This limited edition all-black speaker displays animated lyrics

Japanese company COTODAMA has teamed up with luxury brand Saint Laurent for a limited edition, all-black version of its Lyric Speaker Canvas that is only available to buy in the fashion house’s Rive Droite stores. COTODAMA makes two kinds of lyric speakers, both of which display a song’s lyrics while music is playing.

COTODAMA’s Lyric Speaker Canvas first came out last year and the original has a silver and black design. The silver back board is the actual speaker, while the black front board is the screen that displays song lyrics. It’s one unit, but looks like two pieces, and is meant to evoke the idea of vinyl record jackets leaned up against your wall. The size is a bit bigger than an actual record sleeve, but not by much. The Lyric Speaker Canvas is 18.7 inches wide by 14.7 inches tall, so it’s still pretty compact.

When it plays music, the front panel links with databases like PetitLyrics to grab a song’s lyrics. It then displays the lyrics in time with the song, and analyzes the song’s mood to pick fonts and animations. Blocky text that bursts on the screen might be paired with a bold pop song, and a drifting, handwritten script would go with a slow ballad. If no lyrics can be found, the screen will show abstract animations that move in sync with the music instead. There’s a nifty interactive demonstration on the COTODAMA website that lets you see how it visualizes lyrics for different kinds of songs.

The speaker connects via Wi-Fi with Airplay, Google Cast, and Spotify Connect on the iOS side, and Google Cast, and Spotify Connect if you have Android. If you’re using Android, Amazon Music, Google Play Music, Spotify, and YouTube Music are compatible, and the iOS version also supports Apple Music and a few other regional services like KK BOX.

This edition of the speaker has the same specs as the original, but comes with an all-black colorway and the Saint Laurent logo on the back panel. Slathering products entirely in black instantly makes them look more sleek, and this collaboration is no different. When Leica did an all-black Monochrom camera the result was gorgeous. The all-black OnePlus 3T was equally slick. It’s also similar to another recent Saint Laurent collaboration, which took Bang & Olufsen Beoplay A9 and A1 speakers and drenched them in black.

If you want to grab this rare speaker, it costs several hundred dollars more than the original version, but in return you get the all-black aesthetic and Saint Laurent logo. The companies haven’t said how many units will be produced, but it will set you back €1,995 ($2,241) and is only available at Saint Laurent Rive Droite stores in Los Angeles and Paris.

https://www.theverge.com/2019/7/21/20702289/cotodama-saint-laurent-black-lyric-speaker-canvas