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OK Go...sellouts..hmmm
Idk about OK Go. I mean, payless commercials, c'mon. I love them (esp. Andy 
)but it seems like all this is too much. Well, I'm a new fan, so I would have never heard of them if they weren't all over the place, (thank goodness that I did hear about them) but still. Idk, what do you guys think.
)but it seems like all this is too much. Well, I'm a new fan, so I would have never heard of them if they weren't all over the place, (thank goodness that I did hear about them) but still. Idk, what do you guys think.
Comments
I mean, let's face it, they've never claimed to be "all about the art." They aren't pretentious enough to refuse offers that, like you said, open doors to new fans.
Ummm, OK Go's music has been used in promos and such forever. You're So Damn Hot is on the Queer Eye for the Straight Guy soundtrack. I know I've heard OK Go used as beds for various commercials for a LONG time.
If music doesn't sell, it doesn't get recorded, period, end of story. One of my favorite bands from college was together for a decade or so. They toured, played all sorts of shows, had a really decent following, but they never made it big. Then they broke up, so no more band.
Would I love it if OK Go were the great club band I first saw at the Downtown forever? The kind of guys who always had enough time for their fans and never disappointed in signing autographs after a show forever? Sure I would. But they would eventually have to give it up.
Calling them sell-outs is just too easy a criticism.
The only part that gets to me is the shouting of dumb comments during shows. It disrupts the people who actually came to listen to music, not look at hot musicians that are eight+ years older than them.
But that's for another thread.
In that case, OK Go is nowhere near selling out quite yet.
If we're talking selling your soul to the corporation selling out, then no, I don't think they have. They could be doing things that are far worse than appearing in a Payless commercial, when they've had "Get Over It" played on random Vh1 shows for years already.
These boys don't get anything from record sales. The only way they can make money is through merch sales (which are the most lucrative), ticket sales (and I doubt they get any real profit from that), and licensing. And let's face it, if they don't make a profit, that's it, they're done for. You need to make money to make it in this industry, as tragic as that may seem.
When they start writing jingles for Coca-Cola and putting them on their records, then I'll worry.
As for being sellouts, I would think that an old-school fan would have more to say about OK Go "selling-out" and lending their music to commercials. Had I been following the boys from the very beginning, seeing them now would probably tick me off just a tad. If you are a new fan, you should be damn grateful that you found them and just enjoy the music.
Isn't it also true that is the only way OK Go gets a larger share of income, by lending their songs to commercials? I could have sworn that a post from long ago also talked about this very issue, and it was stated that movie soundtracks and commercials are ways that the band actually gets some money. I tend to research this sort of thing, but I've come up short. Back up, anyone?
When people are waiting in line for DAYS, camping out, not going to the bathroom and clawing/clammoring/killing to get OK Go tickets in the same fashion as those idiots are with Playstation 3's, then and only then will I truly worry. Otherwise I just make sure I get to the venue an hour or two ahead of time so I can get a good "seat."
EDIT: Jedi_Grrlie has already answered my last question.
Perhaps, but I would argue that if record sales are strong, it makes a record company pay attention and invest more money in a band. The company puts more money into promoting the current record and gives the band more money to make the next one, so they can do it well with a good producer, a good studio, adequate care and feeding while they're working on it, etc. These things matter to a band.
Maybe record sales isn't the best yardstick, but it's the one they're using for the moment.
If I'm way off base, I hope someone will correct me.
But like everyone has said before, bands get money from commercials. It's like when I heard that new version of the Of Montreal song in the Outback commercial. I started freaking out and I was thinking, "Why would they do that?" Then I read that they're using the money to afford better equipment and stuff, which means more music and more shows and isn't that what we all love?
What about Of Montreal used in the NASDAQ commercial? Now that was some funny stuff and totally ironic.
and the part where Damian sings "cadillac" in Get Over It was the only part of the song used.
It would be a nice, fancy, over-priced commercial, and then you hear someone yell "CADILLAC!" out of nowhere. I wouldprobably fall over laughing if I saw a commercial like this.
I can definitely see companies going this far just to use part of a popular band's song, just to gain more attention to the product.
and the part where Damian sings "cadillac" in Get Over It was the only part of the song used.
It would be a nice, fancy, over-priced commercial, and then you hear someone yell "CADILLAC!" out of nowhere. I wouldprobably fall over laughing if I saw a commercial like this.
Hahahaaa. I would have to get a Cadillac then.
But that's for another thread.
Well I am not trying to tear down your opinion because you're entitled to it, but to say that those people don't come to listen to their music is a very generalized statement. I go to listen to their music and to have fun, not to stand around and analyze the meanings of their songs and relate it to other works to fellow audience members. I do agree that it can get rowdy at times, but those comments help fuel a more personalized concert experience. I really enjoy how close OK Go is with their fans; it's something that fascinates me. When the audience gets a chance to interact with them, it's just adds to the concert experience. I did start that thread so that's why I felt the need to defend it. I am not at their concerts to oogle over them, I am there to have a good time and listen to their music.
Sorry I know I was off topic. Getting back on topic, I would have to agree with most. I don't believe they sold out for doing commercials here and there. Damian did explain this nicely on that new interview. They have been touring for a very long time and they are beginning to get a flourishing fan base yet they still don't have the funds to buy five vacation homes in random countries. They do what they do for the love of the music and I think it is delightful that they are the way they are. Yet they still need to earn money and exposure other ways.
I go to concerts to have fun as well, and I definitely don't become all serious and then analyze which songs sounded like another bands or whatever (though I'm sure some people do.)
I'm not saying that each concert should be exactly the same, and they're not. Concerts can be personalized in other ways . . . just ways that aren't like I stated. But to each his or her own, I guess.
I didn't intend to bash your thread. I'm sorry if my post came off like that.
I'm not saying that each concert should be exactly the same, and they're not. Concerts can be personalized in other ways . . . just ways that aren't like I stated. But to each his or her own, I guess.
I didn't intend to bash your thread. I'm sorry if my post came off like that.
I'm sorry if mine came off like that too. I was trying to sound intelligent with my example. I didn't want to seem that I started that thread for that reason it was just something for fun. It does depend on the concertgoers. I see where you're coming from though.
Yeah, but I think there's a difference between being "rowdy" and having a good time and going overboard, like those fans at the Jimmy Kimmel performance (was it the JK performance??) who were screaming over the acoustic set. Admit it- if that was happening at a show you were at and you couldn't hear the songs, you'd be upset, too. It's not that they're not there to hear the music- it's that they're too concerned with what they have to scream to realise that they're detracting from the experience for the people around them. I guess that's more courtesy than anything.
I don't know. You're right, that is a grand generalisation, but I understand where Jade is coming from and trying to say.
Maybe record sales isn't the best yardstick, but it's the one they're using for the moment.
If I'm way off base, I hope someone will correct me.
Well, yeah, that is a good point. If the record is doing well, the record company is more inclined to support it.
I think my point was more of actual intake money-wise, the guys don't get anything from record sales. They could be going off the chart, and they wouldn't be getting a cent off of them, so they need things like commercials and merch sales to keep them going.
I don't know. You're right, that is a grand generalisation, but I understand where Jade is coming from and trying to say.
No, I totally see where you guys are coming from. I would be upset as well. I didn't really intend for that thread to be screamed at a TV taping, but lets face it people really let loose at concerts. I think it is good to shout things to a certain extent that is not disrupting the concert.
Agreed'd on all accounts.
See?? That's why these companies want catchy songs by buzz bands in their commercials. (I know you probably wouldn't actually run out and buy a Cadillac, but you know what I'm saying.)