HURTS | FOAM LONDON | SONY

Working with FOAM London and Sony Music, we created an interactive PR campaign to launch HURTS sophomore album, EXILE. 

We had to create momentum and intrigue for the launch of the album, firstly with a select few journalists, and secondly with huge numbers of fans, online. We worked with HURTS to identify key story elements in the album and worked them into a campaign narrative about exile and indoctrination.

For a lucky few journalists: A personalised treasure trail. Delivered to their door, a succession of mementos from ‘the night before’ revealed the story they’d become embroiled in. It began with a dry cleaning ticket from their local launderette. They picked up a tuxedo, in the pocket was a golden tape and a polaroid of them (photoshopped) next to a mysterious friend. Next came a delivery- a tape cassette and a note from their new friend, requesting another rendezvous in the vaults of Heaven night club. 

The album launch: Guests were met by their ‘friend’ and introduced to Brother Leon, a cloaked man offering 'purgative juices' and solemn advice. With cleansed hands and hearts journalists joined a circle of cloaked, chanting, people in the Ceremony Room. They swore an oath by the Sacred Book containing special HURTS scripture, lyrics from the EXILE album. 

Engaging consumers online: Using the same narrative we created a free immersive app to engage Hurts fans with the album. In the voice controlled app we told a “choose your own adventure” story of peril and intrigue where you, the listener, were on the brink of being indoctrinated into a cult. Depending on your decisions through the story there were twelve different endings, each contained one of the tracks from the EXILE album. 

The use of simple immersive technology (binaural headphones) and super engaging online storytelling resulted in the EXILE app being downloaded 250,000 times, included in The Guardian’s 30 Best iPhone and iPad apps during the week of EXILE’s release, and a nomination for 2 Cannes Lions.