Meet Markus and Melissa Jean Cone | Art and Sound Collective

We had the good fortune of connecting with Twin Lovers (Markus and Melissa Jean Cone) and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Twin Lovers, can you share a quote or affirmation with us?
Three maxims are inscribed at the Temple of Delphi, “Know thyself”, “Nothing in excess”, “Surety brings ruin”. While each maxim is helpful, the first, “Know Thyself”, speaks most prominently in our work. Originally experiencing the first maxim from a point of our own limitations and desires, with practice we reinterpreted the maxim to function as something that edges you away from personal limitations, something that pushes one towards transformation and progress. Self-observation builds character. While many distractions exist in our post-contemporary planet, we are not bounded by them. Amidst the many planetary diversions, one can still monitor the structural components of our inner cathedral. Birth is synchronous with experience which is felt synchronously with the experienced. Knowledge of self allows one to navigate our shared landscape with ease. External chaos can exist but so does the indispensable foundative stability that exists within us allowing one to realize the endless possibilities of a lifetime relationship with the self.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?

What sets us apart from others is our ability to not be defined or categorized all the while remaining accessible. We like our art to evoke both emotion and pleasure while inviting listeners to explore the worlds which we create. When we release an album, it is not just sound and music, there is a lot of images that go into it. We call it an “Image Album”; a sort of transdisciplinary experience, combining visual art, contemporary media, fashion, and sound all together. Our new album drops in December/January and we are crazy excited! It is our biggest yet and is currently being mixed/mastered. Playing live shows is exhausting but exciting. Interacting with other musicians, seeing what is happening in art and music. It is crucial to go out and see it, but also important to isolate ourselves in the studio so we have work to exhibit. At all costs we strive to uphold our integrity, be as honest as we can within our art. Being outsiders trying to establish our work in a smooth running machine, we feel sometimes it is good to spontaneously throw a wrench into the machine. It takes quite a bit of time for us to finish a composition or video. Thinking about the production or contours of the sound, we are building our own unique harmonic and visual language, and this takes a lot of time to get right. We invite people to partake in beauty autonomous of a consonant/dissonant divide.   

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Nippon Daido. It is a Houston gem that recently closed but reopened due to popular demand! We have been cooking more since COVID so we have been relying on Nippon Daido even more for ingredients. Also, the original Phoenicia on Westheimer. One of our favorite restaurants is Chapultepec Lupita on Richmond, also New York Deli & Coffee Shop on Hillcroft. La Carafe is great for atmosphere and wine.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Big shout out to our friends/collaborators Alejandro Sescosse and Anna Veselova from the film collective, Circus Left, who just shot a music video art piece for our track, “The Phoenix”, which you can view on our YouTube site. Check out the work of Circus Left https://circusleft.com/ We would also like to thank Old Dreams (Josh Doughty) who we recently did a split EP with. Also, anyone who has ever come to a Twin Lovers performance or has listened to our sound. Lastly our friends and families, without your inspiration, we could not do what we do. We thank you all!

Website: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTxgiz8HJBBzfWTz83-e9Ng?
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/twwinnlovers/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TwinLoversSound
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TwinLoversSound/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTxgiz8HJBBzfWTz83-e9Ng?
Other: SoundCloud https://soundcloud.com/twin_lovers
Bandcamp https://twinlovers.bandcamp.com/album/twin-lovers
Homesite https://twinlovers.myportfolio.com/

Image Credits
All photos by Twin Lovers