an ode to car seat headrest

car seat headrest is a band i was introduced to in march of 2022. i vividly remember checking my discover weekly on spotify and seeing the band and their song “it’s only sex” on the playlist. i had heard of them before, so i decided to check them out by listening to the song featured on the playlist. i remember thinking that the band sounded not at all like i had expected, so i went to their artist page and listened to the song “sober to death.” something happened when i listened to that song, and i immediately became obsessed with the band in its entirety. in that same night, i explored the majority of their discography and sparked a love that i am still feeling to this day. even now, when i hear “sober to death,” a certain part of me is awakened, something that rarely happened before i found the band. this week’s blog is an ode to car seat headrest: the band that changed me. 



a teenager dancing in his dorm to his own song; will toledo and the early albums

car seat headrest was originally composed of one member, will toledo, who started the band when he graduated high school. the name stems from the place where he recorded most of his music: his car. he released four albums, named in order as 1, 2, 3, and 4. while 1 and 2 had a lack of structure, and displayed toledo’s experimentation in the early days of the band, 3 and 4 showed his later developed indie style. he would go on the release the “sunburned shirts ep,” followed by the album “my back is killing me baby,” which would include the song “something soon.” a student at virginia commonwealth university, toledo decided to record a music video by setting up a camera in his dorm and dancing to his own song. the video is a testament to the transition between teenage emotions and adulthood expectations, and has never failed at making someone like me- who is in between those stages- emotional. this is something toledo has proven to master in his music: raw emotion in relation to teenage development. however, it wouldn’t be until his release of arguably his magnum opus, “twin fantasy,” that people would start to take notice.

teenage love, dog motifs, and the start of something big

after transferring to william & mary, toledo found himself in the midst of a confusing and messy relationship. he found this relationship weaving its way into his music, and in 2011, he compiled those thoughts together and released the album “twin fantasy.” the album cover itself is notable, as it is two dog-like figures holding each other in an optical illusion. the album follows the interactions and love/hatred between toledo and his lover at the time. the album gained a cult following, and soon the band would follow up in 2018 with a re-recording of the album, now with three other members: ethan ives (guitar), andrew katz (drums), and seth dalby (bass). with this release, the album gained an even larger following. the original 2011 recording of the album is regarded as the “mirror to mirror” version, whereas the 2018 recording is the “face to face” version. depending on the recording, the album cover switches orientation. just a year before the rerelease of twin fantasy, toledo and the band released the albums, “monomania,” “disjecta membra,” “nervous young man,” “teens of style,” and “teens of denial,”- the last of which shot the band up in popularity once again.

making a door less open and sudden change; the future of car seat headrest

after the release of the face to face version of twin fantasy, the band set off to finally create new songs again. because the songs on twin fantasy were already previously created, the last album the band worked on and created together was 2016’s teens of denial, making a brand new album overdue. in 2020, the band announced the studio album “making a door less open.” this album introduced the character “trait” to the band, sparking will’s future of dressing up as the character at live shows. along with the announcement, the band released “can’t cool me down” as a single. the style difference between teens of denial and making a door less open are drastic- the band trading out their traditional indie-rock instrumentation for more hints of electronic and edm in their music. once released, the album received poor reviews, most fans upset about the sudden change in style. others argue that the change was executed perfectly and welcomed the new style the band had adopted. songs like “there must be more than blood” have been praised by fans of the band, even securing an acoustic version on youtube. while on tour in 2022, lead singer will toledo developed long covid and canceled a large number of shows. as of now, it is not apparent whether will has fully recovered, but with the amount of time it’s been, it is likely that he is still dealing with issues from the illness. the band is rumored to release a new album within the next two years.

crying during class, dancing alone in my room, and finding true acceptance; my experience with the band and their music

after finding the band in 2022, i went through an emotional rollercoaster. i’ve had many moments where i’ve found myself in music, but never has it happened quite like it did with car seat headrest (except of course elliott smith). i found a sense of belonging in the awkwardly-written teenage lines of twin fantasy, and i found happiness in between the sparkly guitars of teens of denial. in april of 2022, i prepared myself to see the band live. however, due to will’s sickness, the show was canceled and would not be rescheduled. emotionally, i was a wreck: before and after this. those previous and upcoming months i spent every second of the day listening to the band’s music. i remember distinctly arriving at school, sitting in the corner of the gym and listen to “something soon” on repeat while silently sobbing only to come home that day and listen to it again- this time dancing the cries out. after a couple obsessive months, i slowly fell out of the habits i developed around the band. it’s been a quite bit of time since i’ve distanced myself from their music: an uncomfortable quiet- the quiet before a breakdown that cements itself in your memories. with a declining mental state comes the revisitation of car seat headrest. that’s not to say you can’t listen to the band during any other state, if anything, the band covers all bases. to mirror this idea, and to close the blog, i’d like to introduce the song “beach life-in-death,” the climax of a song series dating back to the numbered albums. please, allow yourself to listen to this song.. in its 13 minute glory ..and feel every emotion this band has made me feel over the past year. enjoy, and goodbye.

side note: as writers, we must explore all forms of writing, even in the song medium. please, notice the writing as you listen to the song, and let me know what you got from it.



we said we hated humans,

we wanted to be human.

 

Author: Erin Erter

erin (they/them) is a published writer who creates in their darkest moments.

4 thoughts on “an ode to car seat headrest”

  1. I love your passion for music and this band. I always love seeing people create love letters to the things they like and talking about how much it has influenced them. It’s very wholesome

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