Watch Gorillaz play their new track atop skyscrapers in two augmented reality performances

The events took place in New York’s Times Square and London’s Picadilly Circus.

When you purchase through affiliate links on MusicTech.com, you may contribute to our site through commissions. Learn more
Gorillaz Augmented reality performances

Image: @GoogleARVR/Twitter

Damon Albarn-led band Gorillaz debuted their new single, Skinny Ape, this weekend, hosting two augmented reality (AR) shows in London and New York – fortunately for those that couldn’t attend, fans recorded and uploaded their experiences online.

The animated band announced the one-of-a-kind AR performances earlier this month, which showcase the animated members, Murdoc, 2D, Noodle and Russel, performing the track atop some of the cities’ most iconic landmarks.

The track in question is the latest single to be released from Gorillaz’s upcoming eighth studio album, Cracker Island.

To view the events in New York on Saturday (17 December) and London (18 December), attendees were required to download an exclusive app on their phones – one which combined the real world with the band’s computer-generated imagery.

Find fan-captured footage of the two performances below.

Screen recorded the whole thing from Times Square from gorillaz

The AR performances incorporated Google’s ARCore Geospatial API, a type of software that lets Google Street View merge with specifically-generated AR imagery.

Nexus Studios helped create the experiences, with the performances directed by the band’s co-creator Jamie Hewlett and Emmy-nominated director Fx Goby. The occasion allowed fans to come together as Gorillaz “play in real life [and] literally tower over them, playing in the midst of two of the world’s most iconic skylines,” says a press release.

The performances took place at 2:30 pm ET in Times Square and 2 pm GMT in Picadilly Circus, however, fans still have until June 2023 to visit the locations and view the performances for themselves.

Additionally, the concert can be viewed anywhere using the Gorillaz Presents app, which is available now for iOS and Android.

Skinny Ape is the fourth single to be shared from the band’s upcoming album, proceeding tracks Baby Queen, New Gold and title track, Cracker Island, which features a performance from Thundercat.

The full album is set to be released on 24 February 2023.

logo

Get the latest news, reviews and tutorials to your inbox.

Subscribe
Join Our Mailing List & Get Exclusive DealsSign Up Now
logo

The world’s leading media brand at the intersection of music and technology.

© 2024 MusicTech is part of NME Networks.