Aug 072008
Time to ‘fess up. I clearly have no qualms about laying it all out for ya so I’ll start.
I discovered The Sonics via the Nissan SUV (I think) commercial. I also discovered Chris Knox (Tall Dwarfs) via the Heineken commercial that uses It’s Love. The Knox album on eMusic (Beat) has a definite Taking Tiger Mountain By Strategy vibe.
I confessed. I am at one with god.
What say you?
First that comes to mind is that iPod commercial that used the Fratellis’ “Flathead.” Loved it so much I bought the album, only to find out that’s the only good song.
Air, from the Levi commercials.
I heard the Shins’ New Slang on a McDonald’s commercial before Blue Meanine and Hrrundi V. Bakshi smacked Mercer’s lyrics upside my head until I liked them. Blue Meanie did not believe me at the time, of course, thinking her new favorite band of 2002 or whenever could not be selling french fries, or as they were known back in those heady days “freedom fries”. Ugh.
I sense a lot of you are living in sin. Heed the alter call and make peace with the lord.
I’m looking within, Sammy, deep within. Be patient, as our Lord is.
Blur.
Like, duh.
I’ve been thinking about this, Sammy. And praying. The best I can come up with so far is Apples in Stereo’s “Shine a Light”. I think I heard it on an ad before I heard it on the radio or off a CD. That’s a great song, and the album it’s from was pretty good too. Sadly, I never really liked anything that followed by the band.
All six of you have been absolved of your sins and granted entrance to heaven.
As for the rest of you…
I hate to admit that I discovered Nick Drake through that BMW or Volvo commercial. That’s is truly a sin, but one I have atoned for.
TB
The lord is with you TB.
I think I mentioned here before that I got into Davíd Garza after his Best Buy ads.
More recently, I sought out “Way To Your Heart” by Persephone’s Bees after it showed up in ad last year either Target or JC Penneys.
I JUST walked in the door with the disque from Vashti Bunyan ‘Some things just stick in your head”, cuz of it’s haunting use in an NFL commercial…
‘Traveling North…traveling north to find you…’
Perhaps it was the juxtaposition of the laid-back vocal with the usual good ole a hootin and a hollerin that you expect of the NFL even in a lullabye…
Hope the song/cd/artist is a strong as that 30 second clip…
Hey, TB — as a guy who writes music for commercials, I find it fascinating that you remember the Nick Drake commercials as BMW or Volvo products. In fact, they were Volkswagen spots. You pinned Drake on high-demo brands that Volkswagen *wishes* it was — and you gave two stodgy brands the Volks hipster cred they wish they had. Interesting, what that says about the vibe Drake’s music gives off.
I have to go with The Great One and say The Fratelli’s. Fortunately for me, I find the rest of the album entertaining enough, especially Chelsea Dagger. It’s just dumb party music, like Arctic Monkeys or Franz Ferdinand. One album of any of those three bands is certainly enough, and that’s the one I like.
True enough, hrrundivbakshi. I honestly couldn’t remember!
That opens the floodgates to The Who and Zep pimping their tunes out to Cadillac and whoever else.
TB
There’s a hell of a lot of healing going on! I know I’ve felt like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders since confessing.
Nice analysis on the Drake ad, by the way, Hrrundi. I’m not joking. You are one sharp Townsperson!
“Are You Gonna Be My Girl” – Jet via Apple IiPOD
I kinda liked the first Fratellis album, too, though I heard them first via music blogs before their album came out over here. Sort of like a dumber, less good but still fun version of the first Supergrass album adjusted for today’s youth, although with nothing as good as my favorite songs on I Should Coco and I don’t think they have anything near an In It For The Money in them.
I am way lamer than all of you because i usually already know the fake indie rock bands they’re mining for commercials these days.
But I wouldn’t know any of them if it wasn’t for my students (and my nieces).
But tell me, please, who are they using for the Dunkin’ Donuts commercials?
I’m talking about the “freezing at peewee hockey” song especially. It’s sort of They Might be Giants-esque”….
It is They Might Be Giants. They wrote a bunch of original jingles for Dunkin’ Donuts. I happen to think they’re very clever, both the songs and the commercials themselves.
SO THAT IS TMBG?!?! I like those songs too. I can now say, definitively, two things about TMBG:
1) I like them better when they do their kids songs.
2) I like them better when they do Dunkin’ Donuts jingles.
Is the drone about moving by them, too?
“You neglected to mention the sleeper sofa….oohhhhhh….
I forgot all about the air hockey table….ohhhhh….
reluctantly helping my friend move……ohhhhhh….”.
pretty funny stuff…
I, too, an a huge fan of TMBG. They are the greaest of jingle writers disguised as a rock band. It makes sense that they write jingle. We have no Dunkin Donuts in Mississippi, but they are opening several in our area. I can only hope that I will get to enjoy these tunes.
TB
I just saw the New Pornographers the other day, and I didn’t realize that this one commercial had one of their songs in it.
So, it’s sort of like the reverse of the question, although I like the song and the band still.
To answer though, the shinns.