More recently, I’ve taken a dive into open tunings on the guitar and am writing for the next album in 2022. We have a producer and studio in mind but are taking it slow as the world continues to change.
This year I had the time to fine tune my piano abilities enough to play a few of the songs on the new record - which was a first. For one of those songs, “River Called Disaster,” we filmed a music video in Bark River in Hartland, WI and I lit a piano on fire Jerry Lee Lewis style. It felt cathartic and symbolic of 2020.
Do you have a routine or schedule for staying in practice or working on new material?
No, but the thing about being a writer of any kind, is that you’re sort of signing up for homework for life. In order to keep the lights on, you have to be receptive to outside inspiration, whether it’s an overheard conversation, TV show, painting, or song.
I can’t really just sit down and hammer out a song for the sake of it. Deadlines are a great source of inspiration, though! I think Jeff Tweedy said that.
Are you making plans for when you can resume playing in front of people again?
We are! Fingers crossed. We are hoping for a socially distanced release show in late May at the scene of the “River Called Disaster” music video, we’ll be playing on the barn stage there, as part of Lake Country House Concerts. More regional dates in the works, too, so stay tuned.
