Waxahatchee was back in Philly for a resplendent homecoming of sorts this weekend at The Fillmore. On the last nights of her Tigers Blood tour, singer-songwriter Katie Crutchfield gave the performance of her career standing on a one-woman platform backed by a world-class band. This year’s Tigers Blood and its spiritual predecessor St. Cloud comprised most of the setlist, cementing Crutchfield’s emergence in the mainstream as an alt-country, devout Lucinda Williams follower, and not exactly as we remember her in Philly in the early aughts indie rock scene. And sparing any sentimentality, that’s hardly a bad thing.
Speaking of sentimental Philly sounds, Gladie opened night one of two of Waxahatchee’s packed Fillmore shows. For some personal context, I’d just been away traveling for two weeks, and Gladie broke my fast of live American music. If you’ve been paying attention to Philly music for a decade or so, this band sounds like coming home. Their distinct yet fuzzed out, garage rock style with roughly one dynamic (loud) feels like a vestige of a slightly bygone Philly era. And if someone is going to carry this skater-guitar-rock torch into the ’20s, dodging the shoegazers and the weepy indie rock messiahs, I’m glad to see it’s Gladie.
Another former Philadelphian was up next, Tim Heidecker and The Very Good Band. Going in blind, if I had to guess what I thought the California-based comedian and podcaster with positive Pitchfork reviews and collaborations with Weyes Blood sounded like, a Springsteen-y, REM-esque, Dave Matthews-stan act would not even crack my first five guesses. Though I knew this act would be entertaining. Between songs with lyrics so direct as to verge on parody (like on an unreleased track about microdosing mushrooms), Heidecker, born in Allentown and a graduate of Temple University, played up his connection to Philadelphia. He told the Fillmore and the band played catch after a gig a few nights ago, with an Eagles-branded football no less.
Then right on time, Waxahatchee came out to a fully-arrived, sold-out Fillmore mob. She threw her baseball cap, embroidered KC for Kansas City and Katie Crutchfield, out into the audience and began to play. “We’re going to play every song off Tigers Blood tonight,” Katie said. And they proceeded to, in roughly album order with songs from St. Cloud and Crutchfield’s side project with Plains with Jess Williamson sprinkled in.
Despite modest, indie rock beginnings, Waxahatchee is now closer to a pop act. Crutchfield is a natural performer who genuinely looked like she had fun coming out of her shell and dancing around stage. Though MJ Lenderman (who features prominently on single “Right Back To It”) wasn’t present, the Waxahatchee band was a well-oiled machine, anchored by bassist Eliana Athayde and drummer Spencer Tweedy, with features of harmonica, banjo, and pedal steel. And if it wasn’t clear from the band’s production, the fans jumping up and down at the recognition of the next song, singing along to all the lyrics, gave Waxahatchee away as a star.
Check out photos of Waxahatchee at The Fillmore below. If you missed the show — or want to experience it again — the band just announced that it is headlining night two of Philly Music Fest, October 22nd at Ardmore Music Hall. Details and tickets can be found here.
