It's the second day of summer, an absolute scorcher, but nothing including today's heat and yesterday's manic thunderstorms will quell the anticipation for this evening's musical delight at the one venue to rule them all, Sydney Opera House.
Growing up near Waxahatchee Creek, Alabama, Katie Crutchfield's musical moniker was naturally named Waxahatchee.Katie is first and foremost a poet and storyteller as seen through her lyrics. Add serene vocals, splashes of folk-indie-Americana-ish flavour with a side of bliss and ache of nostalgia and you may get a vague idea of the comfort Katie's music provides if you've never experienced it.
It's a safe space and a vast space. The appeal of this music can come from many angles. The melodies are catchy as hell (including the song 'Hell', mind you); try getting them out of your head because they will remain there on repeat, indefinitely. Trust me.
Image © Kim Rudner
The phrases are intricate and intelligent, rich with depth and tongue twisters; no small feat to commit these sets to memory; and the vocals. . . spell-casting gorgeousness. So, imagine all of this times ten, live onstage in the belly of the Opera House in all its intimacy and grandeur.
To start the show (2 December) and set the mood through dimmed lights, we were treated to Dolly Parton while we awaited Katie and her four-piece band taking centre stage. It looked like they were enjoying Dolly off side-stage.
Crutchfield arrived all smiles in silver boots, a red dress and signature KC trucker hat that was thrown into the audience during the first song. Lucky person. The band launched into the first three songs from their latest album, 'Tigers Blood', before alternating between albums for the rest of the set. Gotta love an opener for an opener.
It's tough to pull out favourite moments of a set that hits all the spots, but in this case what elevated the performance were a couple of things.
Image © Kim Rudner
Firstly the harmonies, sometimes entire band five-part harmonies such as in 'Tigers Blood''s title track. Secondly, the lap steel and slide guitar sounded far more prevalent live than I'd ever heard in a recording. Experiencing this in 'Ruby Falls', the most melancholic song in the set was, heartbreakingly luscious. There's a lot of paradox's in this band.
Then there was the banjo. Yes, banjo. Unassuming banjo. Possibly a world first. I didn't even realise there was banjo until I saw it. What a moment that was. Its pedals were creating some sort of sorcery and I need to know more.
Lastly, halfway through the set we got to hear and FEEL 'Oxbow', the opening track from 2020's 'Saint Cloud', a different type of song to the rest of the album, with a slow start. Live, this was trance-like, it was mesmerising. The enveloping heaviness of the bass, the three-part harmonies and smoothness like dark chocolate of the song were like a palette cleanser for the second part of the set.
Image © Kim Rudner
It starts to sink in. 2024 Americana Award nom for Song Of The Year and first time 2025 Grammy nominee for Best Americana Album, Waxahatchee gifted us a set list encompassing every song from their last two albums, sans two, plus a few from Katie's 2022 Americana-focused collab with Jess Williamson under the name of Plains.
Will we ever get to see this again? Probably not. If there were a second Sydney show you can guess what I'd be doing. As I walk out of The House humming along the harbour, the cityscape to one side, The Bridge to the other with a ceiling of stars hanging overhead, I hope everyone is feeling the magic in the air. I couldn't imagine there's ever been a better way to spend a Monday night.
'You know you got a friend in me, I'm an angler married to the sea.'
- written by Kim Rudner
More photos from the concert.
