The Head and the Heart’s new album, “Signs of Light,” is a disappointing addition to their discography. Their self-titled debut in 2011 was a standout Americana sensation rooted in the beautiful imagery of the west coast. Their follow-up, “Let’s Be Still,” stayed safely in that territory, sincere if not routine. It was time for a change.

Unfortunately, their new direction seems to be more pop-oriented and it’s strange to hear our indie cowboys crooning like a Phillip Phillips knockoff.

“Signs of Light” is a departure in both sound and tone, and not a good one. The Head and the Heart set out to make an album that wasn’t saccharine sweet, but generally uplifting. Both “Let’s Be Still” and their debut self-titled album were much more melancholy — looking back at heartbreaks, family separation and the death of loved ones.

While they were not wholly balanced in tone — songs varied from the sad “Josh McBride,” to the upbeat “Summertime,” or “Rivers and Roads” to “Down in the Valley” — the albums did seem sadder in nature. “Signs of Light,” was supposed to be different.

Instead, it comes across as their least sincere album yet. The places where it shines is where it returns to “Let’s Be Still” territory, with “Oh My Dear,” and “I Don’t Mind.” It’s not even really the subject matter that’s the issue here, but the mastering. On this album, each song sounds made for the radio and much too slick for true Americana fans.

While older albums sound raw and open, the too-professional mastering comes across as pop-like and not at all what The Head and the Heart is all about. “I Don’t Mind,” and “Oh, My Dear,” shine because they are the least-mastered on the album, but even then, as soon as the songs pick up they go back to pop radio instead of Americana goodness.

The result is an odd sound: upbeat and strange, a pop package on a band that is definitely not pop. The songs blend together and become hard to tell apart. While the band does sound fuller, the trade-off is a lack of authenticity that is incredibly disappointing.

While the album isn’t bad, it isn’t very good either. It comes across as lackluster, and sort of lost. Everything that made the Head and the Heart’s first two albums so great is not present here: the touching lyrics, the raw sound, and the bits of light that seemed to shine through each sad song. While “Signs of Light,” might have attempted to be a positive album, the results are actually quite sad.

Emera Riley is a junior magazine journalism major. Her column appears weekly in Pulp. You can email her at elril100@syr.edu 

Published on September 13, 2016 at 8:24 pm