Huge Shocker: The Head and the Heart Is One of SPIN's 35 Must-Hear Acts at SXSW

By Erin Thompson Mon., Feb. 28 2011 at 1:05 PM

Categories: Local Musicians

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SPIN posted a list of their 35 Must-Heart Acts at SXSW this morning, and shockingly, Seattle's The Head and the Heart appear second on the list. The Head and the Heart is severely under-recognized--seriously, why does no one ever talk about this band?--so it's nice to see them finally get some attention. Of THATH, SPIN says:

WHY THEY MATTER: This folk-rock outfit have been called the Emerald City's Next Big Thing -- and these five twentysomethings, led by Josiah Johnson and Jon Russell, are well on their way to fulfilling that prophecy. In under a year, they went from collaborating at an open-mic night at a Seattle coffee shop to releasing their self-titled debut (which topped local charts with its melancholic Americana sounds) and opening for Vampire Weekend at Seattle's 2,800-capacity Paramount Theater.
YOU SHOULD KNOW: Hometown indie giant Sub Pop recently signed the Head and the Heart and re-released their self-titled album. The band are currently working on music for their their follow-up.

SPIN also includes one other local act, everyone's favorite Tattooed Wonder, Chris Mansfield of Fences, as well as Portland's Wild Flag.

For your information, here's a list of all the other Seattle acts currently scheduled to play the festival, which may or may not be comprehensive. Let's just say that it is.

Astronautalis
Barcelona
Beat Connection
Blue Scholars
Brent Amaker and the Rodeo
Brite Futures
Butts
The Cave Singers
Cobirds Unite
Damien Jurado
Duff McKagan's Loaded
Eddie Spaghetti
Fences
The Globes
Grives & Budo
The Head and the Heart
The Heligoats
Ivan & Alyosha
The Lonely Forest
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
The Nightgowns
Shabazz Palaces
Telekinesis
Thousands
Unnatural Helpers
Viper Creek Club
Witchburn

UPDATE: All of the bands above are the ones currently listed on SXSW's official website. Obviously there are other bands who haven't been listed yet/are playing unofficial festival events. The good Abbey Simmons just informed me that these are some extra musicians who will be doing so: The Moondoggies, Zoe Muth, Ravenna Woods, Watch It Sparkle.

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