Echo & The Bunnymen's "Killing Moon"...in a CAR COMMERCIAL?!?

Yes. Just saw it a few minutes ago (didn't search for the 'obscure-songs-in-commercials thread')
It was for Audi, and the theme of the commercial was that the headlights are so bright.... they can kill VAMPIRES!..... ugh!

By the way, I don't think the song was really that much of a 'hit' in the US, was it?

 

One of my favorite 80's tunes, I don't think they had any real hits here. Bring On the Dancing Horses and their cover of People are Strange did get some airplay.

 

"Lips Like Sugar" received some MTV airplay in 1987...

 

Forgot about that one, still gets play on Sirius XM First Wave.

 

Everyone and their Mom knows "Killing Moon" because of Donnie Darko.

 

Who knows, maybe this ad gig will do for their career what the "Pink Moon" placement in the old Volkswagen ad did for Nick Drake!

Great group....lots of wonderful tunes in their catalog, though my fave remains the frenzied live version of "Crocodiles" on the SHINE SO HARD EP (first heard it back in the early days of MTV!).

Some may also know this tune from its appearance in the excellent film GROSSE POINTE BLANK.

 

Oh, yeah. So.... nobody else saw the commercial?

 

I've seen the commercial tons of times. It's hilarious. I love the way they spoof Twilight with the guy scurrying up the tree.

 

College radio / MTV, tmk. And of course Donnie Darko as mentioned.

They're trying to tap the 35 to 50 market.

 

I've seen the commercial. Never seen Donnie Darko.

 

Onward crass commercialization. I knew the end was nigh the first time I heard a Clash song in an advert.

 

Sucks doesn't it? "Killing Moon" is a masterpiece and I hate the idea of it being used for a commercial.

 

Why? It's promotion. Doesn't every band want promotion?

Case in point: The Pogues' "If I Should Fall From the Grace of God" was used in a car commercial. I hadn't listened to the Pogues for at least a few of years. The song jolted the Pogues into my consciousness and I went and looked up the song and album and streamed it at least a few times (the entire album). They made money on it twice - once from the car commercial, at least a few times from me.

From the YouTube comments on the "If I Should Fall" video:

 

It was a lot more bizarre when another "Moon" song, namely Nick Drake's "Pink Moon", ended up in a car commercial.

Anyway: "The Killing Moon" got some radio and video airplay up here at the time IIRC - I wasn't too much of a Bunnymen fan at the time, and the song was certainly very familiar to me long before Donnie Darko. The Ocean Rain LP scraped the Top 40, too.

 

The one that got me was the Velvet Underground's "Venus In Furs"!

 

It's product placement, nothing wrong with it at all if it gets the music out there for people to hear and the musicians make some cash. It's not like radio is playing any of that stuff.

 

The whole purpose was to draw your attention.


It did.

 

I think that, if done well, commercial placement is fine.

An example where it's not done well, you ask? The Sunkist "Good Vibrations" commerical: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sndJDH4LSV8

This is an example when the song actually becomes a jingle, and that's not a good thing. I was exposed to the BB song as a jingle before hearing the actual song and it took a long time to get the jingle version out of my head.

A commercial really isn't much different than a placement on a TV show -- as long as it's not a cover / jingle.

 

They should have used Pavement's cover of "Killing Moon." Then I would of (sic) done a double-take.

 

In the early 90's the intro to "killing moon" was used a TON on mtv's real world (season 2) I think. It took me like a year after that before I could listen to it again.

Oddly enough I was just listening to Ocean Rain (the new mfsl) this morning.

 

?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

 

If you think Ian McCulloch and Will Sergeant are guiding this strategy from their huge mansions then you are mistaken. They have mortgages to pay and families to support like anybody else. When people like Rod Stewart do it, it is far less justified.

 

hey streaming don't pay the bills you know? what are they supposed to do to make a buck??

its so funny...its fine for 1 million plays on pandora to result in $20 pay for the artist but the minute they sell their song for a commercial its like THE HORROR! they should work for free!

 

lets all agree though: what a great song no?

good lord...talk about atmosphere...