- Released: 2020
- Origin: Birmingham, Alabama, USA
- Label: Merge
- Best Track: Lilacs
Katie Crutchfield, aka Waxahatchee, is an interesting artist. From what I’ve heard (and to her credit) she sounds pretty different from one album to the next. I liked her last album, 2017’s Out in the Storm, which had a bit of an ’80s synth vibe in parts. ‘Hear You‘ was a great song in particular, that stayed in my head for weeks.
Her fifth and latest album, Saint Cloud, has had some excellent reviews. I’m struggling with it a bit myself. It’s very Southern rock, which is to be expected from an artist from Alabama, but it’s all a bit warbly and waily for my liking, especially on the final quasi-title track ‘St. Cloud’.
I do like a couple of tracks, like the slow, teetering opener ‘Oxbow’ and the lively and memorable chorus of ‘Lilacs’, but they are the exception rather than the rule.
I always feel a bit crappy reviewing stuff like this, as it’s clearly good songwriting and meaningful music. It’s almost more like I’m reviewing myself than the album. Still, I have to be honest and give a heartfelt opinion, and this one isn’t really my bag.
