The title of The Head and the Heart‘s new album, Aperture, refers to the part of a camera lens that allows light to enter the camera. That proved to be an apt metaphor for how band members were feeling in both their heads and their hearts as they were making the record.
“We spend a lot of time together, we’re a very close-knit family of musicians and friends,” vocalist/guitarist Jonathan Russell tells ABC Audio. “We’ve seen a lot of one another, we’ve seen a lot of our growth, we’ve seen a lot of our stumbles.”
He adds, “It just feels like collectively right now we’re all sort of leaning towards opening up and being more honest and more vulnerable and letting more light in, if you will.”
That light is mentioned directly in songs like “Cop Car,” which brings in elements of the gospel song “This Little Light of Mine.” Meanwhile, tracks including the single “Arrow” and “West Coast” search more for a guiding light, as they both use the word “direction” in their lyrics.
“I think [our] first record was about the physical reality of a home, and this album sort of feels more like the spiritual side of that or the mental side of feeling like you’re in the right place that you should be,” says drummer Tyler Williams.
“It look us a long time to get to that headspace of feeling like we were home again as a band,” Williams continues. “I think this record was us coming back to that sense of home that we have with each other in the band.”
Aperture is out now. The Head and the Heart will launch a U.S. tour May 30.
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