Now this is a music experience app you haven't seen. You can simulate John Lennon's intimate six-day ocean voyage to Bermuda for $4.99. "John Lennon: The Bermuda Tapes" has music, photos, interviews and other interactive features, according to the Associated Press. On this trip Lennon took 6 months before he died, he was inspired to make new music again. Yoko Ono says that the experience he had on the trip "opened up a kind of frozen part of his soul and he started creating." After this, the couple's collaboration grew full-force.
Moving your tablet, you can steer an on-screen boat with this app. You can play music with tape recorder-like buttons, or visit a virtual garden in Bermuda. You can "visit" the disco where Lennon heard The B-52s and was reminded of Yoko Ono's music, and got the itch to get back into the music game. For now the app is only available on Apple, and part of the money will go to the company, the other proceeds will go to an antipoverty campaign, part of "WhyHunger."
LennonNYC's filmmaker Michael Epstein is the director of the project. His take on the app: "That relationship that MP3s have severed, we tried to put back together," he said. Epstein interviewed The B-52 members for the app, and went through a Playboy interview Lennon had post-trip, along with recounts from the crew members. Epstein feels other artists can benefit from these apps in the future. There are already music apps from Bob Dylan, Bjork and Lady Gaga. Epstein says they can help an artist create an "immersive experience," with video, interviews and outtakes surrounding a project.
For Yoko Ono, the trip showcased in The Bermuda Tapes app signifies a turning point in both their personal and professional life.
"There was nothing that was making us feel good at the time," said Ono. "The whole world didn't want my music. They were feeling almost abusive about my creative work and that really choked him up in a way." The Double Fantasy album ended up coming out of it.
Are you curious to explore what could come out of it for you?
