Waxahatchee - Tigers Blood

From the first half-whispered, half-sung line of opening track ‘3 Sisters’, it’s clear Katie Crutchfield is picking up where she left off on 2020’s ‘Saint Cloud’. Piano, organ and clean electric guitar soon join her lilting falsettos and the combination eases the listener into ‘Tigers Blood’ like the buttery sun on a crisp morning. This time around, Katie has enlisted the help of Wednesday guitarist MJ Lenderman to brilliant effect. ‘Crowbar’’s jangling guitar feels like ‘Out of Time’ era REM, while ‘Bored’ harks back to the scuzzier sound of earlier Waxahatchee albums as Katie channels her anger about a friendship falling apart. ‘Ice Cold’ might be the album’s highlight, though, kicking off with a punchy intro similar to Wednesday’s ‘Chosen to Believe’ yet ending with Nile Rodgers-esque stabbing chucks behind, as Katie delivers a sarcastic and sneering performance. More than anything, ‘Tigers Blood’ is a refinement of the blueprint laid down by ‘Saint Cloud’, and a showcase of Katie at the peak of her powers.