‘Snocaps’ by Snocaps (ANTI- Records) [AP Photo]
For the recently converted Waxahatchee fan, Alabama-raised singer-songwriter Katie Crutchfield does not drum up the image of distorted riffs, scrappy lo-fi recordings and indie rock sensibilities. For many years, though, that was her reality. (Incisive, lyrical self-reflexivity and emotional acuity have always been present in her work, now delivered in a familiar twang via her idiosyncratic folk style.)
Long before her 2024 album “Tigers Blood” or 2020’s “Saint Cloud” cemented Crutchfield as a leading voice in contemporary Americana, Waxahatchee more closely followed in the tradition of her early power punk-pop bands, P.S. Eliot and Bad Banana. Those were led by her and her twin sister, Allison Crutchfield, also of the influential indie-punks Swearin’. It is impossible not to hear the impact of the pair’s clever harmonies, their ambling riffs and keen storytelling in generations of indie rock bands that followed.
Those groups dissolved as Waxahatchee took over, reuniting here and there for one-off performances for their devout listenership, and only when music-making seemed fun again. But a new project with both Crutchfields seemed off the table.
Unlikely, that is, until now: Snocaps, a surprise new project from Katie and Allison Crutchfield, released a self-titled debut album on Halloween. It is 13 tracks performed by the two, joined by close collaborators Brad Cook (longtime Waxahatchee producer) and guitarist MJ Lenderman (formerly of the band Wednesday, known to Waxahatchee fans as one-half of “Right Back to It,” one of AP’s favorite songs of 2024). MARIA SHERMAN, MDT/AP
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