Lutra Lutra – Psychopath and the Philosopher

You could say Lutra Lutra’s music is a lot like its namesake — the Eurasian otter. “They’re very
feisty, sneaky and bitey,” says Katrina, who used to work as a zoo interpreter. “They have a
sense of humour but they know when to fight back.”
The 10-song album , produced by Royal Tusk guitarist Quinn Cyrankiewicz (Nature Of, Calling
All Captains), follows Lutra Lutra’s self-titled EP (2016) and a Western Canadian tour.
Psychopath & The Philosopher ’s title track weaves together references to dueling house cats,
philosopher Slavoj Zizek and The Sound of Music . “Eye In The Sky,” an homage to ‘70s rock, is a
fist-raising anthem against government control while “Devils Give” takes a look at what we
perceive as good versus evil. “It’s kind of about the dual nature of humans,” says Garreth.
“You can be an angel if all your options are taken away, but to see where your morality lies, you
need to have all options available.”
Options are fundamental to the Edmonton alt-rock band’s craft. Psychopath & The Philosopher ,
also starring childhood friend/bassist Will Smith and drummer Denis Frigon , roars with a
menagerie of sounds reminiscent of genre-bending acts such as Mother Mother, Arctic
Monkeys, The Doors, Red Hot Chili Peppers and System of A Down.
The Burrows grew up with their own menagerie in Red Deer — five donkeys, four dogs, two
horses and 23 cats — and initially started off as an acoustic duo known as Katasaurus Wrecks.
“Katrina and I had never played together up until this point,” says Garreth. “I was always
jamming along to drum tracks in the basement on my electric guitar and she was playing
classical piano upstairs and we would yell at each other to shut up. So we never thought this
could work together.”
Work it does — and spectacularly well