whizdumb

Music sampling in a subway tunnel

Recently in a NY subway I saw these two posters for a new live John Legend album distributed exclusively by Target.  They were side by side, to be taken together as a single bit of communication. 

But they could be seen as two approaches to advertising the same thing.  The first poster was simply a glossy announcement of the album and it's exclusive retailer.  The second invited you to sample the music right there, from a red box with a speaker jack ready for your headphones. 

Here are some samples from the album.

These two posters could serve as a kind of before-and-after exhibit for outdoor media.  Before: The basic poster bringing you in with a shot of the musician, just the facts.  And after: A more interactive sampling of the real product.  But they need to be taken together as a whole to have greatest effect. 

I don't think this is particularly remarkable communication. But it does hit on the brilliant basics of using media these days. 

And I feel it could have gone further, say, by inviting you to a free song when you visit target.com.  Or even providing a docking station for iPods to download the song then and there (not sure how technically feasible that would be).  Or a ShopText type code to buy the album instantly.  There are more and more ways outdoor media is fostering a richer interaction or sampling with products and ideas.

Three cheers to those pushing the envelope.  And to those licking it.

Holy Mary, mother of beautiful nonsense

Not much comes to mind...

I'm at a loss.  So time for a quote.  How about Dylan, he's playing tomorrow at Red Rocks. 

“What’s your new album about?” Dylan was asked during a televised press conference in San Francisco in 1965. “Oh, it’s about, uh—just about all kinds of different things—rats, balloons. They’re about the only thing that comes to my mind right now,” he said.

From Bob on Bob in the New Yorker.

Oh, and if you're in town Friday join us for coffee.

Live Earth off and running

Live Earth just kicked off earlier today.  I'm really hopeful for this effort.

I've been poking around some of the content lately and found these fantastic videos that each offer bite sized arguments for becoming climate savvy.  My favorite has to be the 15-minute Reunion of Spinal Tap.  Derek Smalls and the band getting back together for climate change?  Now that is rich in comedic potential right there.

There is a lot of buzz about Live Earth and plenty of talented people involved raising awareness for it.  Among them are the guys at North who are behind the messaging strategy and are driving interest in the thing without spending a dollar on media.

The Alliance For Climate Protection, the home base for Al Gore and Live Earth, has loads of content and things to explore on their site.  Included there is their first official ad, called Black Balloons.  I really like this spot because of how it brings 'bad air' to life in a personal way.  While you're there join the pledge and help make a difference. 

Before we all fry.

(If that does happen let's at least go out in style). 

Walking the High Line

Awhile ago I read an article called Walking the High Line, in a Japanese travel magazine called Paper Sky.  Paper Sky is a wonderful magazine written in Japanese and English, published from Tokyo by a California transplant.  (It's really  hard to find and their site and their blog require translating to English).

Anyway, the article was the first time I'd heard of the High Line, and I hadn't heard much else, or seen it first hand.

The High Line is a vestigial elevated rail line that snakes through Manhattan for 1.45 miles.  No trains have run on it since 1980 and it's been overtaken by weeds, animals and, more recently, humans in search of a way to save it and turn it into a public space.  What an amazing artifact, right in the middle of the city.   More on the High Line, including a video from Friends of the High Line here.

Recently I was excited to hear about the High Line Festival, featuring artists and acts curated by David Bowie.   What a fantastic idea. From their site:

The H&M High Line Festival is a new multi-discipline arts festival that will be curated each year by a different artist. The inaugural edition, curated by David Bowie, will run May 9 to 19, 2007.

The ten-day mash-up of music, film, comedy, visual art and performance will highlight all of David's favorite artists. The best of the best.

The festival will take place in venues near the High Line, an elevated rail structure soon to open as a public open space which runs through the Meatpacking District, West Chelsea and Clinton/Hells Kitchen. A portion of ticket sales will go to benefit Friends of the High Line, the 501(c)3 organization currently working with the City of New York to transform the 1930's rail structure into a park, set to open in 2008.

The 17,600 seat screening room

That's a crappy photo from my phone at the Dixie Chicks show last night.  The Pepsi Center was about 2/3 full which was a respectable showing, especially from all the controversy and cancellations around their recent tour.  I'm not necessarily a fan of the band but a friend got us tickets and I was pretty impressed by the sheer tonnage of string instruments they cycled through (at one point there were seven guitars on stage) and their musicianship.  More than just a few pretty country girls.  They jammed on banjos, mandolins, slide guitars, etc.  Also, after Pete Yorn (the opening act) they screened a preview for their new film as well as a long spot for (RED).

I usually hate any form of captive media but in a stadium it's different.  You can get up and walk away if you like to, and you're in a mindset to be entertained.  At any rate, it seems a relevant point of connection with consumers to have in-venue long-form video - as long as it is entertaining and relevant to the music act at hand.  Bono is certainly on to something.