Subject: Indy Music in Commercials
Date: Tue Jul 24 10:34:20 2012
User: BuzzClik
Message:I was about to update the Interesting New Music thread (long neglected) when I was stopped by a Lexus commercial using a very popular indy song as their background. Not that such things are unusual. Recent indy splashes in commercials include Vampire Weekend's "Holiday" in a Honda Civic commerical (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qUY9RW3HOI). Recently, Lana del Ray sold here "Blue Jeans" to Nestle for a coffee commercial (http://youtu.be/EisvwLh9vxM). This bit of capitalism does not bother me as it does the diehard hipsters who love to tear their hair and scream "sell out" because their favorite artists are no longer starving to death.
But, the new Lexus commercial is interesting for a different reason. It uses the music from Likki Li's "Get Some". Here's the video to her song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TTPGAy5H_E (it's PG-13, probably). "Get Some" is explicitly sexual: "I'm your prostitute, you're gonna get some."
Lexus's decision to use the song was no accident. The commercial is trying to convince the 30-somethings in their demographic that driving their car will make it easier to "get some." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRMnOd5yF1U
Not moralizing. Just sayin'.
And, congrats to Likki Li.
Link: Official Lexus CT Commercial (Extended Cut) -- "Miles"
Date: Tue Jul 24 10:36:14 2012
User: BuzzClik
Message:(btw: in the opening post, the artist spells it Lykke Li. Sorry for that)
Date: Tue Jul 24 11:28:14 2012
User: firenze
Message:I am more concerned about the speed combined with stunt driving that are appearing in more and more car commercials. The message seems to be that the car will handle well on mountain roads and city streets at 80mph.
Date: Tue Jul 24 11:53:15 2012
User: BuzzClik
Message:It's not that I was concerned that an advertiser implied that their car would get you some action.... it was an observation about the music involved. However, your point is interesting. Last night I saw a Ford Focus commercial during the Rangers/Red Sox game that showed two of those ... cars ... racing through city streets Gran Prix style. They went airborne, big skids, etc. We can look forward to that being imitated in a city near year. (Not Scottsdale, but maybe someplace with a pulse.)
Link: Ford Focus
Date: Tue Jul 24 11:59:34 2012
User: firenze
Message:Hey, Scottsdale is home of Barrett-Jackson.
Date: Thu Aug 2 08:36:20 2012
User: BuzzClik
Message:I just stumbled over another commercial featuring an indy favorite: the Skype "Working Together" commercial feature the indy icons, Youth Lagoon.
Link: Skype/Youth Lagoon
Date: Thu Aug 16 08:53:34 2012
User: BuzzClik
Message:Yet another indy band has acquired "theme" status. Silverspun Pickups were brought up by Denny and given a thumbs up by JustSue here: http://www.freecell.net/f/c/disctopic.html?code=9793&replies=109
One of their songs, "Panic Swithch," was ... picked up ... by the Romney campaign. In true indy fashion, they politely asked him to quit using their music, which the campaign did.
Link: Story.
Date: Thu Aug 16 09:43:49 2012
User: firenze
Message:Isn't it "indie".
Date: Thu Aug 16 10:40:01 2012
User: BuzzClik
Message:Not in Indiana.
Date: Sat Aug 25 18:27:38 2012
User: BuzzClik
Message:This is one of those "excuse me?" moments in music, sports, and advertising.
A fairly popular band in indie circles is The Walkmen. They have some new stuff out that I'll review in the Interesting New Music thread when my real life goes back to baseline.
Anyway, I had just finished reading some stuff for work on my iPad while the tv was playing silently in the background with the Minnesota-Texas baseball game. I turned up the sound on the tube and backed up up the DVR to hear an interview with one of the players. I backed up too far, and the announcer said, "The Major League Baseball Fan Cave had a concert on Wednesday featuring The Walkmen to celebrate Budweiser's return as the official beer sponsor of MLB." I have no doubt that literally everyone watching that game said, "Who?" or "Huh? errr... what?". My reaction was to laugh and wonder why. I guess it gets back to sponsors wanting to spend less money for really good music.
Fan Cave may stream the concert later. Maybe not. The most recent concert available was recorded in late June. (What the heck!)
