The John Lennon Estate has partnered with the Lumenate app for a series of meditation mixes, developed from the musician’s 1973 track ‘Mind Games’.
Unveiled today (May 1), the project has been developed to help people reach a relaxed, meditative state, and “help guide your mind into deeper states of consciousness”.
In the newly transformed mixes, various sound design techniques and processes have been applied to the original 1973 recordings by late Beatles member John Lennon and, in some instances, have been enhanced with additional instrumentation from producer Sean Ono Lennon – who is also the son of Lennon and Yoko Ono.
The song was written by Lennon after reading the 1972 book Mind Games: The Guide to Inner Space, by Robert Masters and Jean Houston, which offered brain training exercises to help people take a more positive outlook. The song then came as the title track for the album of the same name and has gone on to become a cult classic.
“John was trying to convey the message that we all play mind games. But if we can play mind games, why not make a positive future with it – to be a positive mind game? ‘Mind Games’ is such an incredibly strong song,” said Yoko Ono of the track. “At the time, people didn’t quite get the message because this was before its time. Now, people would understand it. I don’t think in those days people knew they were playing mind games anyway.”
The app works by using the flashlight on the back of the user’s smartphone, which is strobed carefully onto their closed eyes to guide them into a state of consciousness between deep meditation and psychedelics.
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Nine mixes of the Lennon track are included, and each comes paired with “a unique, deeply immersive light sequence”, to allow users to “users to see, hear and feel the music like never before.”
It also strives to retain the firm, authentic feel of the original recording, while slowing down and extending the track up to 10 minutes to allow for a meditative experience.
Four of the nine mixes are presented as Binaural versions, which each focus on a different type of brain wave: Beta, Delta, Gamma, and Theta.
“Dubbed ‘Mind,’ ‘Space,’ ‘Spirit,’ and ‘Love,’ these tracks feature a Binaural Beat, an auditory illusion created within the brain when the left and right ears hear two slightly different frequencies whose difference is perceived as a new frequency which can activate different brain patterns for scientifically proven therapeutic effects,” reads a description. “Beta waves occur when thinking, Delta waves are produced when completely relaxed in deep sleep, Gamma waves are associated with high levels of thought and focus, and Theta waves are produced while sleeping or daydreaming.”
The ‘Mind Games’ Meditation Mixes launch today as part of Mental Health Awareness Month. It is available for free via the Lumenate app.
“I’m very happy to be working with Lumenate on this release for Mental Health Awareness Month,” said Sean Ono Lennon. “I think our Mind Games project is fun, meaningful, and potentially mind-expanding. I have been using the Lumenate app for my own personal meditations since it launched, and have had many profound experiences. My father was famously into meditation. I remember trying the ‘flicker machine’ he kept in the bedroom, which is what first introduced me to the idea of stroboscopic brain wave induction. I thought it made sense to combine the music of ‘Mind Games’ with the science of Lumenate. I really hope people enjoy the results as much as I have.”
Tom Galea, Lumenate’s co-founder added: “It’s been such a privilege working with Sean and The Lennon Estate on this exciting collaboration. The journeys it takes you on are so deeply relaxing and emotive, providing a uniquely powerful canvas for exploring your mind. I can’t wait for the world to experience it, it’s already had such a meaningful impact on me personally.”
In other John Lennon news, last month it was reported that the songwriter’s guitar – which was also used by George Harrison and appeared in the movie Help! – would be headed to auction after being lost for 50 years.
Earlier that month, it was also confirmed that James McCartney and Sean Ono Lennon – the sons of Paul McCartney and John Lennon – had written an acoustic song together called ‘Primrose Hill’.