“Winter Song”
from the album The Head and the Heart
2011
iTunes
In the Pacific Northwest, for every three trees, there’s a bearded folk-rock singer with an acoustic guitar and the voice of an angel. At this point, there’s little novelty to the mold set by the likes of Fleet Foxes — multi-part vocal harmonies, soaring but delicate arrangements — which means that bands in the genre must separate themselves through good old-fashioned execution. If the songs aren’t there, if they don’t speak to a universal truth or tap into an authentic emotion, then there’s little chance of being heard amongst the sweetly crooned din.
A Seattle sextet with a flair for warm gentility, The Head and the Heart practically oozes good-natured winsomeness in “Winter Song,” which finds the band likening a fading love to the arrival of a bleak season. Along the way, the group showcases its abundance of members capable of singing lead — Josiah Johnson, Jon Russell and Charity Thielen each take a verse here, to enormously pleasing effect — while even finding room for a ray of hope at the end. As February gets set to wind to a merciful close, “Winter Song” provides a welcome reminder that each season has a purpose, even if it’s only to end.