The story of The Head and the Heart is well enough known in the Seattle music scene to the point where it’s almost legend. A group of friends who started out playing open mic nights at Connor Byrne Pub end up selling a reported 10,000 copies of their self-produced debut album. That success, and tons of local buzz, led to them signing a deal with Sub Pop Records and the rest is history.
That self-produced, self-titled debut album was one of the best local records of the 2010s. And while the band has recorded and released four more albums since its release, none of them have quite reached the same level of musical excellence and bliss as their debut. That is until “Aperture,” the group’s sixth full-length and its best since their phenomenal debut.
To record the album the band went back to the basics and decided to go without a producer, opting to produce the record themselves, similar to how they approached their first album. The results find the band recapturing some of the magic from their debut throughout the album’s 12 tracks.
“Aperture” is a record filled with delightful little moments that make it such a big, joyful album. From the first plinking of piano keys on opener “After the Setting Sun” to the anthemic sound of “Arrow” to the funky, almost dancey vibes of “Beg, Steal, Borrow” there’s so much fun to be found on the album.
The Beastles-eque piano romp of “Fire Escape” is a delight. The upbeat catchiness of “Jubilee” captures the heart-forward carelessness of falling in love perfectly. Elsewhere “Cop Car” is a delightful detour from the band’s typical fare with drummer Tyler Williams taking on vocal duties telling a tale of mischief gone wrong. And Charity Rose Thielen, who has always been the band’s secret weapon, delivers a beautifully delicate vocal performance on the album’s penultimate track “Finally Free.”
The album closes with the title track, which is about living in the moment, letting the light in and living without fear. It’s an apt metaphor for how The Head and The Heart managed to create such a standout record that’s not only a mid-career high point, it’s one of the best in their stellar catalog.
