Simonne Jones makes her musical debut today with a five-song EP stacked with catchy songs that blend synth-pop and science. Fun fact: electronic musician Peaches is Jones’ aunt and played a huge role in her niece’s musical development. Jones’ work definitely has the pulsing electronic vibe of her aunt’s songs, but there’s a notable thematic difference: Jones is way nerdier.
The single from Simonne Jones’ EP, “Gravity,” already has a stunning music video (above) featuring sweeping galaxies intermingled with shots of Jones walking the beach, where the rise and fall of the tide makes for a fitting backdrop. The visuals mingle perfectly with the lyrics, which feature a multifaceted metaphor about gravity, the waves of the tide, and a story of lovers pulled towards one another.
The reason that metaphor is multifaceted is because the references to “waves” also refer to the structure of the song itself, as well as literal gravitational waves and the figurative pull of a romance. The “wave” of the song refers to the wavelength of 432 Hz, also known as Verdi’s A. In an interview with Engadget, Jones explained that she intentionally chose this tuning for the songs on her EP because it’s long been theorized to give music a pleasant vibe.
As for whether or not that’s scientifically accurate, well … it’s hard to say. It could just be a musical superstition. After all, music is very subjective, and the way music “feels” to you probably has more to do with what you grew up hearing, rather than what’s objectively good or bad. Still, there’s a long history surrounding musicians making use of this tuning when crafting songs, in order to encourage a relaxing and positive effect. I don’t know if it’s the tuning or if the songs are just great (or both), but listening to Jones’ EP definitely made me feel good!
In Jones’ words, “432Hz … it just feels more therapeutic and just relaxing, calm. And then that 440Hz is a little bit more tension. It doesn’t ride into you like a summer wave.” It’s clear from the video that Jones wants her single “Gravity” to feel just like a summer wave. In every sense of the word wave. So, that’s why she chose to set the song in the key that she did.
If you’d like to purchase her brand-new EP, featuring three other songs in addition to “Gravity” and a fantastic remix of “Gravity” made by Peaches, you can snag it now at SimonneJones.com.
(via Engadget)
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