Here's the video for a recent release. Great stuff.
Link: The Walkmen, "Heaven"
Date: Sun Dec 15 22:14:06 2013
User: BuzzClik
Message:Just in time for Christmas... Sleigh Bells's "Rill Rill" for an iPhone ad.
I love the Sleigh Bells!
Link: iPhone ad
Date: Sat May 3 18:49:56 2014
User: BuzzClik
Message:As I am sure all of you know, Gia Coppola (grandchild of Francis Ford Coppola) is releasing her first movie, "Palo Alto," based on a compilation of short stories by James Franco. It opens May 9.
The real news is that Devonte (Dev) Hynes wrote the score. Hynes was/is the creative force behind Blood Orange (well, he is Blood Orange). Pretty sweet gig. In addition, Mac DeMarco is also on the soundtrack.
For indie fans, this is totally cool because Hynes is one of those guys always near the top of the indie scene, and DeMarco is a very young upstart. And...DeMarco has recorded and been released under my son's music label.
Awesome, right?
Link: Soundtrack from "Palo Alto"
Date: Mon May 5 22:36:04 2014
User: BuzzClik
Message:I was cooking dinner with the headphones on when this one caught my ear:
Vampire Weekend's "Diane Young" in a Smirnov commercial for the "deconstructed martini."
(Woe is me -- my kid in seeing Vampire Weekend in concert tonight. So jealous!)
Link: Smirnoff Deconstructed Martini with Vampire Weekend
Date: Sat Sep 6 11:08:24 2014
User: BuzzClik
Message:I don't watch enough television to be a great spy for indie music in the ads, but every now and then I stumble upon one. It's really a happy occasion when it's a local artist whose music happens to reside on my iPhone.
This week, a commercial was floated out there by Gillette to advertise their latest iteration in razors. This is the razor with the little orange ball that allows the razor to magically navigate the rough terrain of your face.
The new commercial involves an insanely modified piano in which a keyboard activates some strings that use the Gillette razors as hammers to strike the keys of a normal piano. For the commercial, the pianist is Son Lux, an indie artist from Indiana who has been discussed twice in the Interesting Music thread.
Son Lux is a graduate of Indiana University's music school, which is one of the very best in the world. Getting in demands that you already are an accomplished musician. Son Lux demonstrates some nice skills on the keyboard in the commercial, something he doesn't flaunt in his indie recordings.
Congrats, Son Lux!
Link: Son Lux commercial
Date: Sat Sep 6 15:27:06 2014
User: hotnurse
Message:Back in 1995 my oldest son, a good musician at that time, was granted an interview with the IU music dept/school. Lol, he was not accepted but was given a letter of recommendation. They only take the very top of the top of musicians...many of them come from across the big oceans.
Date: Mon Dec 15 22:28:06 2014
User: BuzzClik
Message:The Orwells made a bit of a splash a few months ago with a crazed appearance on Letterman:
http://youtu.be/gvodeJdwKb8
Now, they have an iPad commercial. Chicago's finest gettin' paid! (keep an eye out for the 3-D printer)
Link: iPad Air commercial with Orwells
Date: Sat Jan 3 19:10:41 2015
User: BuzzClik
Message:Miller Lite (part of the MillerCoors conglomerate) put out a series of ads this December featuring GoPro closeup videos of the beer. One of them caught my ear because of the song playing in the background: "Candyman" by Cornershop. The CD containing this song (When I Was Born for the Seventh Time, circa 1997) is the only Cornershop music I own, so I was really surprised to hear this song.
I could not find the ad on the internet, but this link will take you to other Miller Lite ads with similar beer closeups: http://ow.ly/GoksI
It ends up that Nike used the same song featuring LeBron James. See the link below:
Link: Nike -- The Candyman is Back!
Date: Mon Jan 5 02:01:43 2015
User: TNmountainman
Message:Not that my opinion matters....but since you've also said that I'm not gonna offend you by disagreeing with your musical tastes....
I can dig the "Candyman" a bit, but the Orwells (esp. the Letterman appearance) do nothing at all for me. (Very) forced theatrics, no original musicality, save perhaps the tone of the lead guitar (and that's being generous). The iPad commercial was slightly better. No offense, but surely Chicago has better, more original new talent than that.
