What’s that Song?: 10 TV Ads that Rock
They’re meant to sell you smartphones, cars, and musky body sprays. But many of these commercials can also sell you on new — and sometimes very old — music.
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Trident Gum
Martin Solveig & Dragonette, ”Hello” French DJ Solveig and his Canadian glam-pop guests soundtrack fruit-based fun times (strawberry swing set, citrus food fight) with their
Martin Solveig & Dragonette, ”Hello”
French DJ Solveig and his Canadian glam-pop guests soundtrack fruit-based fun times (strawberry swing set, citrus food fight) with their shimmery electro celebration. B+?
Where to find the song As a standalone single on iTunes or Amazon. (There’s also a five-track remix EP.)
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Ford Fiesta
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, ”Janglin” The push of a key-free ignition button triggers a carnival of unicycling and giddy street parkour, set to
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, ”Janglin”
The push of a key-free ignition button triggers a carnival of unicycling and giddy street parkour, set to Sharpe’s blithe gypsy-folk ramble. B
Where to find the song On 2009’s Up From Below.
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Axe Shower Gel
Brenda and the Tabulations, ”The Wash”? Bikini bunnies are compelled to follow (almost) every move of a doofy guy showering beachside. Or maybe they’re just
Brenda and the Tabulations, ”The Wash”?
Bikini bunnies are compelled to follow (almost) every move of a doofy guy showering beachside. Or maybe they’re just bewitched by the sweet command of Brenda’s lost Philly-soul gem. A
Where to find the song On 1967’s Dry Your Eyes.
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Chevy Traverse
The Real Tuesday Weld, ”I Love the Rain” Kids outrun a downpour in bucolic suburbia while the U.K. nouveau-?cabaret act’s ode to precipitation tootles jauntily
The Real Tuesday Weld, ”I Love the Rain”
Kids outrun a downpour in bucolic suburbia while the U.K. nouveau-?cabaret act’s ode to precipitation tootles jauntily along. B+
Where to find the song On 2005’s The Return of the Clerkenwell Kid.
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Nintendo 3DS
Wolfmother, ”Dimension” A retro black-and-white flashback gives way to cool, blue-toned modern cityscapes — and mondo riffage courtesy of the Australian Zep-rock revivalists. A? ?Where
Wolfmother, ”Dimension”
A retro black-and-white flashback gives way to cool, blue-toned modern cityscapes — and mondo riffage courtesy of the Australian Zep-rock revivalists. A?
?Where to find the song ?On 2006’s Wolfmother.
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Kindle
The New Pornographers, ”Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk” Sprightly youths gambol and frolic like baby mountain goats, taking their e-readers alfresco to the strains of the
The New Pornographers, ”Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk”
Sprightly youths gambol and frolic like baby mountain goats, taking their e-readers alfresco to the strains of the Canadian collective’s buoyant rocker. B
Where to find the song ?On 2010’s Together.
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Windows Phone
Sleigh Bells, ”Infinity Guitars” Windows enlists the high-fructose jolt of Brooklyn duo Sleigh Bells’ thrash-pop anthem to step to its Goliath Android and iPhone competitors.
Sleigh Bells, ”Infinity Guitars”
Windows enlists the high-fructose jolt of Brooklyn duo Sleigh Bells’ thrash-pop anthem to step to its Goliath Android and iPhone competitors. A?
Where to find the song ?On 2010’s Treats.
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Crysis
2 B.o.B, ”NY NY” Kander and Ebb’s classic chorus meets modern MC swagger — and the postapocalyptic Manhattan battlefield of cyborg-populated videogamedom. B+ Where to
2 B.o.B, ”NY NY”
Kander and Ebb’s classic chorus meets modern MC swagger — and the postapocalyptic Manhattan battlefield of cyborg-populated videogamedom. B+
Where to find the song The track was commissioned exclusively for the game, but you can stream it in full at several spots online, including YouTube.
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Hershey’s Bliss
Oh Land, ”White Nights” In case a Cathy cartoon never told you, women enjoy eating chocolate. Beatific ladies nibble at their square inches of cocoa-based
Oh Land, ”White Nights”
In case a Cathy cartoon never told you, women enjoy eating chocolate. Beatific ladies nibble at their square inches of cocoa-based Bliss while Danish songstress Oh Land (a.k.a Nanna Øland Fabricius) coos her electro-pop lullaby ”White Nights.” B
Where to find the song 2011’s Oh Land.
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Victoria’s Secret
Blonde Redhead, ”23” Supermodels in scanty panties tend to overwhelm most viewers’ auditory senses, but if you did clock the song in the latest VS
Blonde Redhead, ”23”
Supermodels in scanty panties tend to overwhelm most viewers’ auditory senses, but if you did clock the song in the latest VS ad, it’s revered downtown New York trio Blonde Redhead’s hazy, undulating dreamscape. B+
Where to find the song 2007s 23.
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Viagra
Howlin’ Wolf, ”Smokestack Lightning” Oh, erectile dysfunction, a lonely road. An artfully grizzled man of a certain age cruises desert highways solo in his vintage
Howlin’ Wolf, ”Smokestack Lightning”
Oh, erectile dysfunction, a lonely road. An artfully grizzled man of a certain age cruises desert highways solo in his vintage muscle car, radiating virility and squinty-eyed silver-fox charisma while Howlin’ Wolf unfurls his bone-deep 1956 blues classic. A-
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