Melodies that seem to echo through your bones. Almost unsettlingly enigmatic lyrics. Unpredictable vocal changes that give each song its own personality, despite keeping the distinct sound of the band the listeners love.
With all of these characteristics, Car Seat Headrest is certainly an anomaly in the world of music. With over a million monthly listeners, they have accrued quite a bit of attention for their unique sound, including members of the Lower Dauphin High School student body.
“I love [Car Seat Headrest],” says junior Jasmine Prieto. “I think that they are super underrated and deserve way more attention.”
The band seems to disregard most of the unspoken rules of contemporary music. The titles are typically unusual, and often the name of the title is not even said in the song, such as “Connect the Dots (The Saga of Frank Sinatra).”
Car Seat Headrest’s most popular album, “Twin Fantasy,” features some songs with impressive length as well. Most bands would refrain from releasing tracks such as “Beach Life-In-Death,” which clocks in at 13 minutes and 19 seconds, or “Famous Prophets (Stars),” which is over 16 minutes long. However, their 2018 album is not the only one containing unusually extensive songs. “Teens of Denial,” their 2016 release, features “The Ballad of the Costa Concordia,” which is 11 minutes and 30 seconds, and “Nervous Young Man,” the 2013 album, includes multiple tracks over 15 minutes long.
Some of the tracks’ lengthiness is undoubtedly due to the instrumental portions of the songs, often found for long stretches of time at the beginning or intervals throughout the lyrics. The songs’ structures allow for the creativity of the musical choices made by the composers.
Additionally, most of the songs have no clear rhyme scheme or lyrical pattern, and the subject changes quickly and without warning, demonstrating an eclectic or distracted way of thinking. In “Vincent,” lead singer Will Toledo sings, “You can find your life story and the future in the side effects / I haven’t played guitar in months, my strings all broke / They got a portrait by Van Gogh on the Wikipedia page.”
As Car Seat Headrest continues to rise in popularity, the band continues to be unwavering in their uncommon choices, making a name for themselves as a group with one of the most idiosyncratic stylistic characteristics.
