Jules de Gasperis is a French-American singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer, who initially started his career behind the scenes working with the likes of Ratatat and KUNZITE‘s Mike Stroud and Low Hum. de Gasperis’ latest musical project Edgar Everyone sees the French-American singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer stepping out into the spotlight as a solo artist — with a unique sound, approach and style that he developed through his work as a producer.
de Gasperis sees Edgar Everyone as a project that will allow him to fully explore himself as a musician and as a human. Last year, I wrote about the Tame Impala-like “Suddenly You Move,” which paired de Gasperis’ yearning vocal and some remarkably well-placed, razor sharp hooks with squiggly synth arpeggios, a relentless and funky motorik groove. The song first conveys the sensation of being lost and yearning for someting and not quite knowing how to get it before building up to a euphoric climax, which conveys the song’s narrator has finally found what he had been seeking for so long.
The French-American artist’s latest single “Align Me” sees him collaborating with New York-born, Los Angeles-based multidisciplinary artist Ash Petti. After relocating to Southern California back in 2020, Petti quickly found her stride as a singer/songwriter rooted in her natural ability to create memorable melodies and captivating lyrics. Her solo recording project Pretty Pistil sees Petti creating a unique sound that plays between the boundaries of number of genres, including alternative pop, indie pop, dream pop and electro R&B that showcases her dreamy and seductive delivery.
de Gasperis and Petti’s collaboration can be traced back to when the French-American artist and producer started working with her as a producer, which included some co-writing sessions for her latest EP Venus Way.
“Align Me” is built around a subtly French touch-like production featuring woozy synth arpeggios, some disco funk guitar paired with skittering beats. Petti’s yearning and ethereal delivery effortlessly darts, dives and floats over the dance floor friendly production like a boxer bobbing and weaving away from their opponent’s punches.
de Gasperis explains the the song’s origins can be traced to when he was playing around with the synth chords that wound up becoming the song. His thought at the time was that Petti’s voice would be a great fit. “Next thing I know, she was super into the idea, and she sent me a voice memo of what became the full melody for the track,” de Gasperis recalls. “It all fit perfectly.”
“I felt extremely connected to the song when Jules showed it to me,” Petti adds. “Once we spoke about his vision for it, I knew with our common spiritual concepts and with our intentions, we were going to create something really lovely and powerful. When I began channeling the lyrics, I started to think about my trust in the universe. Having an inner knowing that we are all connected to something greater, something that is cosmic, brings me comfort and excitement.
“I believe that the source of creation is inside all of us who welcome it in. It’s about recognizing that I have built a healthy relationship with nurturing my creative energy, and also acknowledging that one must act on these creative chances so that they can bring them into fruition,” she adds. “It’s also about bringing recognition to the fact that if you don’t fuel and take care of your creative energy, you can miss out on opportunities as well as stunt your growth in making authentic, meaningful art, and connections.
“I let this knowledge, and passion for a life full of creation align me.”