Nothing Crutchfield’s recorded up to this point could prepare you for the way Ivy Tripp reimagines sonic space and, by extension, Waxahatchee’s whole sound, its capacity for emotional heft.
Ivy Tripp is not a record about being in love or and it's not a record about getting your heart broken; it's about the foggy, messy tangle of the feelings in between. And they've never sounded so good.
When you’ve got a whole record of songs whose bare bones are as impactful as these ones, frills of any variety are as unproductive as they are unnecessary.
Crutchfield's introspection and self-awareness have been elevated to absolutely staggering levels, allowing for an unmatched showcase of her skills as a musician.
Adapting nearly every trend in indie-rock for her own needs, Crutchfield crafts a record that runs the range of human emotion without settling into any one lane.
This is one way it's most reminiscent of the best '90s indie rock: it never feels forced or like she's making some kind of push. It's unhurried and natural and real.
It takes considerable talent to pull off sincere, confessional songwriting as favorably as Waxahatchee’s Katie Crutchfield.
Most of Ivy Tripp's songs ... especially at the end, are exceptionally minimal - centred around that voice and those lyrics, held together with a drum machine beat, distorted guitar line or acoustic strumming. They are confessional and vulnerable, yet so strong.
Ivy Tripp ... maintains a sense of sincerity throughout, letting her purge her own thoughts while providing a sanctuary for her listeners.
This is certainly a collection of songs, as opposed to an intricately crafted, close-knit record, but when the individual songs are this good, that’s really not a problem.
Over 13 songs, it darts from ramshackle indie-rock inspired by Crutchfield’s 1990s heroines to more stripped down singer-songwriter fare. But there’s definite experimentation and expansion here too.
‘Ivy Tripp’ is slicker than its predecessors, but Crutchfield’s emotional rawness hasn’t been glossed over.
When I listen to Waxahatchee, I feel a little less strange. Less washed up.
Cerulean Salt was a tough album to top but, with this bleak yet beautiful follow-up, Crutchfield might have done just that.
Crutchfield seems most concerned with finding every way possible to lighten her heavy heart’s load rather than drive through the lens of any one aesthetic.
Born of D.I.Y. punk culture, Waxahatchee's fuzzy, introspective pop stands out due to the fearless honesty of the songs, and Crutchfield's refusal to dumb down her emotional currents or underestimate her audience.
Ivy Tripp is about moving Waxahatchee forward as an act, and that doing so doesn’t necessarily mean losing what fans loved about the band in the first place.
On Ivy Tripp she particularly excels at sketching out just enough details to make her intentions clear, while leaving enough space to let listeners draw their own conclusions.
An absolute triumph of a record. Incredible songs, performed with honesty and passion.
On Ivy Tripp, Crutchfield creeps further into adulthood, expanding both her outlook and sound without losing the intimacy that endeared her to us in the first place.
Ivy Tripp finds Crutchfield maturing not only in lyrical subject matter, but in sound.
Aimlessness can be a rite of passage for twentysomethings, and Crutchfield shines brightest when she transforms that fear into frenetic pop joy.
Nobody expects for any musical wheels to be reinvented with a Waxahatchee album, but this never mattered when the songs were more idiosyncratic; if the arrangements had space for word-painting, Ivy Tripp would have been far more memorable.
I normally like it when she delves more into a country or American sound, but this is a solid (mostly) indie rock album.
I normally like it when she delves more into a country or American sound, but this is a solid (mostly) indie rock album.
1 | Breathless 4:45 | 100 |
2 | Under a Rock 2:08 | 100 |
3 | Poison 2:10 | 100 |
4 | La Loose 3:13 | 100 |
5 | Stale by Noon 2:44 | 100 |
6 | The Dirt 2:02 | 100 |
7 | Blue 2:06 | 100 |
8 | Air 3:12 | 100 |
9 | < 3:20 | 100 |
10 | Grey Hair 1:46 | 100 |
11 | Summer of Love 2:21 | 100 |
12 | Half Moon 3:17 | 100 |
13 | Bonfire 4:59 | 100 |
#6 | / | SPIN |
#8 | / | A.V. Club |
#13 | / | The Skinny |
#19 | / | Stereogum |
#23 | / | Time Out London |
#24 | / | Treble |
#38 | / | Crack Magazine |
#83 | / | Rough Trade |