TheWaveVR had a huge spring, launching a VR experience based on the movie "Ready Player One" at South By Southwest and securing $6 million by pitching investors inside a VR experience.
On Thursday at 9 p.m. CT, it's launching a new experience with electronic band The Glitch Mob. I haven't experienced it yet. But the online trailer depicts a series of trippy, surreal environments that pulsate with the electronic/dubstep rhythms.
TheWaveVR co-founder Adam Arrigo said that rather than putting the viewer inside a music video, this project is more like an immersive, narrative voyage through a 20-minute custom mix from The Glitch Mob's new album "See Without Eyes."
“Part film, part concert and part art installation, the show explores themes fundamental to immersive technology, such as the relationship between isolation and social interaction in the digital world," he said in a news release.
It's described as "a VR odyssey of shifting dreamscapes." But you won't be alone.
One of the key aspects of TheWaveVR's approach to the emerging tech is that it encourages social interaction. You get to hang with other fans across a variety of virtual environments as the music thumps away with choreographed visuals.
A looped version will also be available for those not taking part in the live experience, which is available on Oculus Rift and HTC Vive headsets on TheWaveVR's app. You can also watch a stream on the company's Facebook page.
TheWaveVR Presents The Glitch Mob's "See Without Eyes" from TheWaveVR on Vimeo.
In many ways, TheWaveVR is a perfect match for The Glitch Mob. The Los Angeles-based trio -- Boreta (Justin Boreta), edIT (Ed Ma) and Ooah (Joshua Mayer) -- has experimented with all kinds of tech. For one of its recent tours, it developed something called "The Blade," which they describe as a "performance spaceship-instrument allows the band to play live using an intertwined arsenal of Max/MSP, Ableton Live, & Lemur."
“TheWaveVR and Strangeloop Studios have masterfully crafted a new dimension to the album, and we're beyond excited for people to take the ride," The Glitch Mob said in a news release. "‘See Without Eyes VR’ is an entirely new way to experience the music — as a full-body immersive journey."
I chatted via email with Arrigo, CEO of TheWaveVR about the new project. Here's our quick Q&A.
Inno: How did TheWaveVR initially connect with The Glitch Mob? And was that similar to how you're reaching other artists?
Arrigo: David Wexler, the art director of TheWaveVR and also the founder of Strangeloop Studios, collaborated with The Glitch Mob to produce a video experience for the album. Based on the strength of that video, we knew we needed to create a VR experience as well. The Glitch Mob has always been focused on bringing a visual component to their music and in utilizing technology to engage with fans, and that turned into us all working together to visually bring to life this album.
Inno: In a nutshell, what goes into creating an experience like this in terms of ideation, visual and VR development and review/edits? It seems like half film project, half VR visuals, half music video and half software project -- that's a lot of halves. And, if you can, give us a sense of how much time it took to create this with The Glitch Mob.
Arrigo: Yes, to all of the above. We started talking with The Glitch Mob a while ago on working with them, but really dove into producing the experience in March. It truly was a collaborative effort with the band, working to bring their vision to life and essentially creating an alternate world that takes users through a custom mix of the album.
