"Every Breath You Take" is the ultimate song according to science

If you want to get really technical, the research article is about something called “diurnal fluctuations” and how the “rhythm of human life is governed by diurnal cycles.”

So what is a song with musical qualities that would allow it to drift through all five time blocks? You guessed it: “Every Breath You Take” by The Police.

“It’s a very in-the-middle type of song,” Heggli says. “It’s a medium tempo. It’s a bit groovy, but not too much groovy. It doesn’t have any loud surprises. And it’s all over just a very pleasant, perhaps even a bit bland song.”

Heggli thinks this research might say something about how musicians can maximize their streaming potential.