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Music

An Otherworldly Underwater Music Video Shot Using Kinect

It’s been a busy year for Microsoft’s device.

This isn’t the first time a Kinect has provided the visual inspiration for a music video, and after people see this latest effort, it certainly won’t be the last. It’s been interesting to watch and follow along as the gaming controller got appropriated by the creative community and is now becoming integrated into the video directing arsenal. Its ability to capture depth and track motion makes it a winning combination when used with Processing and After Effects. At the start of the year it was firmly established as the hack du jour for artists and developers and now, as the end of the year approaches, Microsoft finally embraced that their beloved gesture controller has many more fun and interesting uses than simply as a device for playing video games.

The video above, from directing duo Tim & Joe, features Canadian electro-band New Look getting an underwater makeover for their track “Nap On The Bow.” The band members appear to sing to us from the bottom of the ocean, captured in appropriately murky detail using the Kinect. The glitchy effect of the motion sensing device is a perfect fit for the aesthetic of being under the sea and the results are very nice indeed, bringing to mind the graceful movement of jellyfish and other deep sea oddities—another impressive Kinect music video to add to the growing pile. Read more about the making of here.