Freakwater is an American alternative country band from Louisville, Kentucky, with one co-founding member living in Chicago. Freakwater is known for the lead vocals of Janet Bean and Catherine Irwin, who mix harmony and melody in idiosyncratic dissonant country-folk that is reminiscent of the Carter Family.

History

Thrill Jockey

In 1989, Janet Beveridge Bean (of rock band Eleventh Dream Day) and Catherine Irwin founded the band, and they have been supported by several musicians since then, including members of Califone (2005 Thinking of You tour). Bassist David Wayne Gay, formerly of Stump The Host, is another long-time member of the band. They released their records on Chicago's Thrill Jockey label. From 2006 to 2013, Bean and Irwin worked on other projects. A reissue of 1993's Feels Like the Third Time as a 20-year anniversary restarted the duo playing together as Freakwater. In 2014, the band went out on the road, touring and playing the record as their main set.

Bloodshot Records

In February 2016, Freakwater released the record Scheherazade on Bloodshot Records. In advance of the full-length record—-the duo's first record since 2005-—Freakwater released a single called "The Asp And The Albatross".

Freakons

In 2013, and again in September 2017 and July 2021, Janet Bean and Catherine Irwin of Freakwater joined with Jon Langford and Sally Timms of the Mekons to be the Freakons, performing original and cover songs about coal mining in Appalachia, England, and Wales, to support the non-profit organization Kentuckians for the Commonwealth. Each time, the Freakons performed at the Hideout in Chicago, and elsewhere in Wisconsin. In 2013, they also performed at San Francisco's Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival. In 2017, they were accompanied by violinists Jean Cook of New York City and Anna Krippenstapel of Louisville (The Other Years, Joan Shelley, etc.), and, only in Chicago, by Chicago/Louisville guitarist James Elkington (The Horse's Ha, etc.). In 2021, the same line-up, without Elkington, performed, and they released the live album Freakons, recorded at the 2017 Chicago performances.

Collaborations

Discography

Albums

Singles

Compilations

Catherine Irwin solo (partial)

Janet Bean solo (partial)

Freakons