If I had stumbled upon it mere days ago, I would've been incredibly surprised to get a new single from Nashville's Night Beds so soon after an album release. But after reading this spectacular and endearing interview on SerialBox featuring Night Beds' Winston Yellen, it seems just about par for the course. The takeway from the interview being that Yellen's constantly writing songs so the appearance of a non-album related single is pretty much going to be the status quo. A excellent bit of news if you're a Night Beds fan who craves instant gratification.
Stylistically "Head for the Hills" is cut from the same cloth as Country Sleep standout "Ramona" - while most of Country Sleep marinated in Yellen's soulful tenor, "Ramona" and now "Head for the Hills" breaks free from the sparse ruminative tone. Yellen's lyricism isn't any less affecting but definitely benefits from the added touches of strings and bigger, bolder presentation. This evolution makes sense - where Country Sleep was written and recorded by Yellen alone, over the past year Night Beds expanded to include a full band of actual collaborators. Yellen's still the primary voice of Night Beds but there's definitely an added grandeur to the fuller arrangements.
If "Head for the Hills" is a sign of what's to come from Night Beds, then sign me up. Winston Yellen's transformation from singer/songwriter to band frontman is certainly an interesting one that hasn't managed to dampen the effectiveness of his songwriting. If anything, it's imbued his pristine vocals and inspiring lyrics with an accessibility that'll hopefully carry his songs further than they'd go before.
Listen to Night Beds' "Head for the Hills":
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