Head Of Roses, the new album by Jenn Wasner, who records solo as
Flock of Dimes, examines the duality of heartbreak — having one’s heart broken while simultaneously breaking the heart of someone else. Wasner, who is also in Wye Oak with Andy Stack, goes deep here, tapping into the residual emotional pain someone feels — and inflicts — from a collapsed relationship. Flock of Dimes harnesses this emotion in her songs on
Head Of Roses. The album is not a bunch of introspective ruminations, but a single, cathartic listening experience.
In Her Own Words:
“Part of the journey for me has been learning to take responsibility for the parts of things that are mine," says Wasner in her Sub Pop bio, "even when I’m in a lot of pain through some behavior or action of someone else. If I’m expecting to be forgiven for the things I’ve done and the choices I’ve made and the mistakes that I’ve made, it would be incredibly cowardly and hypocritical to not also do the work that’s required to forgive others the pain they caused me.” She also observes: “I think I’ve finally reached a point in my career where I feel comfortable enough with myself and what I do, that I’m able to relax into a certain simplicity or straight forwardness that I wasn’t comfortable with before.”