AT THE HEAD OF THE WOODS

At the Head of the Woods biography
Based in Portland, Oregon, At the Head of the Woods is the psych/kraut/folk project of North American multi-instrumentalist James Woodhead (also of the Elemental Chrysalis and A Minority of One). Woodhead's style is a patiently-unfurling long-form drone-folk, with major influence from kosmische musik and hints of post-rock and doom metal. Reverbed vocals stretch out atop a bed of effects-laden electric guitar, synthesizer, organ and percussion, described by Crucial Blast Records as "the slow, hazy Americana of Earth's Hex...mixed with the cosmic drift and buzz of early 70's prog bands like Ash Ra Tempel or Tangerine Dream."

The project's first LP was Secrets Beyond Time and Space, released in 2008 on Glass Throat Recordings, the label of Woodhead's Elemental Chrysalis partner Chet W. Scott. In 2010, Woodhead contributed a remix to the massive Wvndrkmmer collaboration curated by Texan post-black metal band Pyramids, following up with the single track "Here I Stand" on a 2011 split with Blood of the Black Owl, Scott's full-fledged doom metal project.

At the Head of the Woods' last-known activity was in 2013 with a trio of more progressive electronic-oriented Bandcamp-only tracks: Trees of Fire: A Return to Earth, At Sunset and At Sunrise, the latter two receiving a limited edition cassette release by Fableglade Records in 2021.


- Gordy, May 2024