Gary Steel
It costs $2.99 American dollars to download the new Black Eyed Peas app, and Will.i.am reckons it will rewrite the way we listen to music.
How? The album is dead, he says. “What the hell is an album nowadays?” he asks, rhetorically.
So what’s so special about his iTunes app, and how, exactly, does it rewrite music?
It does a few different things, but the main hook seems to be its 360-degree music video, which apparently puts you at the centre of a dance party.
So far, so boring.
Okay, so new technology has been employed to shoot ‘The Time: The Dirty Bit’ as a video that allows an iPhone user to scope out “the party” in 360 degrees. Turn in real time, you’ll see what you would have done in a room at a cool party.
Apparently, it’s just like being there, and with the 3D photo ability of the app, you too can be one of the cool people, and hang out with sexy bitches and the Black Eyed Peas posse at their party. Or – sad person that you are – you can PRETEND that you’re there because, as soon as you unglue your eyes from your iPhone, the same empty room will greet you.
According to will.i.am, this app represents the future of music. How it actually improves or enhances the music he’s not saying. The implication is that by “virtually” hanging out with his band, the music gets better.
I, for one, would like to add a serious (and very musical) note of skepticism. GARY STEEL
Here’s a video demo of will.i.am’s app:
