Waxahatchee Interview
by Ryan Pangilinan

It goes without saying, that Waxahatchee’s “American Weekend” is one of my favorite records in the last few years. It made the top of my list for favorite albums for our sister site, Redefine, and it continues to amaze me with every spin. We at Totally Crushed Out champion Waxahatchee’s singular band member, Katie Crutchfield (PS Eliot, Bad Banana, The Ackleys), chiefly because her songs are gut wrenchingly honest, relatable, and, quite frankly, catchy.

“American Weekend” comes out today through Don Giovanni Records and Crutchfield sat down with us to discuss all things Waxahatchee (with a little Guided by Voices).

Totally Crushed Out: What was the impetus of Waxahatchee? At the time of the cassette release, both Bad Banana and PS Eliot were active. Did you feel like the songs that would become for Waxahatchee didn’t fit anywhere with those two bands?
  
Katie Crutchfield: It really grew out of an urge to make acoustic music again. I sort of ‘started’ on an acoustic guitar and I played under the moniker ‘King Everything’ when I was in high school. The birth of Waxahatchee really just started out of a desire to make music like that again while simultaneously wanting to disassociate from the cheesy music I wrote when I was younger
 
American Weekend originally saw release through your imprint, Delta Queen. How did its release via Don Giovanni come about?

American Weekend has had many different phases of ideas for release. I wrote and recorded it in a week in my room at my parent’s house and I was pretty damn sure that no one was ever going to hear it, much less release it. Allison (my sister) really encouraged me to release it properly and in good time and that’s where Delta Queen came from. We were particularly broke at this time and while we were trying to facilitate the release I was approached about doing a Waxahatchee record by Don Giovanni. It seemed like a smarter idea to let an awesome, established label properly release this particular record. It’s a personal milestone and I was afraid I’d screw it up. I trust DG more than I trust myself with the endeavor.  
 
Upon this wider release for American Weekend, you’re also embarking on an extensive US tour. What sort of things are you anticipating for this run, specifically as a solo artist?
 
Playing music alone for lots of people is a lot harder than with a band. The screw-up stakes are higher. In PS Eliot, I had a whole lot of other sounds going on to cover up my nerves and mistakes. I guess I’m just expecting to be more nervous. This is also the first time in years that I’ve been on tour for this long. I’m really excited though. Leaving your life behind for multiple months is always so bizarre and hard but I’m looking forward to it.

Personally, I really enjoyed the lo-fi aesthetic of the album and split cassette. One of things that we talked about last time when discussing PS Eliot, was the difference between Bike Wreck and Introverted Romance. For all intents and purposes, do you think that Waxahatchee will remain a lo-fi solo project or do you see it growing further, whether you implement past recording techniques or have a backing band?

Its really funny you ask that, it’s been on my mind a lot lately. I’m in the middle of demoing for the next record and planning to record it right when I get home from the tour. As of right now my plan is to record it at our house on Waxahatchee creek, myself, just the way I did AW, the only real difference being that there will be more instrumentation. After 9 weeks of tour, that idea could change. As for long-term plans, I’m not sure. The real difference between this project and my other projects is that I have no one else influencing or actively participating in any creative decision. It’ll really just depend on my own development with the songs I write in the future.
 
One of the things I liked about American Weekend is how relentlessly raw it is. In a way, it reminds me a bit of Songs From a Blue Guitar by Red House Painters. And again, personally speaking, I found it to be particularly poignant and meaningful when I was going through the end of a long-term relationship. Whether the songs are steeped in real life or have a fictive nature, are there moments when reflecting on American Weekend where you feel like you’ve put too much of yourself out there, or do you think that it would be moot since people, myself included, will relate to the album and its content in their own way?
 
All of the lyrics for Waxahatchee are a lot more organic and true and explicit than my other lyrics. I realize that it means I’m wearing my heart on my sleeve and at times even (more so in newer songs) airing some dirty laundry. Truthfully, it’s just more satisfying for me to write that way.
 
Following the US tour, what other plans do you have in store for Waxahatchee?
 
Making a new record in the spring to hopefully be released in the fall. I’m also planning another tour in the summer, probably in July!
 
In addition to American Weekend, what other records or bands do you think the kids should check out?

Well, I’m going to take this opportunity to plug my sister’s new band Swearin’ from Brooklyn. They just made a demo and it’s so awesome. I hear Sourpatch have a new record coming out also. I’m doing a few shows with them on this tour.

Lastly, how good is that Guided by Voices reunion album?

I really like it!!

Waxahatchee’s American Weekend is out now on Don Giovanni and catch her on a full US tour. Dates can be found on the Facebooks.

Waxahatchee
“American Weekend”
(Delta Queen)

Katie Crutchfield’s ascent to being one of the most prolific songwriters in today’s DIY punk scene continues with her second release under the Waxahatchee moniker, “American Weekend.”

Truthfully, I like the songs on this recording a bit more than on her earlier split. The songs are still stripped down and recorded to tape, but as a full-length, there’s more dynamics in the tunes. Songs like the caustic “luminary blake” are off set by poppier numbers like “be good.”

I feel like this is one of those albums that you’re going to like or not. There’s a vulnerability that Crutchfield shows on this record that, while is present in PS Eliot, resonates throughout the entire recording. It’s very bittersweet, but I feel like that’s what makes it so appealing. The genuine nature of Waxahatchee is what sets this project apart from other acoustic troubadours (yo, Chris Carrabba, I’m looking at you) and I’ll continue to listen to this while my copy of “Swiss Army Romance” was discarded to the record store’s buy back program long ago.

— Ryan Pangilinan

PS Eliot
“Sadie”
(Salinas)

I think between PS Eliot, Bad Banana and Waxahatchee, it’s pretty safe to say that Katie Crutchfield is one of the most prolific (if not THE most) songwriters in today’s music scene. While PS Eliot’s debut album, “Introverted Romances in our Troubled Minds” revisited some of the Crutchfield sisters’ pop-laden hooks from The Ackleys, their sophomore record “Sadie” finds the quartet standing on pretty solid ground, finding a style to call their own.

Opening up with the keyboard-driven “Talk,” the band barrels through 40 minutes of fuzzy guitars, off-time drum parts and the occasional catchy chorus. Take, for example, “Shitty and Tragic” which has one of those melodic choruses I’ve ever heard. That song will get stuck in your head for days. Then there’s “Diana,” a somber tune that takes a break from the distorted guitars before breaking into the Dinosaur Jr-esque “Dead Letters.”

PS Eliot is one of the new crop of bands that lifts a lot of influence from 90s northwest/K Rec groups, which shows up all over “Sadie,” but they’re able to steer in a comfortable direction while owning the sound as their own. This album in particular finds Katie Crutchfield singing in some distinct ranges, at times breath-y, but most times caustic. It’s not as poppy as their last release, but it’s definitely already on my short list of best records of the year.

— Ryan Pangilinan

Waxahatchee
“Waxahatchee + Chris Clavin” Split EP
(Plan It X)

There’s an appealing naïveté to Katie Crutchfield’s musical projects, whether it’s the storytelling whimsy of PS Eliot or the brash punk rock attitude of Bad Banana, Crutchfield’s lyrics against melodic chords is the stuff that would make Kim Gordon go green with envy. For her solo endeavor, Waxahatchee, Crutchfield goes back to basics – vocals and guitar.

Her first release under this moniker is a split cassette with Chris Clavin and despite its rather lofi quality, retains all its pop glory. “Black Candy” is Crutchfield at one of her seemingly honest moments (through song, anyway). The tape’s opening track, “Sister Saint” could easily be electric, but as a stripped down song, it’s relatively haunting in a Red House Painters way.

I’ve long been a fan of Crutchfield’s songwriting, particularly the charm that PS Eliot’s lofi demo and Bad Banana’s full-length, but I’m curious to hear what Waxahatchee would sound like if it were cleaned up a bit.

— Ryan Pangilinan