Train In Vain — The Clash
Home — Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
[insert obvious June Carter/Johnny Cash reference]
I recap IU’s 29-28 loss to Northwestern, using a stunning amount of spastic hand gestures.
Pull My Heart Away — Jack Peñate
So this is the first single off his new release, Everything Is New, and if you had listened to 2008’s Matinée, that sophomore title makes 100% sense. The two albums are completely different, and the new direction is welcomed. If you like this track (and who doesn’t like good guitar reverb) try “Tonight’s Today.”
Reasons I Hate Ohio State #2: Tailgating really means taking a trip back to your high school cafeteria, when cheeseball-eating contests were the stuff of winners
Winter Games — Foreign Born
Foreign Born has been compared to Wilco, Vampire Weekend, Arcade Fire, U2, The Clash, The Walkmen… and they’re also allegedly a favorite of Grizzly Bear’s Edward Droste. This song (and really, the whole album) doesn’t try to live up to those standards, and the result is a sound that is both relaxed and exuberant… and all their own. Best part of this track? All, but especially the chorus.
One thing in particular caught my eye, or more accurately, my ear. M. Ward backing a Budweiser commercial? Naturally, this led me on a gratuitously long Google journey of-sorts to uncover the more bizzare/obscure indie-rock + mainstream advertising couplings.
For instance, Joanna Newsom’s “Sprout and the Bean” was the sex music Victoria’s Secret chose in marketing their Dream Angels push-up bra. The newest zombie action video game (how many ARE there exactly??), Left 4 Dead, uses Elbow’s “Grounds for Divorce,” which I believe I also remember hearing in a preview for House. Honda used the friggen’ Great Lake Swimmers (“See You on the Moon”) in promoting their Insight hybrid. My favorite, though — and I feel a little ashamed for not making the connection before — was that Outback Steakhouse re-wrote their theme song to of Montreal’s “Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games.” The band was none too pleased.
In the process, I found splendAd, which simplifies the process of “I wonder who sang that?” into a nifty little table that lists a plethora of mainstream commercials and their accompanying musical treats. The site itself is a little crude in terms of organization/layout, but it was an instant add to my bookmarks.
Still a little unsure of how I feel when I hear The Submarines on every other Apple commercial — but it’s undeniable that the potential benefits a lesser-known indie group accrue in signing a lucrative advertisement deal pose a significant challenge to the notion of “selling out.” I’m just sayin’.
Spencer Hall = favorite.
F is for Fickle. Mark Mangino benched three year starter and future United States President Todd Reesing in the 42-21 loss to Texas A&M. Note to Mangino family dog; fetch promptly, or it’s dunzo time for you, because have two bad weeks after years of good performance and you see what happens.
G is for Grotesque. We’re still technically coming off Halloween weekend, so assume the “monstrous” angle of the definition for Houston’s Case Keenum and his line against Southern Miss in a free-firing 50-43 win over Southern Miss: 559 yards and 5 TDs including the game-winner with 21 seconds left on the clock.
H is for Honesty. You may as well embrace it if you’re a Florida fan. You may think “Hey, I’ve never seen a pro-eye gouging video.” You may no longer say that after today.
Ironic twist: they’re from Carroll, Iowa (Carroll = my last name). Go Hawks?
Seriously. A cluster of tutorial videos that blew my mind.
When They Fight, They Fight — The Generationals
A little Motown-influence makes for a lot of awesome.
