Christina Perri – Head or Heart

When an artist comes crashing into the mainstream with a debut single as powerful as Jar of Hearts, it can be tremendously difficult for them to replicate such success. Yet Christina Perri has managed to achieve this with her two follow-up singles, Arms and A Thousand Years. Bearing this in mind, the anticipation for the release of her second studio album, Head or Heart, was enormous. But is this album of a similar quality as her first one, Lovestrong? One should certainly say so.

Each song featured on Head or Heart endeavours to treat the listener to an array of beautiful and inspiring lyrics, in combination with a myriad of equally stunning melodies. Upon its release, Human once again demonstrated Perri’s talents as a singer-songwriter, featuring lyrics that anyone can relate to. Yet the album also shows her growth as an artist and displays experimentation with quicker tunes, such as Shot Me in the Heart and particularly Burning Gold, which will interlace its way into your head and refuse to leave (not that you would want it to). Likewise, Be My Forever shines a new light upon Perri’s voice, with the added vocals of the equally talented Ed Sheeran.

Of course, the album’s contents is still heavily reliant upon ballad-style songs, as is Perri’s custom. But when you do something so well, why change it? Run is a perfect example of this and will undoubtedly conjure up tears for some listeners because of the raw, ardent lyrics that so vividly capture the agony of loneliness.

Head or Heart is a magnificently crafted tale of love and loss that is highly relatable and a pleasure to experience. Christina Perri performs her music to tell a story and not to earn a quick wage, which makes this album something truly unique.

Keira Trethowan

Head or Heart was released on 28^th March 2014. For further information or to order the album visit Christina Perri’s website here.

Watch the video for Human here: