Fans become band producers in new Cold War Kids video

Hot on the heels of Empire of the Sun, Cold War Kids have also created an interactive video to help promote their new single I've Seen Enough.

Rather than adding interactive elements to their standard promo (see Empire of the Sun), the band have instead opted to partner with MTV to create a bespoke widget where fans can remix / re-produce the song by selecting a range of different instruments for the Kids to play.

The band start off with their basic set up of piano, guitar, drums and bass, but the feel of the song is very quickly changed when alternative instruments are introduced (or even band members muted).  I'm a big fan of a fully electro version that can be created by selecting all the "green" instruments.

Playing around with all the different combinations is fun despite some slight buffering delays.  While the widget also includes the expected social sharing features it doesn't look like its possible to save and share your own version (I was quite keen to post my electro version here but had to settle for a static image).  There is a Fans Favourites link which I would expect to include this feature but I couldn't get any joy out of it so maybe its just me!

Either way this is another example of how bands are using interactive technology and trends to give fans more reasons to spend time with, remember and hopefully promote their efforts.  The partnership with MTV should also give them an extra audience boost as no doubt they will also be directing viewers to this feature on their site. 

MTV to reinvent TRL - now with added Twitter

MTV have just announced that they are to attempt to breathe life into the phone-in format (TRL was cancelled late last year) by partnering with Twitter & Facebook in a new show due to air in the summer. Interestingly (perhaps) the show will be presented by our very own Alexa Chung.

By being "Powered by" Twitter / Facebook the scope for the audience to feel like a central part of the show certainly increases. With live performances etc planned there should be plenty to get people tweeting - we know that these social platforms often work best when triggered by a broadcast event (Susan Boyle anyone?).

This approach is not without its problems however. The Telegraph recently had a spot of bother with their hosting of a live Twitter feed on their budget coverage homepage (Guardian coverage here). The feed was eventually taken down but not before some rather choice tweets made it through.

Furthermore, there is some debate about who is using Twitter. A good summary by Nick Burcher shows that is really depends on where you look. Quantcast figures show that younger demos dominate, while Nielsen data suggests the userbase is rather older. Will this mechanic therefore connect with MTVs core audience as well as they hope? Perhaps there is more in the partnership for Twitter & Facebook.

More on this: Media Guardian, TechCrunch