…You riding Google Cube.

Ok, tech-heads, this appraisal is for you: ”…it wraps synth-bass, trance melody, and bold sounds around the six sides of the cube in an awesome and mind-bending way.”

That is how Google described The Presets video clip for its new single, No Fun.

Does a new music video deserve a tech-head description?

Well, yes. The music video is interactive, made especially for Google Cube. For the non-techy, that’s the experimental platform for interactive storytelling developed by Google’s Creative Lab in Sydney.

Google Lab creative director, Tom Uglow, noted, “Music videos have long been a creative canvas for awesome directors and forward-thinking artists.” This may well be the start of the next black.

Viewers can manipulate the box by grabbing it with a mouse or finger and revealing different videos on each face, as well as different parts of the music mix. The video uses WebGL and HTML5 technologies, so viewers can explore six unique audio-video streams across six sides. Viewers are able to toggle between the related stories playing out on any one of the six sides or multiple sides simultaneously depending on how they rotate the floating Cube.

As they move between the fantasy scenarios – one, a psychedelic face; another, a woman on the phone in a bath – the music also mixes in rhythmic sync. It works on a computer or recent Android handset with the latest version of Chrome.

The track launches in a campaign created for Google Play by M&C Saatchi (Sydney), with web development done by Potato (London).

The campaign, is running online with rich banners that feature an interactive Cube ad, built using Doubleclick Studio and HTML5. Each of the Cube’s six sides will stream a different audio and video iteration of the track to showcase its ability to re-imagine video.

The music video was directed and produced by Barnaby Roper (David Bowie, Kanye West, Banks) and Black Dog Films.

”it wraps synth-bass, trance melody, and bold sounds around the six sides of the cube in an awesome and mind-bending way.”

Have a play.

M&C Saatchi Group innovation director, Ben Cooper, stated,“It’s not until you truly interact with It that the Cube’s brilliance comes to life. Seamlessly switching between sides gives each user a truly unique experience.”

Credits:

Client: Google Australia

Creative agency: M&C Saatchi/LIDA

Web development: Potato

Film: Black Dog Films

Media agency: PHD Australia

Universal Music/Modular Records

‘No Fun’ was written and produced by Julian Hamilton and Kim Moyes.