Image via Complex Original
Is the album app the future of the music industry? Well, probably not. On the whole, singles sales are where the money is; album sales are at their lowest point since 1991. When it comes down to it, the kids just aren’t buying them. Apps aren’t liable to upend the game, but they are innovative in other ways, offering musicians an opportunity to promote their records more effectively, to reach more people, and to be, well, more than just music.
Raising the bar are people like Björk, whose recent album app, Biophilia, was added to New York’s Museum of Modern Art, and Jay Z, whose Samsung app helped the rapper go platinum in seconds. As well as a little known duo named Bluebrain, who made a 264-part choose-your-own-adventure tracklist that shifted depending on your geographic location. That barely scrapes the surface of possibilities—doubtless there are plenty of examples we don’t even know about, apps in development, and new ways of bridging the divide between music and technology. An app may not turn album sales around, but it allows fans who want to invest more in the process the chance to get even more out of an artist's work.
Here’s a closer look at some of the most interesting album-apps we’ve seen to date.
Bluebrain - The National Mall
The National Mall was the first app-album ever released. The app relied on your smartphone’s GPS software, and only worked in—that’s right—the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Depending on where you stood, different segments of the three-hour-long record would play, shifting the soundtrack as you moved to different locations. Bluebrain, a band made up of brothers Ryan and Hays Holladay, wanted to make a record that was like a "Choose Your Own Adventure," according to Ryan. Dividing the mall into 264 zones, no one listening to The National Mall would hear the same thing simultaneously.
Björk - Biophilia
For her eighth studio album in 2011, Björk dropped Biophilia as an app—or, really, 10 different apps, all of which were contained within the “mother” app—which was also called Biophilia. This was done with the help of Relative Wave, developers who would go on to design future apps for other artists. With an introduction narrated by David Attenborough—no, seriously—each app inside the mother app was at once a new song on the album, and was a 3-D game or activity for the user to perform. What has been most stressed by reviewers is the interconnectedness between the music and the app. This was no mere delivery system (although at $1.99 per track-app, it was about economics too). But the apps were particularly designed to enhance the experience of the music. Bonus: The album app was added to the Museum of Modern Art earlier this year.
Jay Z - Magna Carta Holy Grail
We all know about this one: “If 1 Million records gets SOLD and billboard doesn’t report it, did it happen?” Jay Z tweeted. “Ha. #newrules #magnacartaholygrail Platinum!!! VII IV XIII” Although Billboard would adjust its rules to make room, Jay managed to hedge against low sales and further auger his portfolio, while Samsung got tons of free promo. The app was not much more than an early copy of the album—and for some, it wasn’t even that—but it was nonetheless a grandiose maneuver, one that solidified Jay as a strategic genius, a richer man, and even reminded the world he still raps sometimes.
Lady Gaga - ARTPOP
Working with Relative Wave, the same mobile developers that helped out on Björk’s Biophilia, Lady Gaga put together an app that not only played her album ARTPOP, but let her fans—er, Little Monsters—connect with each other across the globe. It also let you “find your aura” and “fine-tune your essence,” which presumably means something abstract but in practice means choosing from themes related to her album. Sort of like a role-playing game, you can choose the appropriate social characteristics, except the end result is a glowing sphere a la Jeff Koons’ gazing balls. The app also gives you a chance to create your own GIFs, which is basically the best of all possible worlds.
Philip Glass - REWORK_ (Philip Glass Remixed)
There is nothing the kids like more than Philip Glass, so why not try his iPad app? Even if the kids don’t know who he is, they should find some comfort in the quality of REWORK_ (Philip Glass Remixed). Part of its functionality is intended to keep you from skipping around the record—counterintuitive, but refreshing. Meanwhile, it gives you a reassuring visualization to play around with. There’s also a feature that lets you compose your own songs, controlling tempo, rhythm, and instrumentation.
Calvin Harris - 18 Months
This app is a pretty clever promotional tool—albeit one of limited utility. But nonetheless, it’s hard to think of a funnier way to get people to check out your album than forcing them to dance to it. That’s right: The 18 Months app, created alongside developer We Make Awesome Sh, requires that the phone be in motion in order for the music to continue to play—Dance, Dance, Revolution (or dance, dance, promotion). At any rate, it’ll be a good motivation to just pay for the damn record.
Skrillex - Recess / Alien Ride app
If you like space invaders, or if you’re just like me and enjoy moving your fingers reassuringly along the glass cover of your precious smartphone, you’ll love Skrillex’s Alien Ride app. Initially released with no explanation, the game involves flying through space and shooting asteroids to score hella points. Ultimately, a link to the album in a box marked “secret” popped up, which inevitably led to a download link for the new record Recess through iTunes or Google Play. If dubstep isn’t for you, the Alien Ride app works fine on its own thanks to a retro look, actual gameplay, and minimal musical intrusion.
John Lennon - The Bermuda Tapes
Director Michael Epstein put together this project about John Lennon’s 1980 trip to Bermuda, where he collaborated with his wife Yoko Ono from afar. These songs ended up on that year’s album Double Fantasy. Pretty cool, but even cooler is that the proceeds from this app went to WhyHunger’s worldwide fight against—you guessed it—hunger. All of the money that they made was directed toward the company’s “Imagine There’s No Hunger” campaign.
Paul McCartney - Band on the Run, RAM, McCartney, McCartney II, and Wings Over America
Dude, you’ve never heard RAM? What the hell, man. That’s a totally classic record. I recommend the vinyl version, but if that’s out of the question, check out the app. Paul McCartney released five of his albums in app format. All of these apps come with just some great album-oriented rock ’n’ roll, as well as rehearsal footage, interviews, and original artwork and photos.
Metronomy – "I’m Aquarius” / Night Sky app
This is seriously one of the coolest apps ever, and I literally never say that about apps. Except for Maps—that one is pretty essential. But Night Sky is a lot like Maps, only it helps you map out the heavens. It’s a stargazing app that helps you figure out whether that’s a star from a constellation, the planet Mars, an airplane, or a government drone spying on you. It also helped you grab hold of Metronomy’s “I’m Aquarius,” which you could download only by moving your phone to the Aquarius constellation, of course. This time of year that means you’d better be in the Southern Hemisphere. Or you can wait until spring.