The third song of the four-song encore at Detroit’s Masonic Temple on Friday night was a cover of the Jayhawks’ “All the Right Reasons.” And there was a moment, when MJ Lenderman, Waxahatchee (Katie Crutchfield), and Brennan Wedl were all harmonizing, and one couldn’t help but bask in the glorious alt-country sound filling the cavernous theater.
Lenderman and Crutchfield are bringing their blend of indie folk Americana on a very successful co-headlining tour playing to equally large, equally sold-out crowds all over the US.
Brennan Wedl opened the night with a 10-song set of indie country storytelling. She was able to command the room with just her voice and a guitar, a testament to her songwriting ability. She also set the mood for the night, which alternated between love songs and heartbreak, both serious and playful. There were several standouts of her short set, including “Will You Still Want Me When the Crazy Comes Out?” where she was joined by Crutchfield.
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Lenderman and Crutchfield came out to a booming crowd and got right to work on their jam-packed set, totaling 27 songs. Surrounded by kitschy lamps and a fake pet dog, the stage looked like a room furnished from the thrift store. It was an intimate and quiet night, with acoustic guitars, lap steel (Colin Croom), banjo, and some keyboard (Cole Berggren) here and there, clean arrangements and pacing led over showmanship. Both backing members’ additions were sparse and only came in when needed, like Croom adding some harmonica during“Burning out at Midnight,” stepping in at the right moment to fill out the spaces between Crutchfield’s warm vocals. Other than that, it was the two headliners with their guitars and their voices, which is all one needs.
Much of the set was newer material, covering a good part of the two artists’ most recent albums. They mostly alternated back and forth with each other’s songs. Lenderman even previewed some new material with “Love Streams,” a sad song even for him, the chorus repeating “lo lo lo loneliness.” While most of the setlists across shows are similar, there are variations on the theme. They added some songs not seen in earlier shows, like “Chapel of Pines” by Great Thunder (a Crutchfield band) and the heart-wrenching“Lift Me Up” by Scud Mountain Boys, Lenderman really bringing down the house with the latter. They played a song by Snocaps (yet another Crutchfield band), which the crowd absolutely ate up. They also played “Takes So Much” for the first time on this tour, an older song by Crutchfield. So, needless to say, they’re mixing things up. One got the sense they were still playing with the setlist and really enjoyed the songs they wanted to play.
Crutchfield is unafraid of direct confrontation in her lyrics, both with others and with her own shortcomings. Lenderman hits some emotional depths but also some hilariously bizarre places. And the harmonies? Forget about it. So good. Crutchfield’s songs probably fit better in the stripped-down setting, but Lenderman’s lyrics can carry the songs even without the band.
It’s no secret that Crutchfield and Lenderman are sonically a match made in heaven. Lenderman even appeared on much of the acclaimed 2024 Waxahatchee album, ‘Tiger’s Blood,’ but seeing them share a stage highlights these complementary aspects of their songwriting.
For a room of nearly 5,000 people, the audience was impressively silent during the quiet moments of the set, proving the power of these songs. And then there were times when the crowd would erupt after a song like Lenderman’s “Wristwatch” when it felt like band had just played a punk set and not a quiet acoustic one.
It was a night of appreciation of other’s music, whether that appreciation was for each other or for their influences. These two are giving the people what they want on this tour, a stripped-down acoustic set packed with superb songs that feature the strengths of both artists. While the set was two hours, they both have such a stellar catalog, there’s never a sense of overstaying their welcome. On the contrary, you’ll likely leave wanting even more.
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