Snocaps: Snocaps Review – Katie and Alison Crutchfield reunite with a little help from MJ Lenderman | music

SNocaps sound exactly like the sum of their parts. A new band for fans of tough, tender Americana, Alabama twins Katie and Allison Crutchfield (from Waxahachie and Swearn respectively) are in a new band together for the first time since the retirement of beloved and mischievous PS Elliott in 2011. Backed by indie guitar star MJ Linderman and acclaimed alternative rock producer Brad Cook, the Snookcaps are a family record in more ways than one: the four have an intertwined history of making music. Together, giving this unique collection the live feel of a band five albums deep.

Without any introduction needed, Snocaps begin by exercising trust. We’re in the car, Allison’s the one driving, and she challenges the rest of the band to close their eyes: “I’ve got the pedal to the floor or I’m going to hit the brakes hard,” she quips, setting the pace for an album about chasing integrity and conviction, told through airborne melodies and unpretentious freestyle guitar.

The sisters play outlaws above our heads (“Don’t bother coming after us, boys!”), echoing their adolescent rejection of male-dominated music scenes, while the whispered assertions of “I Don’t Want That” slowly grow stronger, with glowing acoustic guitar guarding their dual harmonies like a blanket fort. Combining poetry and realism in songs about flawed self-sufficiency, Wasteland and Cherry Hard Candy are classic Crutchfield classics – now with dusty, haunting solos from Lenderman. They’ve promised a few more live shows before they call it quits, but we’re hoping a band with such palpable, joyful chemistry won’t be able to resist driving a few extra miles.