Review by Abby Kenna & Staff
“World’s Getting Better” by Simon Jacobs is a vibrant mix of textures and dynamic instrumentation. A track that truly reflects its message, Jacobs’ danceable song moves fluidly through chromatic harmony and strikingly unexpected chords to emphasize its significant message.
“World’s Getting Better” immediately opens into a captivating soundscape with layers of synths filling each corner of the track. The heavy panning of the various synths adds both balance and colorful chaos, with droning chords darting from side to side and a rhythmic arpeggiator digging in to the upper right. This complexity creates cohesion within the layers and invites listeners to continue diving deeper. Bursting with energy and enthralling instrumentals, the track embodies the rejuvenating nature of music so poetically described in the lyrics:
“Music is novocaine
It’s easing the strain
It makes me feel alive again”
Simon Jacobs’ vocals cut through the track, navigating the textures of the arrangement with pointed rhythms and a deep tone. In a mesmerizing display, tight harmonies weave around the lead vocals, creating an electronic sharpness that colors the articulate melody. Delay and wide reverb additionally embellish the vocals, catching the ends of phrases for a subtle, yet striking detail. With the addition of a rhythmic, motivating guitar, the chorus lifts into a feeling of optimism. Simon Jacobs’ vocals reflect this shift in tone, gliding along a higher, dynamic melody that expressively depicts the lyrics:
“The world’s getting better
Bit by bit
I still believe we can make it…”
“World’s Getting Better” cleverly mimics its own message, slowly but surely brightening musically as the lyrics settle on this feeling of hopefulness. By the final chorus, the song has transformed from a scene of colorful chaos to a symphony of lilting string melodies and synths soaring across a stable, confident arrangement. Simon Jacobs paint a picture of “a new day dawning” with the swells of dreamy synths and woven harmonies, and truly instills this motivating message in listeners.
Simon Jacobs writes with the skill of a painter creating a masterpiece; each element works harmoniously with the next, creating a contrasting yet perfectly complimentary arrangement. “World’s Getting Better” is an ear worm, bound to be played on repeat with its catchy melodies and hopeful feel.
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About Simon Jacobs
Simon has always had a passion for pop music and has been writing songs for over 40 years, since he first learned to play piano. However, it is only in the last four years that he has embarked on what he describes as a musical adventure (destination unknown). In this time, he has thrown himself into learning how to record and produce, he has built a small home studio, learned the basics of guitar playing to add colour to his sound, he’s developed an understanding of marketing in the music industry and - most significantly - has written over 80 new songs.
In this time, Simon has released three albums, 'Circle Line' in 2017, 'Baby Boomer' in 2019 and ’12 Colours’ in 2020. It was with the 12 tracks of ’12 Colours’ that Simon decided to take advantage of the marketing opportunities that came with releasing and promoting a single each month for a year! This has significantly helped build an audience, with total Spotify streams now approaching 500,000. Meanwhile, on YouTube, where every single has a video, monthly views are up to 40,000. Simon has played a couple of launch gigs to showcase his music but hopes to be able to perform to a much greater extent in the future.
Simon believes pop music can say something meaningful. The songs he is most proud of have lyrics that are as strong as the melodies or the rhythm. It's therefore no surprise that his influences include Paul Simon, Frank Ocean, Elvis Costello, Rufus Wainwright and Randy
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