Oh, but I did like the Son Lux thing. Would like to have seen more of a closeup of how the action is transmitted, but cool idea and nice execution.
Date: Mon Jan 5 09:37:07 2015
User: BuzzClik
Message:I have no particular fondness of the Orwells. Their song is a bit catchy, but not to the point of prompting me to load it on my phone or put it on my playlists.
Unlike some of my other threads, the only point of this thread is the highlight indie artists who are getting their music into commercials. It's not an endorsement of the music at all.
As I mentioned above, "I don't watch enough television to be a great spy for indie music in the ads." My watching habits make it worse -- I often watch with the tv muted, and when sound is necessary, I record the program to allow me to fast forward through the commercials. I guess that's why I've found a grand total of about 10 ads in 18 months.
Date: Sat Jan 10 10:54:46 2015
User: BuzzClik
Message:I caught the tail end of an ad while fast-forwarding through a commercial break of a recorded show. I heard about five notes sung by probably my current favorite singer, backed up the DVR, and watched more of the movie trailer for "A Most Violent Year." Ezra Koenig was singing his part of the SBTRKT's "New Dorp, New York." You can watch the trailer by clicking the link below.
Ends up Nike already used the song in a commercial: http://vimeo.com/102090775
You can listen to the entire song here: http://youtu.be/gs0xe9DQEPc (Great video!)
(btw -- Koenig a member of Vampire Weekend)
Link: Trailer -- A Most Violent Year
Date: Sun Jan 11 22:22:58 2015
User: BuzzClik
Message:Lana Del Rey was one of the subjects of the opening post, and she will be my subject here. She probably has escaped the gravitational pull of "indie artist" and has earned the label of commercial success, so this may be my last time mentioning her in the indie context.
Twice in the past week, I have heard Del Rey's totally recognizable voice as part of a movie soundtrack. The first was as part of the 2013 film, The Great Gatsby, in which she performed "Young and Beautiful." I saw the movie in the theater and at that time recognized her contribution; I just didn't bother to post it here. Earlier this week, I passed a tv that was playing the movie, and her song was on.
Del Rey also contributed the closing song for Maleficient. I always sit through movie credits, so I caught her cover of "Once Upon A Dream." Her version was in a minor key (d minor) rather than the original Bb major. It has special impact. http://elliotsneider.com/musicalreferences/?p=33
I never been a Lana Del Rey fan, though that may be slowly changing -- these songs were pitch perfect for their respective films.
Date: Thu Jan 15 00:38:07 2015
User: Kaos
Message:This song has not yet shown up in any commercial but I'm sure the pressure is on. How long can they hold out/should they hold out?
Link: If Pearl Jam ever sells out
Date: Thu Jan 15 07:53:51 2015
User: BuzzClik
Message:I've never had a problem with artists being able to eat, so I've never seen this as "selling out." Others -- a lot of others -- see it differently.
Pearl Jam, being a gigantic commercial success, had the luxury of not needing any extra exposure or capital. But, some of their songs have shown up in ads anyway.
Date: Mon May 4 00:10:45 2015
User: BuzzClik
Message:Just watched a Chicago Blackhawks hockey game.
They're still playing the Fratellis's "Chelsea Dagger" after each score and after the win.
Link: https://youtu.be/62liEU1HO0Y
Date: Wed Jun 24 09:41:23 2015
User: BuzzClik
Message:After the NBA and NHL seasons wrapped up (and in between College World Series and Women's FIFA World Cup games), I have been watching "Orange Is the New Black" on Netflix. The theme song is by Regina Spektor, an indie fave from way back.
But, there have been other great songs as well. (I am not the only one to notice: http://www.ew.com/article/2015/06/23/orange-is-the-new-black-season-3-songs)
Perhaps one of the most soul crushing scenes I've seen in television for a long while* was the climax of Episode 3 in Season 3. As the final minutes of the episode play out, "Coming Down" from the Dum Dum Girls fills the void. The convincing acting from Natasha Lyonne combined with one of my all-time favorite indie songs made this moment for me.
======
*This isn't saying much; I watch very little television outside of sports. (Is this television?)
