Swedish folk band John Moose have taken immersion to a new level with their debut album – the record will only play if the listener is deep in a forest.
As Rolling Stone reports, the band’s self-titled album was pre-released via an app designed by drummer Tobias Nor that uses GPS to determine where the listener is:
“The app uses Google Maps where forests have a specific green color. GPS coordinates are sent from the smartphone to a web service which scans the map through Google Maps Static API and uses a specific algorithm to determine if the user is in the woods ‘enough.'”
The choice of location reflects the themes of the album, which is a story of a man who leaves society to make a life for himself in the forest, with disastrous consequences:
“Throughout his journey something grows, an anxiety stronger than he has ever known before,” the band explains. “He becomes obsessed and senseless. He violates nature and believes he owns everything that crosses his path. He gives up and is nurtured by the earth he has tortured. It seals his body and shatters his dream.”
According to the band, the decision to release the album via the app was inspired by wanting people to “think about nature – what it is and how we should relate to it. So the best way, we thought, is to force people into the woods.”
The album is available for iOS and Android.
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