It appears we have a new use for Google Glass: making concert movies from the perspective of the band. Instead of having camera men run around while hunched down, trying to stay out of the picture, we can just slap a Google Glass headset on the band and let them film the entire thing, rehearsals included. Can you imagine how many Bieber acolytes would jump at the chance to buy footage taken from the eyebrow of the Bieber God himself? Although Google Glass is very much in its infancy, it is definitely making the rounds, showing up on the brows of porn stars, NFL punters, soon-to-be NBA Players, and British drivers. Oh, wait.
While a drummer has already Google Glassed himself pounding away at a show at Glastonbury, the test drive with Bon Jovi is the first from a band of their size. Granted, this probably would’ve been more relevant when Slippery When Wet was owning the radio and MTV, the fact remains, Bon Jovi’s name still resonates, especially from Google’s perspective, a company hoping their new device crosses over to mainstream adaptation.
Unfortunately, the public footage of Bon Jovi’s use of the Google Glass headset is limited to a video of the band’s keyboard player, David Bryan, as he prepares to take the stage for their show in New Jersey. It doesn’t really show much except for Bryan walking to the stage:
Apparently, both Bryan and lead singer Jon Bon Jovi tried wearing Google Glass, but there’s no footage of that available. For those of you disappointed with the demonstration the band made available, you are not alone. The YouTube comments section is also disappointed with the video, calling it boring. As pointed out by the person who loaned his Google Glass headset to the band, Chris Barrett, the device does present a potentially new revenue stream for bands, provided they can find a way to monetize it, and improve the quality of the footage being streamed.
The question becomes, would people be eager–that is, willing to pay–to watch a streaming concert of their favorite band presented from the Google Glass point of view?