When it comes to music, I’ve never had one singular band or singer that I passionately follow. I typically like singular songs from artists and the stray singles I stumble across; I never even thought about listening to albums I found songs to be from. So when I found Coyote Stories by The Crane Wives, I was surprised to find myself listening to the album over and over again. I wasn’t even surprised when they were my top artist on my Spotify Wrapped.
The band was originally formed by the songwriters Emilee Petersmark and Kate Pillsbury. They worked at a Chinese restaurant and to avoid waiting tables, they would perform under the name of The Crane Wives. The name is a reference to the Decemberists album “The Crane Wife”, which comes from the Japanese folk tale Tsuru Nyōbō (Crane Wife). They would later move their band to a more local circuit and add members Dan Rickabus, Ben Zito, and Tom Gunnels. Gunnels, however, left the band in 2015 to work on a music project called ‘Great Lakes Native’.
When it comes to The Crane Wives and their music, it is very folklore influenced and it feels like it too. I feel like each song has its own story or was heavily influenced by a personal experience, and it helps that you can feel the raw emotion in the vocals and even instrumentals. They read and sound like poems, more so than other songs, as the meanings behind them aren’t always so quick to come across. It feels like it makes you sit and dissect the meaning behind it and I find it very fun to listen to these songs and try to piece them together like a puzzle.
I’m not sure entirely of the meaning behind the album, as it does not come across as clear cut as some may be. However, I get the sense that it is about acknowledging the bad or mistakes that have been made and feeling regret or wanting to repair what has been damaged. It feels like an album that explores healing and its stages. From recognizing the bad habits, coming to terms with it and feeling the grief, wanting to find healing and fix what happened, to then being strong and finding yourself.
Their album Coyote Stories album was released in 2015 and had a few eyes on it through the years. I ended up knowing about the band before I started listening to this album due to one of the songs, The Moon Will Sing, gaining popularity on social media. It is their most listened to song on Spotify with almost 60 million streams; the song also just so happens to be a part of Coyote Stories.
The album has become my comfort music. It is very relaxed and the songs have an almost somber feel to them. I tend to lean more towards rock or heavier, loud music typically, so this album has become something I listen to when I’m alone and want to float in my mind.
I would recommend Coyote Stories for anyone who does not mind music that has that folklore feel. If not the album, then I highly recommend checking out any of their other albums and singles. I have not listened to all of them yet, but I have not found one that I do not enjoy.