Pillow Person aka Sarah Jones is the London-based musician making catchy electro-pop for the bedroom dwellers and far beyond. After spending a number of years on the road drumming for the likes of Bat For Lashes and more recently Hot Chip, Sarah decided to apply her unique vision to a solo project of her own, and so Pillow Person was born. Despite falling into the pop genre, Pillow Person is not your usual act - her energetic sound coupled with her surreal music videos naturally challenge set genre definitions and pretty in pink clichés, as demonstrated in her latest track On Your Way.
Watch the video below and discover five senses from Sarah's world.
Rephlex Braindance compilation has influenced my sound a lot.
I used to listen to it in the car, driving around the countryside. It was different to anything I had heard before. I heard my first bit of pitch shifting on that record and couldn’t really believe my ears at the time. I really like how this record is full of different personalities that feel so close to the music, I feel you can see your own ‘making of’ video while listening to it. I also love listening to what's coming out of people's cars when I'm travelling. I often want to ask what it is, but it's a bit tricky!
I find that either having a shower, driving or sleeping makes the things I’m actually thinking about float to the top.
I can really focus on small details. I find learning about how different people work very fascinating, but just from my own observations. Sometimes I only communicate with pictures or music with friends. I probably have a pretty annoying level of stamina for that kind of thing but I get a lot from it. So far, I've been writing about people I know and situations I’ve been in - sort of like chatting to myself. I suppose I would recommend sometimes talking to yourself without asking for other peoples opinions. Too many people are looking for approval from others.
Flying over Rio is a view that has it all.
Although it's a big city, it feels like nature is really in control there. It's like there has been a mutual agreement between the natural and the unnatural world. If it came down to it, nature would win big time. The islands popping out of the sea are a reminder. There are also forests in the west of the UK, Redwoods, that sound and feel incredible. It's the place I'd go if the triffids were to take over....again.
I've recently started to love listening to Lorenzo Senni.
Listening to his music makes me feel like devoting my evenings to driving around while being on call to emergency jump start peoples cars. That's just the start - I then want to drive ambulances and become a surgeon. I've also always loved the sound of scissors cutting thick paper. I was banned from scissors as a kid because I used to go around cutting everything in search for the most satisfying sound. The winner was my sisters barbie hot water bottle. It didn’t go down well, but just imagine the sound...
I struggle with only using a computer to make music since I like being more physical.
For me, it makes more sense to play than to programme at first. I don’t read or write music so when I think of drum patterns or harmony, I can see them visually in my head, it’s not a technical thing. It's also the same when I think about making videos, I often think about textures first such as a foam outfit from Rottingdean Bazaar that are real to touch rather than creating an effect. I became quite fixated on massage shoes when I was making my first record. Something like that can put me in a different mood which I find useful in terms of creativity.