The Eisenhauers | Headlong Hearts

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HEADLONG HEARTS

Headlong Hearts are a five-piece band from East Vancouver, blending folk and roots music with a touch of classic and alternative rock. They craft catchy and poignant original songs, sing in stacked harmony, and weave their musical fabric on violin, banjo, mandolin, guitars, bass and drums. Headlong Hearts features former members of the notable west coast acts Pure, The Paperboys, The Clumsy Lovers and Grapes of Wrath.

Headlong Hearts’ second full length album Creatures Of Habit was produced by acclaimed singer-songwriter Deborah Holland (Animal Logic, The Refugees), and was released on March 21, 2025 via Boutique Empire. Creatures Of Habit follows their debut album What We Call Forever (2022), and a series of standalone singles including “Canadian Shield” (2023) and “City Of Benares” (2024). Together since 2017, 

Headlong Hearts are known for their live show that sees audiences inspired by their lyrics, lifted by their melodies, fired up by their playing, and amused by their repartee. They have performed in venues and festivals throughout Western Canada; including 2023 Vancouver International Jazz Festival, Mission Folk Music Festival, and Deep Cove’s Live & Local Concert Series.

Headlong Hearts are:

Matt Kennedy - Guitar, Mandolin, Vocals
Brad Gillard - Banjo, Mandolin, Guitars, Vocals
Hugh Ellenwood - Violin, Vocals
Mark Henning - Bass, Vocals
Matt Brain - Drums, Vocals

What They're Saying:

THE EISENHAUERS

'The band explore an often quiet, distinctly Canadian approach to song craft which paints an ideal backdrop for their soothing harmonies” - Exclaim! Magazine

"The shared vocals between Jeremy Eisenhauer and Sheree Plett (Eisenhauer), his wife, superbly bind everything together, making for an extremely enjoyable listening experience.” -Discorder Magazine

It has been said that all Canadian writing inevitably reflects the almost impenetrable vastness of the land and the great distances that separate us. If ‘The Road We Once Knew’ by the Eisenhauers, the husband and wife duo of Jeremy Eisenhauer and Sheree Plett Eisenhauer, is any indication, you’d be hard pressed not to come to the same conclusion about Canadian music. Simple, spare and heartbreaking in its directness, the concepts of distance, time and the wavering arcs of separation and reunion have rarely been as compellingly explored as they are in this powerful debut album.

‘The Road We Once Knew’ is, at heart, a meditation on change that explores the dynamics of escaping from the city and moving to the country. In the Eisenhauers’ case, the move involved swapping life in metropolitan Vancouver for the relative seclusion of Kaslo, an old lumber town tucked deep in Eastern British Columbia’s Purcell Wilderness Conservatory.  After twelve years of living and making music together and recording eight solo albums between them as ‘Eisenhauer’ and ‘Sheree Plett’, ‘The Road We Once Knew’ was their first release under their shared family name.

Realizing the significance of their decision to work together, Jeremy and Sheree wanted to ensure that their new songs got the treatment they deserved, so they bit the bullet, fundraised a handful of cash, and flew to Nashville to meet Steve Dawson and record at his legendary Henhouse Studio. The attractions of travelling to the country music capital to work with one of North America’s most renowned roots music craftsmen were obvious, but more than that, the journey offered the Eisenhauers the opportunity to focus on their music and songwriting fully, ‘without the beautiful and messy chaos’ of their busy lives to distract them.  With kids and a pile of projects awaiting them upon their return to Kaslo, they made the best of their time in Nashville and got down to work right away to record 15 songs in 5 days, with 14 of them making it onto the album.

Aside from the gorgeous vocals and string work, ‘The Road We Once Knew’ is an album with great songs.  Not surprisingly, many of them reflect on movement and how our understanding of life changes with age and experience.  ‘Don’t Lose Me’ is an especially poignant song about the fragility and delicate balance that weaves the things we cherish together, while ‘Moving to the high country’ illuminates the transition from the reckless abandon of youth to the slowly unfolding rewards of peace and family life. Reminiscent of a great undiscovered Dock Boggs tune with its lonely yearning banjo, it is one of the album’s many highlights.

With its songs of loss, faith and the gratitude of renewal, ‘The Road We Once Knew’ is the perfect soundtrack for real people trying to live authentic lives.  Beautifully played, sung and executed, it is a testament to the healing power of music and the value of wisdom gained from experience.  The ‘Road We Once Knew’ is true soul music. Every word and note on it rings true.

What They're Saying:

'The band explore an often quiet, distinctly Canadian approach to song craft which paints an ideal backdrop for their soothing harmonies” 
- Exclaim! Magazine

The Rogue Folk Club is pleased to provide great Sponsorship Opportunities for all our shows. For a nominal cost, individuals or businesses can sponsor any of our shows and reap a number of benefits - free tickets, reserved table, recognition on literature, our web site and at the concerts. Find out more here, or simply contact our Sponsorship Director Morris Biddle at [email protected]