Heineken, James Murphy Want to Reinvent NYC Subway Turnstile Tones

By Kiran Aditham 

murphy1

Since essentially “retiring” his LCD Soundsystem project in 2011, DJ/producer James Murphy, who’s also the co-founder of DFA Records, has indulged in a variety of somewhat offbeat efforts related in some way to music. Now that he’s collaborated with IBM to create music out of tennis match data during last year’s U.S. Open and opened the DJ-driven wine bar Four Horsemen in Brooklyn earlier this month, Murphy is going underground.

The artist has teamed up with Heineken and Wieden+Kennedy New York to launch the #SubwaySymphony, which marks the next chapter in the beer giant’s ongoing “Cities” campaign. Murphy’s ultimate goal with this effort is to make NYC commuters happier by replacing the harsh beeps that normally emanate from turnstiles within New York City’s subway system with synth tones customized for specific stations.

Advertisement

Here’s the video:

Regarding this ambitious project, Murphy himself says,

“New York City is a beautiful, one-of-a-kind place, and the people who are willing to do what it takes to live here – deal with the crowds and the commotion and the noise – deserve a little sonic gift like this. I want to turn the cacophony of the subway into unique pieces of music. It might seem like a small thing, but that’s exactly the point. This is such an easy way to make this great place I call home even greater.”

While Murphy is trying to rally support for the campaign via social and the Subway Symphony hub, it appears New York’s Metropolitan Transit Authority is ready to put the kibosh on the project before it even gets off the ground. Still, we appreciate Murphy’s hopeless idealism and give him an A for effort, even if the MTA never budges from its hardline stance. You can check out the campaign site for more info and upcoming episodes to follow the prologue clip you see above.

The campaign does, unfortunately, arrive at a somewhat awkward time as the client officially ended its relationship with W+K yesterday.

W+K New York

Executive Creative Directors: David Kolbusz, Jaime Robinson
Creative Directors: Erik Norin
Copywriter: Al Merry, Garrick Sheldon
Art Director: Jaclyn Crowley
Head of Content Production: Nick Setounski
Producer: Dominic Tunon, Alexey Novikov
Strategist: Tom Gibby, Jessica Abercrombie
Account Team: Patrick Cahill, Price Manford, Kyle Glackin
Business Affairs: Sara Jagielski, Justine Lowe
Lead Experience Designer: Kate Bauer
Creative Tech Lead: Craig Blagg
Sr. Creative Technologist: Mauricio Ruiz
Executive Interactive Producer: Jonathan Percy
Associate Interactive Producer: Mutaurwa Mapondera
Director of Technology: Charles Duncan
Engineering: Lead Cameron Brown
QA Lead: Sean Jones
Art Buying: Deb Rosen, Pietro Clemente

PRODUCTION- Documentary

Production Company: Pulse
Director: ThirtyTwo
Executive Producer/COO: Shirley O’Connor
Executive Producer: Hillary Rogers, Kira Carstensen
Line Producer: Shirley O’Connor
Director of Photography: Aaron Phillips
Production – Prologue

Production Company Knucklehead
Director Siri Bunford
Executive Producer/COO Tim Katz
Executive Producer Cathleen Kisich
Line Producer Ian BlainDirector of Photography Manel Ruiz

Editorial

Editorial Company: Final Cut
Editor Michael Wadsworth
Post Producer Mackenzie Alexander
Post Executive Producer Lauren Bleiweiss
Editorial Assistant Andrew Castiglioni
Telecine

Telecine Company: Significant Others
Colorist: Terressa Tate

Mix

Mix Company Color Collective
Mixer: Alex Bickel

Music

Song: “Home”
Artist: LCD Soundsystem
Production Company – Website
Production Company: North Kingdom

Video Production + Editorial – WEBSITE
Development Partner Company: Brehm Lab

Production – Audio Ad
Mix Company: Sonic Union
Mixer: Brian Goodheart

Advertisement