The Head and The Heart are Letting The Light In, With Their Sixth Studio Album, Aperture, Out May 9.

“This is our human statement as a band,” says Tyler Williams of The Head and The Heart, in reference to the band's upcoming sixth studio album, Aperture. Their statement can be boiled down to what the album title suggests: The Head and The Heart are adjusting their aperture— widening the lens of what this band can accomplish together, and letting a new light shine on the importance of their friendship, support for one another and complete vulnerability within their music.

Recently, I had the pleasure of attending a press conference with The Head and The Heart, arranged by °1824, on behalf of Unheard Gems. The band was beyond eager to provide commentary about their upcoming project, and their unbridled passion for Aperture was infectious. It was immediately clear that the most important aspect of this album’s creation was its ability to let The Head and The Heart return to complete and utter vulnerability as a band— with Aperture being the band’s first self produced album since 2011. They encourage each other to be open, honest and raw within their art— and the safety they have found within their vulnerability has produced what The Head and The Heart believes is undoubtedly some of their best work.

Band member Matty Gervais speaks about the unfiltered art of creation that is captured within each track of Aperture. He shares how each track has been broken down into different stems, and when listening to each stem, you can hear the nuance that comes with every beat, melody and chord of the tracks on this album. “You can hear, like, all kinds of mistakes and bleed on everything,” says Gervais, “and there's just so much, like, very real, very live, very in the moment captured stuff that’s on this record.” So, how does a band that captures such raw emotion and sound do it? How do six people meet each other where they are, and enter a state of honesty and transparency together? For The Head and The Heart, the answer relies largely on band therapy.

“When you enter into a band you’re entering into— depending on how many people, in this band it’s six— you’re entering into a six way marriage,” says Gervais. He then expands, describing how there was a realization within the band that in order to maintain a space of vulnerability, there needed to be a way of communication that worked effectively and compassionately between each member of this team. Like any group dynamic, being able to communicate ideas and perspectives in an efficient way is not always easy— so, The Head and The Heart turned to band therapy to help gain tools to aid in communication. The toolbox this band has built through the aid of band therapy has helped them tap into their shared values surrounding the importance of mental health and emotional intelligence.

Jon Russell touches on how treating music and creation as therapy within his work for The Head and The Heart has allowed him to process and understand his personal struggles. This therapeutic approach manifested for him in the form of a song on the album titled “Cop Car,” an explosive track born from time spent in the studio in Richmond, Virginia. Russell describes the lyrics of this track as “a stream of consciousness,” and “grappling with choices you’ve made, and how that’s affecting people around you.” Previously, Russell has found himself rewriting a song multiple times, trying to filter and shape it into the perfect narrative. With “Cop Car,” he found himself emotionally moved with how raw and authentic it was, and in reflection is proud of the way his therapeutic approach to songwriting turned into something tangible for him to be proud of.

As a whole, The Head and The Heart is immensely in tune to the importance of mental health. As a result, they are the founders of their coveted “Rivers and Roads Foundation,” titled in reference to their hit song “Rivers and Roads” from their self-titled album. The foundation raises money for Seattle-based music programs, and strives to grow accessibility in music education as well as provide mental health resources for musicians. Their work with the foundation is consistent and impactful— in fact, every ticket purchased for their upcoming “Aperture” tour, starting in late May of 2025, will add $1 to the “Rivers and Roads Foundation.”

Aperture will be available to listen to in its entirety on May 9. As of right now, the first three tracks on the album— “After The Setting Sun,” “Time With My Sins,” and “Arrow—” are available to listen to on all major streaming platforms. Each track features the vulnerability, creativity and unity that The Head and The Heart speak so eloquently about, and the beauty of this project is already abundantly clear. I am incredibly grateful to have had the opportunity to hear this band speak about their work, and am eagerly awaiting the rest of the album. Be sure to give Aperture a listen, and check out the “Aperture” tour to find a date near you, where you can let the light of this album shine in real time.

Written By: Julia Brennan