Story & Photos by Branden Andersen
“Ol’ Wild Bill Hickock kept a pistol on his hip/A lawman by day, a marksman, and a scout/A quick draw at the bloodied dawn, you’re in or you’re out.”
This lyric sums up Eugene musician Tyler Fortier‘s most recent album, …And They Rode like Wildflowers Snaking Through the Hills ‘neath the Scarlet Sun. Released last month, the album was inspired by the movie Wild Bill about the infamous Wild Bill Hickock. It is the first of three albums set to come out this year, preceding Fear of the Unknown and Bang on Time.
“[…And They Rode like Wildflowers…] was kind of an accident,” Fortier says. “I didn’t even watch but twenty minutes of [Wild Bill]. I mean, I remember with a friend playing ‘cowboys and indians.’ But, in my adult life, there wasn’t any sort of obsession.”
After seeing part of the Jeff Bridges’ film, Fortier was inspired. He went online to research more Old West legends and stories to go along with them. It wasn’t long before he came upon Calamity Jane and Annie Oakley. Soon after, he decided to add fictional characters and stories. Something must have triggered a deep-rooted love for the Old West because just a week later, Fortier had written all nine songs of the new album.
Fortier’s next tour starts Thursday, March 3, and ends Saturday, May 28. He will visit eight states ranging from Washington to Texas. However, the distance means more expenses with hotels, food, and gas. Combined with fewer shows slated over a longer period of time, finances are not easy for Fortier. “The bottom line is, I’m fucked,” he says, laughing nervously. “So, I’ll be whoring myself out on [the] roadside trying to play guitar and earn some extra cash.”
To the artist, however, it’s all worth it.
“[The tour] is more about getting my name out there,” he says. “[About] getting people on an e-mail list, networking with other bands, getting reviews–even if they are bad reviews! Anything where people see my name.”
Between producing albums and traveling the West, Fortier remains a realist about his position in the music industry. His eyes fixed on an open doorway, he says: “There is no way my foot is in any sort of door. I’m barely trying to creep in.”
Fortier was the runner-up in the 2011 Bandest of the Bands. Read more about that concert.
