Waxahatchee’s ‘Tigers Blood’ boasts prolific lyricism and confidently subtle instrumentation that makes the project feel like a record you were meant to listen to

Words by Matt Keenan

Katie Crutchfield might be one of the most talented songwriters of our time. “Tigers Blood” is full of front to back enriching storytelling, some of the most satisfying instrumentation and lyricism you may hear this year, and the words of a woman who has perhaps come into her own more than ever in her musical career. I unfortunately only recently got to listen to Waxahatchee for the first time, so full disclosure the discography of Katie Crutchfield and I are fairly new to each other, however that does not stop what I heard from being any more incredible.

Every now and again I will get stuck in the same old routines of listening and turn back to the same old albums or songs again and again, because really at heart I am a habitual listener. I love nothing more than to stick to the same few albums that I’ve always turned to and just go about my day. Luckily for me though I have turned over a new leaf and evolved recently into being more open to discovery, I’ve always loved going to shows so I have found new music in a bunch of different ways. It could be going to a show with a really good opener, or my friend Abby putting me onto something I really liked, or just sometimes the recommendation of someone else. 

I’ve found the ways I can discover new music to be endless, and I am so insanely grateful that I happened to stumble on Samia’s Instagram story one day and just out of pure chance give ‘Tigers Blood’ a try. The record from start to finish introduced me to the world of Katie Crutchfield, who has been making music as Waxahatchee for over a decade now ever since leaving the area in Alabama where she grew up near Waxahatchee Creek. The songwriter has been called “the hardest working songwriter in music” and it’s not hard to see why, with a thorough discography as Waxahatchee and working with other projects such as Plains, Crutchfield certainly knows how to keep busy and it does nothing short of pay off in the form of some of the most creatively driven work ever made. 

When you break into ‘Tigers Blood’ you are treated to potent, almost honey sweet songwriting that gets you stuck on it in the most positive way. Some of my favorite lines from the record have to include: 

“You drive like you’re wanted in four states” 

- “3 Sisters”

“We go another round, I got nothing to say, it don't make a difference. I might be good on my own but I ain't running away I wanna chase it to the end when I’m seeing a vision” 

- “Burns Out At Midnight”

“By now truer words spoken like blood from a stone, and it fills me with dread that I’ve learned to ignore. The smell of dust it creeps up through the cracks in the floor”

- “Tigers Blood” 

Not to mention the collaboration with MJ Lenderman is a perfect pairing, on tracks like “Right Back To It” but also throughout the record Lenderman lends musical talents instrumentally and more in the most complementary way to a comforting yet confident instrumentation. It’s a pairing you will definitely not want to miss. 

In the latest installment to the Waxahatchee discography, Katie Crutchfield delivers a poetic and honest, yet confident examination of her experience in life, through wins and losses, the songwriter revisits these moments confidently and triumphantly cementing the fact that she has come more into her own than she ever has in her musical career. You can listen to Waxahatchee below, or on whatever platform you stream music.