Salutations, traveler of The Internets! Welcome to William's Bloody Hell, so named after our founder, Sir Bloody William.
He is seen in the likeness above in a rare, 19th century woodcut. This
image was rumoured to have been
commissioned after a bout of unpleasantness
in the White Chapel district of London. Do enjoy your stay and peruse our many, varied offerings, much of which cannot be found elsewhere!
:: Today's soundtrack: The Cure "Pictures of You" ::
Earlier this week I saw the new Hewlett Packard commercials on TV. They were selling their digital photo stuff to the tune of "Pictures of You" by the Cure. I could not believe it. A Cure song. In a commercial. What is the world coming to?
I wasn't sure what to think at first, I was stunned. Then that quickly turned into the teeniest bit of anger.
What were they doing? Using this song to hawk their wares. I almost want to think some ad executive has a teenage kid who wears black and mopes alot and this exec heard the song wafting out from their bedroom. Whomever decided to use it doesn't seem to have a clear concept on what the song is about. All they needed to know was that the word "picture" was said in it in a referring to photographs way, and they were on their way. The images used in the ad do not relate to the song at all. In fact, it could be set to tune of "Don't You Want Me?" by Human League and get the same effect.
The song is about a relationship which ended and is from the rejected lover's point of view. The romance now over, all he has left of his lover are her pictures. As he looks at them he thinks that if only he had said or done the right things, it would have lasted. It's all his fault he feels that it didn't work. and now looking at all he has left, the pictures, he tears those up to, making it final; they will never get back together, though he may wish otherwise.
I think I have an idea as to how Paul McCartney felt when "Revolution" was use to sell Coca Cola. I'm sorry, I know that I personally didn't write this song, nor is it "mine" in any way, but I can't help feeling a little betrayed. They took a great song by my favorite band and stripped it of its meaning. This isn't even the whimsical light and fluffy Cure of the mid 80's, it's the deep and meaningful Cure. One of their most poignant songs from their best album Disintegration.
Listening to such a beautiful tune play while watching people take and layer photographs and save them on their computer just makes me want to vomit. I'm not saying that it was totally wrong to use the song in an ad, It is a great song, and now more people will hear it, want it, and discover the Cure. I just think they went about it wrong. If they had made the ad about husbands and wives or lovers and pictures as a way of remember the good times, it could have been done well. But no. It was done in a way to demean one of the most precious songs I have ever heard.
