Waxahatchee's Katie Crutchfield Discusses Her Grammy Nomination and a Significant Birthday Performance in Los Angeles.
Growing up as a budding musician, Katie Crutchfield, the main force behind the renowned indie band Waxahatchee, didn't give much thought to the Grammy Awards. "None of my idols actually won Grammys, except for a few," she mentions. "So it's sort of amusing how over time, it just seemed more attainable."
Now, two decades into her ongoing artistic journey, Crutchfield can add 'Grammy-nominated artist' to her resume. In November, it was disclosed that Waxahatchee's latest album Tigers Blood was nominated in the Best Americana Album category for the approaching 67th Annual Grammy Awards, set to occur on Feb. 2, 2025. This puts her alongside works by T Bone Burnett, Maggie Rose, Sierra Ferrell, Charley Crockett, and Sarah Jarosz in the same category. Crutchfield admits that she was taken aback by the news of her first-ever Grammy nomination.
"I was really happy," she recalls. "I'm generally a pretty offline person. I wasn't following when the nominations came out or anything. That's just how I choose to live my life. It just keeps me from focusing too much on things.
"Ten minutes before I found out I was nominated," she elaborates, "someone mentioned to me that the nominations were happening. And I was like, 'Wow.' The next thing I know, my phone is blowing up. It's a great honor. I'm looking forward to the entire experience. So I'm just thrilled."
The Grammy nomination marked the culmination of a fruitful and successful year for Waxahatchee, with the release of Tigers Blood followed by the ensuing tour. "Ever since I finished touring in the fall, my life has slowed down quite a bit," Crutchfield explains. "It's been really quiet and very domestic, like cooking, baking bread, and knitting. So I'm like, 'Wow, I had a really busy year this year.' It was actually quite mad how much touring we did.
"This year went by so fast," she continues. "It was really enjoyable. I was surrounded by amazing people, such as my band, my crew, and all the opening acts. It was like a wonderful breeze in a positive way."
Tigers Blood was Waxahatchee's first new release in four years since Saint Cloud (not counting I Walked With You A Ways, the 2022 record Crutchfield made with Jess Williamson as the duo Plains). "Saint Cloud received a tremendous amount of acclaim in 2020," Crutchfield acknowledges. "Brad Cook and I spoke about it a lot. We didn't want it to appear like a fluke. We knew we could do it again. So yes, I was a bit apprehensive about following it up, but I think everything happened at the right time."
One of the standout aspects of Tigers Blood was the addition of guitarist MJ Lenderman, who released a terrific record, Manning Fireworks, this year.
"Brad and I have a truly special connection," Crutchfield says. "There hasn't been another person who's managed to fit into our dynamic. Jake is the first person who has been able to join us. That's not to say there haven't been folks we love. But Jake added so much and was able to fit into our dynamic in a unique way. So he's fantastic."
If Saint Cloud was a reflection of Crutchfield's sobriety after tackling her previous alcohol issues, then Tigers Blood might be seen as a glimpse into her life post-sobriety.
"I was so scared to talk about Tigers Blood because I was afraid it would seem really dull," she explains. "Saint Cloud was like this fantastic gift. I was thinking today: part of marketing your album is like having this juicy narrative you can put a pretty bow on and say, 'This is what kind of record it is.' Tigers Blood wasn't like that at all. I just had to put my head down and be like, 'This is just about a snapshot of my life after I got sober.' It's a lot more nuanced and a little bit dull, like mid-30s boring. When I delved deeper into that, I found that I had a lot to say that felt relatable."
"I was more conscious of the audience when I was writing," she adds. "I genuinely wanted to write things that felt true to my experience but also applicable to multiple situations. Something a listener could hear and find a way to relate to regardless of what it was actually about."
Tigers Blood marks another stage in Crutchfield's personal evolution as she approaches her 36th birthday next month; the charming-sounding single "Right Back to It," featuring harmony vocals from Lenderman, was Crutchfield's first real love song under the Waxahatchee moniker.
She finds it amusing about that track, stating, "I always claim I won't be rushing to produce another record soon, but I've started contemplating it. I'm eager to test my boundaries and keep composing new renditions of songs like that - more love songs, but focused on the daily routine of relationships. Yes, it was essentially my first love song."
A new track from the album, "Bored," is a reflection on drifting friendships that occur in one's 30s. "That's a situation I've encountered over time as we age out of certain relationships, like someone you used to share a common path with, and you start to diverge," she explains. "I've tackled this theme a few times on the record. With 'Bored,' it's been a while since I've written an outright angry song. I wanted to do that, scratch that itch."
Crutchfield delves deeper into the theme of dependency and addiction in the powerful "365." "To be frank, I've written numerous songs about this type of relationship since it plays a significant role in my life. I'm surrounded by recovering and non-recovering addicts. From my earliest songs, particularly in Waxahatchee, I've been voyaging through this theme. There's something about '365' that feels so straightforward, clear, and to the point."
She contemplates if Tigers Blood is her best work to date, saying, "I view my career or discography since I started with Waxahatchee in two parts. Pre-Brad and post-Brad... the common thread being Brad [Cook]. I believe the amalgamation of all this work feels like a level-up. I'm eager to see what we create next and carry on this journey. I think Saint Cloud and Tigers Blood share a connection in some way. It's hard for me to choose. I love them both."
Waxahatchee will continue to perform shows throughout the following year in both the U.S. and Europe, including Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona. In March 2025, Crutchfield will be sharing the stage with her idol Lucinda Williams at Willie Nelson’s Luck Ranch in Spicewood, Texas, "for an event I'm curating."
A one-of-a-kind show in the new year features Crutchfield, her twin-sister musician Allison, and actress D’Arcy Carden (The Good Place) headlining at Los Angeles’s Largo on Saturday, Jan. 4, which is also their birthday. Dubbed 'Sweet Sixteen,' the show will feature the Crutchfields, Carden, and special guests performing covers of their favorite songs from their youth.
Recalling the Largo show, Crutchfield says, "We were just joking around about it. Like, 'What if we did this show, the three of us, and it was for our birthday?' We just kept talking about it. Then it got to be a couple of months away, and we're like, 'Maybe we should do it at Largo.' It's going to be fantastic. My band will back us up, and we've got amazing guests and a fantastic set list. It's going to be a fun, silly night where we all perform covers."
One of the songs Crutchfield will perform at the upcoming special show is her interpretation of "The One I Love" by R.E.M., "which is one of my favorite bands of all time, and was a major influence in my life when I was 16. Michael Stipe's birthday is also Jan. 4, so it seemed fitting to honor him. So that's a song we'll do. There are some truly ridiculous songs we're going to play and then some tunes everyone will recognize. It's mostly songs everyone is aware of, which is great."
After the announcement of Waxahatchee's Grammy nomination for 'Best Americana Album' with 'Tigers Blood', Katie Crutchfield expressed gratitude and excitement, stating that she was not expecting it due to her idols' lack of Grammy wins. MJ Lenderman, who joined the band as a guitarist, also had a successful year with the release of his own record 'Manning Fireworks'.
