Synopsis: Jawbone.tv highlights the innovation behind Cold War Kids' web-only, interactive video 'I've Seen Enough', including quotes from the video's director Sam Jones and Dustin Callif of Tool North America.

When it comes to music videos, a director’s vision can, occasionally, overlook the main aspect of the medium: the music. Not so with the Cold War Kids’ web-only, interactive video for 'I’ve Seen Enough'.

Directed by Sam Jones, the original footage for the California-based band’s video was shot in a recording studio and designed to play in parallel parts. Because the band laid down four distinctly different versions of the song – and each member was filmed playing their various instruments on a dimly lit stage – fans can remix the track mid-play, creating endless versions of the song.

“The idea was that fans would be able to create an interesting new variation of the track every time, a new listening experience,” says Jones. “Plus, it’s just fun to play with – there are so many ways to mix the instruments and vocals, and so many chances to get creative.”

And while creating the seamless interactive experience was technically challenging for the creative team at Tool (the production company behind the shoot), Dustin Callif, head of content creation there says that the core idea is a simple one: “It’s all about the music,” he says. “As a music fan, I’ve visited websites that allow fans to control the camera angles or change the background, but I’ve always felt there was a missed opportunity to focus on the music.”

The site streams four different videos at the same time – with each one featuring a band member, and advanced compression and streaming techniques allow for on-demand interactivity.

The result is a fun and easy interactive experience that allows the band’s fans – or just the curious – to change up instruments in real time. And if you want to give one or more of the group a rest from performing, just click on the member and they’ll just relax with their instrument while the others play on.

“As web creators, sometimes we get carried away with our tools and we complicate things with Flash animation and long page loads,” Callif says. “For this experience, our singular goal was to allow people to change the music in real-time and feel as if they were in the recording studio with the band. We’re thrilled to be able to work with the band and Sam to put the music first, and to allow fans to experience the band dynamic firsthand.”

Check it out at www.coldwarkids.com/iveseenenough.