Ethereal, calming, & unexpected, power duo Crow & Gazelle graced our ears with their set at Braun Brothers Reunion '25.
Comprised of married artists Chrislyn Lawrence & Mike McClure, Crow & Gazelle is a broken down project focusing on songwriting & overall healing vibrations. Chrislyn's vocals hone raw emotional strength while Mike's guitar picking adds dimension & catchy melodic rhythms. Their use of harmonies, a covered drum, & hard hitting lyrics prove that you don't need a full band to have power, to have a moving effect on the mind & body.
"Our set was incredible," said Mike. "Soon as we started, I felt like this crowd is just FOR you. Instead of you having to try to win somebody over, they're just such music fans & glad that you're here. You can definitely feel that."
The crowd was quiet, leaning in to listen to each word from the duo, taking time to understand what was before them. Even side stage, members of the Braun family repeated back lyrics that resonated with awe & appreciation. Due to the openness & inviting energy of the festival, the duo played 3 unreleased & brand new to the world tunes, as well as songs from their upcoming album.
"break downs & break throughs"
"[Our new record] was a series of false starts," the duo said in unison. "It was an absolute 3 months chocked full of breakdowns & breakthroughs." From changing locations to industry professionals to the working schedule, the album came with both physical & emotional challenges. Unique to this duo, their utter honesty in the hardships & the joys of artistry is refreshing. They aren't liars, not showboating their craft with rhinestones when it's grit & sinking sand & pressure to diamonds.
"Trying to figure out a process that works for her & me together, not just one I'm used to," said Mike. "I've made a ton of records for other people & myself, but just because I've done it one way every time doesn't mean that's the only way to do it. Some of it was unlearning what I've learned to find something that suited us as an artist."
Worthy of noting, whether purposefully or subconsciously, the duo refers to their act as a singular. When talking about their project, it's "artist" & how to work as ONE more than a lead & a follow. The synchronism between the two artists is apparent on stage when they move to the rhythm as one & unite their vocals to hold depth in tone.
"I knew she had a vision, & I didn't want to get in the way of that," said Mike. "And she also knew I had a vision & she didn't want to get in the way of that. Finding that sweet spot is tricky. It's working your way through that & not taking it personal which is hard."
Crow & Gazelle is an artist with a clear vision. They set an example to young artists showing sometimes the best way to make music is for & BY yourselves, rather than work with studios or engineers who don't understand or want to change the vision.
"Although I think it's beautiful to have someone to come in with a different perspective, this album is essentially one big story," said Chrislyn. "It has a protagonist, a beginning, & kind of an ending... more of an open ended ending. God love my beautiful husband who was like okay??? What's that again??"
The duo spoke of a village in upstate New York that transformed a portion of this new record & a piece of themselves. Its electric energy rocketed the remainder of the album.
"come together or come apart"
"I think we went up there & honored something so pure & real between us at that time, where we were in our lives," said Chrislyn. "A song [Mike] had been working on since that summer before came into being in this little old 1800s milk barn. It was full of the good kind of spirits. Without forcing, the rest of the songs kind of just fell out."
They finished this album just a few days ago with a sigh of relief.
"We are remarkably stronger & closer," said Chrislyn. Followed by Mike's, "yeah, we were either gonna come together or come apart."
There was a point where this album almost didn't make it out alive. The two had to separate from the studio & go on a couple grounding walks to let go of the internal challenges. They teetered the seams of coming undone, but at the end of the day, wove their independence together again.
"It's bigger than either one of us," said Mike. "Both of us had to grow."
When asked what their favorite lines were from this record, Crow & Gazelle audibly recoiled. What an impossible task to give thoughtful songwriters.
The moon, it burned the old oak down / The sun, it scorched the sea / I've been sleeping in the river bed / ain't got their hooks in me
"That one's a weird scene to open up to," said Mike.
The walls of this garden aren't tall / the God of my knowing is not small / it's beating inside us all / can you feel it?
"You just pulled that from my heart," said Chrislyn. "That song is called 'Fall How It Will.' In a way more head on sense, we're going to be dealing with religious trauma & sort of the scars of the patriarchy in this album. That's the first time we've said that out loud. But more amped up & powerful, not so subversive."
This record will be called "Truth Be Told," allegedly. We shall see. It's currently in the mix & master stage, slowing down until it's release next spring-ish. However, that won't slow Crow & Gazelle down as they're working on already another album.
"After pushing through this last record, it cleared the air for everything," said Mike. "There's no blockage."
"When you're true to what you're feeling & you honor it, you try to do right by 'it,' whatever it is," said Chrislyn. "I'm taking these gifts of words, photos, moments that I can be present & I'm honoring it. It creates abundance. These songs showed up & was exactly what we needed to tie it all together."
You can listen to Crow & Gazelle's debut record "As Above Now so Below" on all streaming platforms now as we wait for the new record. They'll also have shows to catch throughout the remainder of the year. Trigger Warning: you will find parts of yourself you didn't know you had lost or forgotten when listening to them. So tread with purpose.
As always, if you have a Crow & Gazelle story to share or thought to say, please leave us a comment! We'll catch you TOMORROW AT NOON for Shelby Stone's in-depth interview at Braun Brothers Reunion.
Thank you again to Chrislyn & Mike.