Song of the Day
"All Summer" by Kid Cudi, Rostam Batmanglij (that guy from Vampy Weeks) and Best Coast (who has one of my favorite summer albums out now, catch them at Pitchfork this Sunday at 1:55pm)
Download it free HERE
This is part of a Converse "three artist" series. The song has the upbeat breezy summer vocals of the girl from Best Coast mixed with that distinct Vampire Weekend musical vibe and the cool rapping of Kid Cudi. Somehow it really works. Short and sweet.
Remember when bands used to resist the use of their songs to advertise or promote a product? Wow, have times changed! It used to be that selling your song for use in advertising to a big CPG type company was considered a hit to your artistic integrity. I think the fear was that the song would be taken out of the context for which it was written. Songs were meant to be heard on a record player as part of a full collection of songs, which were put together in an order that had meaning and enhanced the overall experience of the song and the artist. Songs have always been used in ads but it wasn't until The Rolling Stones let Microsoft use "Start Me Up" to launch Windows that the bigger artists started to rethink it. Legend has it that Bill Gates called Mick Jagger personally and asked how much it would cost. Jagger supposedly threw out a ridiculously high number thinking he would say no. Bill Gates didn't hesitate and said yes on the spot.
Then MTV came along and certain bands resisted videos, again artistic integrity of "music". MTV became huge, everyone makes a video now. Then soundtracks came along, resistance, When Harry Met Sally makes a star out of Harry Connick Jr., then everyone wants to be on a soundtrack.
Which brings us to the present. Now, since the decline of album sales, the commercial licensing of songs (along with touring) has become one of the major revenue sources for bands. They seek out television slots, movie slots and ad slots as a way to make money and sustain the longevity of the band. They don't even blink at having a tour sponsored by a big company like Levis.
Now the next step. The big companies are bringing artists together to record brand new songs just for them. That's what "All Summer" is. And you know what? It's a great song and I'd be willing to bet that nobody is going to call any of these artists a sellout. If it sustains artists in lieu of physical album sales then I guess that's the way it's going to be. As long as great music continues to be made we shouldn't really care how or why it's made. And don't worry, there are always going to be the tortured genius Elliott Smith type artists who have that "integrity" and put out brilliant music.
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