Link: Dum Dum Girls, "Coming Down"
Date: Sun Jun 28 23:22:59 2015
User: BuzzClik
Message:In a stroke of good fortune, I was slow on the trigger in fast forwarding through commercials on a recording of The Daily Show, and an ad for iPhone 6 snuck onto my teevee. Much to my pleasure, it was SOAK's cover of St. Vincent's "Digital Witness."
Nice!
==========
I talked of SOAK on the Interesting New Music thread, and I really like her. She's Bridie Monds-Watson from Northern Ireland with full-bodied and very interesting voice. She's a very young 19 years of age with a bright future. The iPhone commercial will, no doubt, be a nice boost.
Link: SOAK covers St Vincent for iPhone
Date: Sun Jul 5 08:30:37 2015
User: BuzzClik
Message:Another iPhone 6 commercial. This one featuring Jamie XX, who is reaching a high orbit this summer.
Link: Jamie XX, iPhone6 commercial
Date: Sun Jul 5 09:29:37 2015
User: BuzzClik
Message:The previous three entries from iPhone were par for the course for iPhone, but not shocking. Apple has a history of using really good but somewhat obscure music as a back drop.
This one was a bit of a surprise. T-Mobile recently put out an ad with a really obscure but solid band, The Interrupters. Aimee Allen fronts (and founded this band) that put out its debut album in 2014.
Good stuff.
Link: The Interrupters, T-Mobile commercial
Date: Sun Oct 25 12:53:09 2015
User: BuzzClik
Message:Still watching the Yahoo stream of the quite terrible BUF/JAX game.
One of the redeeming aspects of this game was a commercial for Levi 501 jeans featuring Hanni El Khatib.
Link: Hanni El Khatib for Levis
Date: Wed Dec 9 23:58:10 2015
User: BuzzClik
Message:I just finished watching Bill Murray's Christmas special on Netflix. In addition to being a very gonzo Christmas special (laden with talent), they also included two Indie faves: Phoenix and Jenny Lewis. Lewis played a barmaid who sang "Baby It's Cold Outside" with Murray, and Phoenix were the hotel chefs who sang, "Alone on Christmas Day."
Both Lewis and Phoenix have been featured in the thread linked below.
Link: Interesting New Music
Date: Fri Mar 18 10:27:50 2016
User: BuzzClik
Message:I was watching ESPN's Sports Center on my phone when an ad for Hampton Inns came on. It featured Belle and Sebastian's "Another Sunny Day."
The commercial was developed a year ago. I assume it's been on the tube for that long, but I watch tv pretty infrequently...
Link: Hampton Inn/Belle and Sebastian
Date: Tue Mar 29 22:06:04 2016
User: BuzzClik
Message:Hulu has a new series, "The Path," starring Aaron Paul of "Breaking Bad" fame. The trailer features Fleet Foxes' "White Winter Hymnal” quite prominently. Two huge thumbs up.
Here's the original: https://youtu.be/DrQRS40OKNE
Link: "The Path" trailer
Date: Fri Oct 28 07:37:47 2016
User: BuzzClik
Message:Here's one that is both nice music and an interestng commercial.
And, Apple is once again responsible.
Hamilton Leithauser (Walkmen) and Rostam (Vampire Weekend) released "Midnight" not long ago, but Apple picked it up immediately.
Link: iPhone, Hamilton and Rostam, "Midnight"
Date: Fri Oct 28 23:12:49 2016
User: BuzzClik
Message:For the record, the actual name of the song is "In a Blackout", from the album, I Had a Dream You Were Mine.
Date: Mon Nov 7 21:42:27 2016
User: BuzzClik
Message:A young friend directed me toward Chance the Rapper's new album, "Coloring Book." Fascinating stuff, not your typical rap artist.
And, as often happens, I saw this on ESPN this evening during the football game.
Link: Chance the Rapper, "Blessings", as seen on ESPN
Date: Sun Nov 20 09:29:35 2016
User: BuzzClik
Message:Google's new phone is making waves and knows a good marketing ploy when they see one. Their new ad features tUnE-yArDs's "Water Fountain." Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and indie music is the benefactor.
