The last time Waxahatchee performed at the Tiny Desk, things looked — and sounded — a bit different. In 2013, Katie Crutchfield, sporting baby bangs, performed her bare-boned, devastating songs alone with her eyes mostly closed. "I rolled out of the tour band … I sort of didn't really know what I was doing at all. My amp broke in the middle [of the set]," Crutchfield says of her 2013 performance.

And while she was already earning her place as one of the most profound lyricists of the 21st century, much has changed since then for the now Grammy-nominated artist. Across Crutchfield's six albums as Waxahatchee, plus country duo Plains, she's strayed from her DIY punk roots and settled into something more akin to Americana.

In this Tiny Desk concert, Crutchfield is cool and cozy behind the Desk; she sways with an easy smile as she kicks off the set with her latest single, "Much Ado About Nothing," alongside a five-piece band. She performs one of NPR Music's best songs of 2024, "Right Back to It," as well as Tigers Blood's title track and an album standout, "Crowbar." She and the band end with "Fire," a song that, as the first single from 2020's Saint Cloud, marked the beginning of a beautiful transformation of Waxahatchee's music.

"I'm really happy that that exists," Crutchfield says of her 2013 Tiny Desk. "And I'm really happy to be back to show you this new version of the band."

SET LIST

• "Much Ado About Nothing"

• "Right Back to It"

• "Crowbar"

• "Tigers Blood"

• "Fire"

MUSICIANS

• Katie Crutchfield: vocals, acoustic guitar

• Eliana Athayde: upright bass, background vocals

• Cole Berggren: piano, banjo

• Spencer Tweedy: drums, background vocals

• Colin Croom: pedal steel, dobro, guitar

• Clay Frankel: guitar, background vocals

TINY DESK TEAM

• Producer: Elle Mannion

• Director/Editor: Maia Stern

• Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell

• Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter

• Videographers: Maia Stern, Joshua Bryant, Kara Frame, Estefania Mitre

• Audio Engineer: Andie Huether

• Production Assistant: Ashley Pointer

• Photographer: Michael Zamora

• Tiny Desk Copy Editor: Hazel Cills

• Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed

• Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson

• VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins

Copyright 2025, NPR