How We Use Music To Cope
When the brunt of this COVID shit was going down, I found myself pacing around the house full of anxiety about what was going to happen next. It was genuinely impossible to relax and things that normally soothed me weren’t really working.
Then, I chucked on Jhene Aiko’s latest release Chilombo and played it through front to back. I have to admit, I’ve never been a massive follower of Jhene’s music — I can only remember that iconic line about eating ass like groceries — but I immediately felt way more relaxed.
It’s not a huge shock that music has a direct impact on our mood. Whether that’s listening to some heavy metal to hype you up before a trip to get toilet paper or getting red wine drunk and texting every number on your phone whilst listening to Drake’s Take Care — it’s powerful stuff.
Yet, I hadn’t really thought to consider the actual science behind music and why it’s so powerful. So, let’s find out, shall we?
Music On The Mind
Without getting too sciencey, all sound has to go through a bit of a process before our brain can make sense of it. Essentially, sound waves arrive at our ears, they journey down our ear canals until they strike the eardrum which in turn vibrates and transforms these waves into — you guessed it — vibrations.
These vibrations journey to the cochlea, which is a great term for something which basically houses 15,000 tiny hairs. These hairs are able to send signals to different sections of the brain, enabling your wonderful mind to determine whether this song is a banger or not and just like that you’re listening to The Less I Know The Better and trying not to resemble an air dance at a garage sale.
That was a fairly long way of saying that the brain has really complex ways of deciphering music and deciding if it likes it or not. When the brain DOES find something it likes, our reward centres light up like a Christmas tree and the reaction is akin to eating a bar of chocolate or downing a pint — our brain fucking loves it, and we feel good.
Sonic Mantras
Finding music with a mantra that resonates with you can make for a surreal listening experience. A mantra is basically a word or phrase that can be used repeatedly throughout the song, or even just once.
While listening to Gucci Gang or Versace on repeat might be relaxing for some of you, most sonic mantras are usually accompanied by spacey music designed to feel atmospheric.
Mantras encourage feelings of safety and a state of relaxed focus. They help people let go of their conscious mind and drift into a peaceful trance. Give it a go, just make sure you’re not bumping it while driving or you might get a little too peaceful.
Healing Sounds
Sound bowls have been present in music for centuries but they’ve only recently become popularised in mainstream music. When struck or shaken, these bowls produce a vibrational hum that resonates with the human body and promotes peace and anxiety reduction.
Jhene Aiko’s last album utilised sound bowls on every song. Speaking to Billboard, she outlined how the practice has changed the way she makes music.
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“The bowls I use are crystal alchemy sound bowls made from gemstones and infused with things like platinum or made out of rubies and diamonds — and all of these different elements and properties contribute to their healing factors,” she said.
“I basically was recording and had a session at my house where I just played different bowls to the music; every chakra has a note that corresponds with it. For instance, on “P*$$Y Fairy (OTW),” there’s actually two bowls in there: There’s a D bowl and there’s an A bowl, and they’re both playing and resonating within your body when you’re listening to that song.”
“D corresponds with your second chakra (sacral chakra), which governs your sexual organs below your navel and your hips. So even though the song is fun and sexy, there’s an actual healing instrument in there to help balance you out in those areas.”
Look, I know all this talk of chakras and sound bowls makes me sound like a Byron Bay mum who’s about to try and read your palm at playgroup, but speaking from personal experience it does genuinely soothe your soul and reduce stress.
Frequency
Frequency has long shaped how we’re feeling. There’s a long-held belief that certain frequencies can tap into parts of our subconscious and make us feel a certain way.
As noted by Medical News Today, there are 5 different categories of frequency and all of them can be used to evoke certain feelings in us.
- Delta pattern: Usually operate at a frequency of 0.5–4 Hz. Often used to assist with a night of deeper and more restful sleep.
- Theta pattern: Usually set between 4–7 Hz, used to improve meditation and creativity.
- Alpha pattern: Binaural beats in the alpha pattern are at a frequency of 7–13 Hz and may encourage relaxation.
- Beta pattern: Binaural beats in the beta pattern are at a frequency of 13–30 Hz. This frequency range may help promote concentration and alertness.
- Gamma pattern: This frequency pattern accounts for a range of 30–50 Hz. The study authors suggest that these frequencies promote maintenance of arousal while a person is awake.
Listening to music with a frequency fluctuation that fits any of these categories is likely to help, especially at a time like this.
Musicians like XXXTentacion have used frequency to consistently achieve a cohesive feeling of relaxation and peace. Speaking to DJ Akademiks, X spoke on how altering frequencies can directly target certain parts of the mind and how he utilises it in his music.
Every song on X’s album 17 plays into these frequencies. If you were to listen to the project from front to back then you should start to experience sensations of relaxation, peace and togetherness. This has all been done by carefully tweaking frequencies to enhance the overall experience for the listener.
For me this little exploration made me further appreciate music and the profound power it has to shape how we feel. It’s making me more intentional with the music I listen to, so that I can attract a desired impact. And in a time where anxiety levels are soaring, let’s turn to it more, as Chance and Kanye so simply put it “music is all we got”.