Link: #Pixel: Memories by you, Phone by Google (tUnE-yArDs)
Date: Sun Nov 20 12:29:06 2016
User: BuzzClik
Message:Yet another jewel, so to speak.
While watching (sort of -- background noise) NFL Countdown on ESPN, my ears perked up to a familiar tune during the first ad of a long commercial break. The promo was a trailer for a new video game, Watch Dogs 2, and the background music was "Close Your Eyes (And Count to F**k)" by Run the Jewels. It's sort of catchy featuring vocals by Zack de la Rocha (of Rage Against the Machine). Run the Jewels has two members, one of which is Killer Mike of Bernie Sanders endorsement fame.
===========
NOTE: I clicked on the links in this thread, and many of them give me a brick wall saying the video is private. Odd. Some are still active. When possible, I will avoid You Tube and use iSpot.tv as the source. iSpot is an ad hosting site for people to view their favorite commercials featuring music. It's a subscription service, but limited access is free.
Link: Watch Dog 2/Run the Jewels
Date: Sun Nov 27 22:22:27 2016
User: BuzzClik
Message:I'm beginning to wonder if I've miss a lot of excellent music in commercials by watching the tv on mute and/or fast forwarding through commercials.
My lastest find: a BMW commercial featuring Blur's "Song 2." The commercial is nothing special, but it is based on a short film released by BMW. The link below starts where the song begins. If you choose to watch the entire clip, you might recognize the female lead... a singer but definitely not an indie singer.
Link: BMW commercial: Blur's "Song 2"
Date: Mon Dec 12 07:36:09 2016
User: BuzzClik
Message:Toyota has a new ad out for their "Toyotathon." It features Perfume Genius singing "Right Light."
Perfume Genius has gotten around a bit; I noticed their song "Queen" in an episode of Mr. Robot.
Nice ad, nice song.
Link: Perfume Genius, "Right Light", for Toyota
Date: Sun Dec 18 16:29:49 2016
User: BuzzClik
Message:Another ad that happened to catch my ear as I was doing other things. The song was really familiar but generated only question marks in my head. A little TiVo, a little Shazam, and I found it.
The latest Miller Lite ad for their steinie bottles used Welshly Arms's "The Touch" as their background. (I actually have no idea why I know this song.)
.shrug
Link: Welshly Arms, "The Touch" in Miller Lite ad
Date: Sun Dec 18 17:46:06 2016
User: hotnurse
Message:The song, in a Toyotathon commercial right now, that really has me hooked is; Normal Song by Perfume Genius. For the life of me, I can't get a link to post.
Date: Sun Dec 18 18:50:55 2016
User: BuzzClik
Message:The song just two up from your post?
Date: Sun Dec 18 19:57:50 2016
User: hotnurse
Message:Yes Tony! That's the one. Haunting.
Date: Sun Dec 18 20:09:42 2016
User: hotnurse
Message:Buzz, It seems that the same song may have two different titles???
Date: Tue Jan 10 12:38:01 2017
User: BuzzClik
Message:Honda Civic has taken the song, "Walking on a Dream" by Empire of the Sun and really run with it. Honda released a techie commercial (see below) of a Civic driving through all sorts of CGI effects. It's been getting airtime for months and, apparently, launched the song to all sorts of splash on the music charts.
Empire of the Sun is an Australian synthpop/glam rock band that's been around awhile. Not my cup of tea, but I'm happy to see them earn some cash for their efforts.
Link: Honda Commercial, "Walking on a Dream"
Date: Thu Jan 12 12:47:52 2017
User: hotnurse
Message:Buzz, I finally had a few free moments to listen to several of your clips; some good stuff there! Keep posting. I don't listen to radio much or streaming due to limited g's/mo.
Thanks!
Date: Sun Feb 19 11:28:07 2017
User: BuzzClik
Message:Ok -- full disclosure: I don't know this band, I didn't see this commercial on tv, I don't consume the product in question.
But ....
The guy on my radio just mentioned it. This is Chicano Batman singing "This Land is Your Land" for Johnnie Walker. The band reminds me of Los Lonely Boys, but they seem to be able to speak Spanish.
.shrug
Link: Chicano Batman, "This Land is Your Land"
Post follow-up