Tuning in Sonically: Deliberate Dissonance
Role
Trend Hunting + Future Casting for 2017
Challenge
Tap into the zeitgeist to find an unexpected trend that brands can leverage for an advertising campaign.
Solution
Looking to music, I found a fascinating connection that spanned different genres of music, piquing my interest: deliberate audio dissonance.
Beyond music, I first looked into where dissonance existed both visually and sonically - flickering fluorescent lights, tuning fork imagery, computer glitches and certain musical instruments. I started seeing the dissonant pattern in graphic design posters, animations, tv commercials movie trailers and on social media platforms.
"In an increasingly over curated world, there is a pull toward an aesthetic that feels messy and unexpected."
- Getty Images
Listening closely to the music I had first spotted the trend, I noticed an eerily sad yet rebellious undertone. Was this a cry for help from the artist or a defiant act to break the cadence and signify a greater theme? Or is it a modernist approach to dada, surrealism and pataphysics, offering a sonic escape to our present?
"The breaking of the rule is what makes a moment musically."
- Mica Levi & Oliver Coates, NY Times
With the constant visual static from the media, instability within the political climate of the US and increased algorithmic codes, people are feeling constrained, lost in an infinite cyclical jail loop of chaos and over curation. The unexpected change, be it spontaneous or deliberate offers a break to the rhythm we are all conditioned and feel pressured to follow. Perhaps this is a modern rendition of an act of defiance, echoed from the days of rock 'n' roll. Nevertheless, this poses as a fascinating option for brands to leverage to catch attention of unsuspecting consumers.