At least, that’s what I’m learning from TV.

I’m still fascinated by the use of music in films and television commercials. I have been obsessed with this Dawn Landes song called Straight Lines lately which I found through a user request on the Commercial Music thread. It’s a beautiful song and her voice and the guitar just go so well with those lyrics.

Of course, I hate the ad that I found it on, which is part of AXE’s obnoxious Boom Chicka Wah Wah commercial package. Apparently, it’s been playing in movie theaters, though I haven’t seen it yet live. While poking around YouTube for live performance clips of Dawn, I found another commercial that featured Straight Lines. I present them here side by side for your entertainment. Consider how the same song can be used to promote two completely different things.

and then we have this one:

There’s an art to finding music for commercials, and whoever picked this for the AXE ad helped themsevles out. It’s a pretty awful commercial even with that song. Without the song, it would be forgettable.

I’ll leave you with another Dawn Landes video, this one an actual music video where she shows off her mad soccer skillz.

I don’t know why, but I like it.

Update: In case you like her stuff, Straight Lines isn’t available on iTunes in the U.S. yet. I contacted her label and they assured me that it’s coming soon on iTunes. If you’re in the U.K., you’re in luck. It’s available there.