From rage to relaxation: what determines the emotion of a song?
Anyone with a pulse has heard at least one song that got them slightly emotional. Even though this artist may have written something that had absolutely nothing to do with their audience’s lives, there’s something baked into the grooves that have made millions of people laugh, cry or want to raise hell whenever they listen to it. Then again, what exactly is going on within the music that warrants such a response?
While many casual music fans just listen to the lyrics and relate to the story of someone falling in love for the first time or getting their heart broken, there’s a lot more nuance than that. Fans don’t have to be spoonfed what a song feels like in the lyrics, so it’s better to follow along with what the music is trying to say instead.
From the different tempos at play to the kind of strange chord progressions that pop up every now and again, there are usually different pieces that make music sound either extremely uncomfortable or the kind of carefree tunes that could fade into the background at a dinner party. Throughout the vast history of music, the emotion of the song normally comes from the tempo at play or the intensity of the music, which usually helps alert the brain as to what it should be feeling every time they hear it.
Whether it’s the kind of music used to lull someone to sleep or to disturb anyone within a ten-mile radius, every song has a different effect on how people perceive them. Even though some tracks may sound different than others, it’s not always about the lyrics that constitute a piece’s emotion. It’s about the mechanics going on within your brain.
What makes for relaxing music?
The concept of human emotion is not always about listening to what the person is saying. Most of the time, it’s about sitting down with that person as they try to articulate how they feel, and music is no different. So when you’re listening to a song about feeling relaxed, the tempo and timbre give it away well before the vocals come in.
If you’re trying to find the perfect sleep music playlist, for instance, many of the songs tend to cater to pieces that are at a slower tempo and a medium pitch, as if the music itself is trying to help you relax. The same could be applied to works dealing with anxiety, almost as if the music is washing over you and melting away all the bullshit of life so that you can recharge. That might be what your brain’s doing, but there’s a lot more going on on the opposite side of the musical spectrum.
What drives angry songs?
For every artist trying to bottle up happiness in song, there are always those trying to use music as a way to lash out. Compared to the sounds of softer rock and roll, hearing a blaring metal track about the horrors of the world right after it is enough to put people in neck braces due to the tonal whiplash. That’s not by accident, either, if you were to look at the inner workings of each style.
Whereas relaxing music might try to lull you into a trance as you nod off to sleep, angry songs are all about picking up the tempo and favouring a lot more abrasive timbres, from the sound of a guitar shoved through loads of distortion to singers doing their best impression of a garbage disposal unit. Even though nothing may be coming around the corner or anything, the use of different tempos in angrier tracks helps get the blood flowing. It represents some of the few instances where you start sweating without having to move a muscle.
Is emotional music in our nature?
There might be certain songs that are better suited for different emotions, but it’s not like most artists can help it. While they might make tracks to make their audiences feel certain ways, it’s not by accident that they are trying to make the best music that they can. Chances are they are trying to share their emotional side with their audience in whatever way they know how.
Even though there’s a slim chance that you’re going to go through the same life experiences as the artist in question, each piece is a chance for that songwriter to bottle up that kind of emotion and put it out for the world to see. It might not always be pretty, and it might get more than a little bit monotonous on the ear for some people, but when looking at music’s purpose, it’s not just about a catchy tune. It’s about being able to put emotions into the world in a way that words never could.
