Headcounts by Aimee Pendlebury: Review

by Gabe Finch March 13, 2024

March 13, 2024

Manchester-based artist, Aimee Pendlebury’s latest single, “Headcounts,” is a musical recluse to the relentless battle against intrusive thoughts that plague the mind in the dead of night and honing in the insomnia. Born out of Pendlebury’s own struggles with sleeplessness and self-doubt, “Headcounts” is a raw and introspective exploration of the mind’s tumultuous landscape.

Produced by Ben Grimshaw at Grimshaw’s at-home studio over several months, “Headcounts” bears the mark of meticulous craftsmanship and attention to detail. The song unfolds with immersive background noise and ambient music, setting a haunting and ethereal tone from the outset.

Ben gives the song its instrumental mystique with his hands on the guitar, percussion, and glockenspiel. At the 40-second mark, steely acoustic guitar slow strums enter the fray, and then Pendlebury’s emotive and weary thick and rich vocals, introspectively reverberate within the atmospheric soundscape.

With the opening lines, “Still up/ 3 am,” Pendlebury delves straight into the heart of her insomnia, capturing the restlessness and frustration that accompany sleepless nights. The chorus, “1,2,3,4/Headcounts don’t work anymore,” starkly reminds us of the futile attempts to quell the mind’s relentless chatter with conventional methods. Her refrains become more and more euphonious with the bends swooning us in her enchanting dark world.

Pendlebury gets her emotive vocals and nuanced storytelling demonstrated in “Headcounts” from Hozier, Radiohead, Charlotte Cardin, and Billie Eilish. The artist is not one to shy away. Her rich vocals have graced renowned venues like Band On The Wall and grassroots venues like The Snug.

Let the power of music illuminate even the darkest of nights with “Headcounts” by Aimee Pendlebury.