Bangers come to those who wait

Pre-release review: Simona - The Ariston

The Ariston don’t do average songs. If it’s not a banger, they’re not interested. And if the production is not perfect, they will not have it out there. After Yellow Lines and The Festival, they’re now releasing yet another live show favourite, Simona.

They’ve been playing that song live for a very long time now. It’s usually the first song on their setlist, with an absolutely epic extended intro, which builds up the excitement about the show that is just beginning. It’s a perfect opener to a show. They haven’t included that element of extended build up in the production, but hopefully they will continue to play it live the same way as they have been all this time.

As Luca said in his interview with Artsymix, the song is not about a real person. It’s about a concept of what a person can be. There is a real Simona, but the song was not written about that Simona. The essential part of the song was written before the name was added. Through the lyrics, there is a well constructed mystery around Simona, allowing the listener to apply their own imagination and decide what the story is. Is Simona just a distant dream? Is she the lover you can’t have? Is she a victim? Or is the songwriter bitterly suggesting she would have been better off with him, rather than with the other man? All the elements are there, for the listener to live the story in their own way. And maybe we don’t even need to have a solid conclusion. The element of artistic mystery, makes it more magical. At the end of the day, you will just enjoy singing her name.

The way the song was created, makes it even more complicated and more mysterious, because it’s not totally a product of one songwriter with a clear view of the concept. The initial inspiration came from Luca, but then the song was developed by Will. Both of them are trained actors and influenced by the concept of writing a script and dramatizing it, adding elements of mystery.

Here is a clip of front man Luca Slade talking to Artsymix about the song, which has the name of his mother, but that’s only because they decided it would be a good name to choose.

The production is at a very high standard, similar to their previous single, The Festival. A clear crisp sound with a high tempo and a strong element of infectious positive energy oozing out of the arrangement. The mixing gives you just the perfect balance between drums, guitar riffs, vocals and dramatic sound effects, that seem to match the story. But then again, what exactly is the story?

A few months ago, The Ariston removed all the live recordings from all the platforms, leaving themselves with only one released track, Yellow Lines, before they released The Festival. They didn’t want to have anything out there that wouldn’t meet their demands for high standards. And the production of Simona is another example of the high standards they want. At the end of the day, Ariston kind of translates to Excellent. They didn’t know it when they took the idea from Ariston Acoustics, but they’re making sure they stay on brand with the quality of their productions.

Yes, we had to wait for quite some time to get another release from The Ariston. But good things come to those who wait. In this case, bangers come to those who wait. They still have a few incredible songs waiting to be (re-) released, including Amber, Blackout, Semantics, Getting It, I Hate It When You’re High. Simona will be the first single to be released since the change in the lineup, when Nathan replaced Clay as lead guitarist.

The Ariston are:

Luca Slade – lead singer and guitarist
Will Parsonson – bassist
Nathan Melhuish – lead guitarist
Finn Bunce – drummer

Simona is out on Thursday 20th February 2025.

 The Ariston playing Simona live at The Grace:

When the song is released, it will be magically added to the feed below: