The Head Set Reviewed
The Head Set
Way Past Used
(Businessman Businessman)
Economical guitar work, the occasional bowed instrument, and crashing drums turn vocalist Jordan Blaugrund into a stumbling, impassioned drunk on The Head Set’s debut.
There’s no telling what kind of band The Head Set would be without him, which is fitting because he surprised his bandmates before their first gig by telling them it was they who were the backing group. Miraculously, Blaugrund doesn’t turn *Way Past Used into a messy, personal showcase instead leading some minimal pop songs by popping from a low, Bono voice that feels out each word on tracks like “Hollywood” and “Early Morning” to popping into a wild mix of Robert Plant and The Walkmen’s Hamilton Leithauser. It’s the tracks where there’s too much of the band (“Pure Convenience,” “Late For The Show”) where the album losing strength, or in string-loaded wanders like “Last Call Doll” that run right into Creeper Lagoon. If The Head Set can maintain the delicate balances on their successes — and it’s a big if — they’ll get “way past” where they are now.
— Steve Forstneger
Click here to download “Enemies.” http://www.theheadset.com/WayPastUsed_mp3s/TheHeadSet_Enemies.mp3
