Christina Perri released her newest album “Head or Heart” on April 1, in which she proves that she is more than just a couple of hit singles. The album includes the already popular song “Human,” and many more tracks that emphasize her talent in the pop/alternative music genre.
Most songs in the album showcase Perri’s unique vocals. She has a rustic sound and a brassiness to her voice that makes her tracks sound vulnerable and believable. These qualities were evident on her first debut single “Jar of Hearts,” and are still present today.
Looking at Perri’s album as a whole, the songs ebb and flow into one another nicely. The album tells a story about relationships and all the ups and downs that go with them. It seems as though Perri is reflecting upon a past relationship of hers: how it all started, the honeymoon period, its brutal end, and her recovery. Perri manages to capture these emotions well in her tracks, though some did a better job than others.
The already popular “Human” is actually one of the less impressive songs on the album. It is much more emotional than other songs on the album, but actually packed the least feeling. The chorus opens with “I’m only human and I bleed when I fall down,” which comparatively speaking is far less creative than other sets of lyrics. For example, “Burning Gold,” another song on the album, opens its chorus with “I’m setting fire to the life I know, we start a fire everywhere that we go.”
“Burning Gold” was one of the best songs on the album. The song opens with a catchy background beat and snapping, then gives way to piano. The song is uplifting and bright, contrasting Perri’s usual type of track which features a sort of melancholy background piano tune.
Another standout from the album is “Be Mine Forever.” This song plays immediately after “Burning Gold,” and features a duet between Perri and Ed Sheeran. Sheeran and Perri’s voices nicely compliment each other, with Sheeren’s voice softly echoing Perri’s. The pair presents a very believable love story in this song.
The next few songs of the album are very similar in tune and actually make for a quite nice listening experience when heard back to back. They have a variation of speeds, but all tend to have a relatively slow tempo before breaking into an uplifting chorus. Staying true to the general theme of the album, this group of songs is mainly about the ups and downs up loving someone. Individually however, they are not the most spectacular.
The next standout is “Lonely Child.” This song features a guitar background, emphasizing the ruggedness of Perri’s voice, which takes on a new depth in this song. This particular track stands out from the rest due to the fact that it has a unique sound with the guitar accompaniment. In addition, it finds the right balance between being an emotional ballad, and a happy love song. This song acts as a great buffer between the otherwise similar set of songs.
Back in 2010, when Perri charmed listeners for the first time with her song “Jar of Hearts”, it seemed as though it would be her sole claim for fame. Since then, she has released two albums, with a handful of songs from those albums gaining immense popularity. This album shows that Perri is more than just a couple of her top songs, and that she has a the ability to produce an album that is filled with great songs from start to finish.
