Fun Stuff > BAND
Music in Commercials
theenginedriver:
the requiem for a dream theme is sooooo incredibly beautiful.
Valrus:
I saw an advertisement for a news channel with an Explosions in the Sky song as the background music. It worked okay, although the fact that they had a song by that band playing behind the footage of 9/11 was sort of grimace-inducing.
sjbrot:
--- Quote from: Praeserpium Machinarum ---I think I would be strangely flattered by that. I mean they must really think he is awesome to go out of their way to actually find someone who only SOUNDS like him. Pissed off, sure, but also kind of flattered ;)
--- End quote ---
Well, the problem with that particular situation was that the company in question aproached Tom Waits to do the add, and when he flat out refused, they went over his head and found an imitator. It was pretty understandable why he would be mad.
The real question here should be whether or not a certain song being used in a commercial lowers its emotional impact. Of course, artists are people who have to pay bills, and commercials also give them exposure. Commercials have been playing more inovative and indie music than any radio station in the country has been for years.
And sometimes they get to have fun with it too. The Shins license out songs in a subversive way, like "New Slang" ("The dirt in your fries", "Bleed into their buns") which was licensed to McDonalds for an ad, or "Young Pilgrims" ("I know there is this side of me that/Wants to grab the yoke from the pilot and just/Fly the whole mess into the sea.") which was licensed to an airline.
But what happens to the emotional connection between artist and listener when someone's favorite song is used to hawk clock radios or something? It cheapens the entire thing.
I'm not going to hold it against any artist that does license their songs out, but I'm not going to pretend I feel the same way about the song afterwards either.
ozphactor:
--- Quote from: tommydski ---in the uk i saw an advert for star trek that used 'wake up' by the arcade fire. that was odd.
--- End quote ---
I'm gonna have to go with slinkyindieninja on this one and bust out the WTF card. Star Trek and the Arcade Fire... dear God, can there be anything more incongruous? (There probably can be, but I don't wanna hear about it.)
Seeing songs I like in commericals has never really bothered me. Yeah, sometimes it's awkward (Iron & Wine pitching M&Ms, but that's nothing compared to the Star Trek/Arcade Fire combo), sometimes it actually fits (as much as I hate Hummers, I have to admit Ratatat was a pretty good choice), but either way... meh.
Red:
--- Quote from: Praeserpium Machinarum ---How do you lot feel about it?
What sparked this was that I heard Feist's Mushaboom in a Lacoste commercial and I thought it was hella cool. I think its an excellent way to get lots of awesome music out to a lot of people. Take Nick Drake for example, when his song Pink Moon was used in some Volkswagen commercial, he was rediscovered and hailed as a great singer/songwriter.
The downside is of course that the music might be some mainstream tripe that doesn't tickle anyone's fancy, but that's the conditions I suppose.
--- End quote ---
You saw that commercial? I wasn't to bothered by it because it was done in pretty good taste.
I think as long as it makes sense and isn't just thrown in because "ItS T3H U83R AWXSOM3 R4M0N3S S0NG!!!!!!!11!1". The Ramones version of "what a wonderful world" has been used in like, fourty car commercials.
Also, I don't mind it if my favourite artists make a little cash, but if they act hardcore indie or the worlds greatest metal band and do a shampoo commercial, I get mad. It will be a cold day in hell before I sit back and let "I'm still your fag" play in the background of a calonge commercial.
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