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Rumblefish is lucky to have amazing clients who partner with us for extremely interesting work. Whether it’s through a Sonic Branding initiative, or a straight up film/production project, we love to see what our partners are doing with Rumblefish music. With that in mind, we’re pleased to present our Top 5 most memorable, interesting, and downright cool uses of Rumblefish music in 2007:

 

AMC PROMO “HITCHCOCK WEEKEND”
Featuring “Like Murder” by Twilight Sleep

AMC churns out a lot of film promos every week that are in need of the right music to make their classic programming appeal to TV audiences with modern cinematic tastes. Eric Ruhalter, AMC producer, is the brain behind this spot, which is a great example of how the right music can actually help create the messaging and visual content for a project.

“With a spot like ‘Hitchcock Weekend’ you find the song first, then match the visuals to it,” explained Eric. He began by using Rumblefish’s trusty search engine to find a song which would fit the mood he had in mind for the promo. In this case, Twilight Sleep’s “Like Murder” fit the bill.

“I listened to a lot of different songs but that one just jumped out at me,” explains Eric, “it had a Hitchcock-ian tension with a nice building feel to it in a contemporary style.” He then worked with his editors to find visuals that matched the lyrics resulting in one of the coolest and creepiest clips we’ve seen in a while.

The band was appreciative of the prominent use of their song. “Of course, we enjoyed hearing our music in the Hitchcock spot, as his films are thematically aligned with our sound,” explained Twilight Sleep’s producer, Raj. The spot has helped raised the band’s profile by driving new fans to their site.

Stream the promo here.

MATCHSTICK PRODUCTIONS “7 SUNNY DAYS”
Featuring “Speak 13″ by Trystero

There’s nothing quite like stepping onto a piece of plastic and barreling down the side of a snow-covered mountain with that one perfect song blaring in your earphones. Our long-time client Matchstick Productions is one of the most creative and innovative action/snow sport film companies around. Matchstick’s 7 Sunny Days features a particularly cool use of a Rumblefish piece. Executive Producer Murray Wais chose Trystero’s “Speak 13″ as the background track in rich photographic scenes that needed the right song to help convey an awe-inspiring, dreamlike feel.

Murray explained that this song was perfect for a series of surreal, point-of-view shots. “It’s like you are in a dream, it’s very ethereal and abstract,” says Wais, “and the lyrics worked really well with what is happening on screen.” Murray went on to add that music selection is a vital part of their film production process and more often than not, the chosen song actually drives their edits.

Anything else to add, Murray?

“Check out our sick teaser for 7 Sunny Daysâ?? it features another great Rumblefish track, John Richardson’s â??Thunder Drums’”

 

MEN IN TREES â?? Episode 202
Featuring “Grip” by Brett Phillips

ABC’s Men In Trees is a great TV program that has made a name for itself by showcasing cool bands and rising talent. Music is such a vital element to the show that they even created a music guide as a resource for viewers to find out which songs were used in each episode.

Men In Trees has turned to Rumblefish a number of times asking for cool, unique music. We especially love the use of “Grip” by Brett Phillips in the second episode from last season. The song was used prominently during transitions between scenes, and worked perfectly with its blend of natural energy and the right amount of tension.

Susan Dolan, from Men In Trees, told us that the lyrics were an important reason they chose the song. “The words, â??waiting for a sign’, were relevant to one of our characters and what they were experiencing in that particular scene,” she emphasized.

All in all, we think Men In Trees uses killer songs to a terrific effect. Watch clips from the show here.

 

ADIDAS IN-STORE
Featuring hundreds of songs from the Rumblefish catalog.

Sonic branding client adidas was looking for more than just radio-tunes when they asked us to help them curate their in-store music program. They wanted to create a unique experience for their customers.

adidas “Originals” stores are stocked with eclectic vintage clothing that is meant to appeal to a very hip, fashion-conscious audience. The environmental music in their locations needed to bolster the customer experience by exhibiting both a purposeful and unique feel. Rumblefish also recognized adidas’ need for recognizable “major label” music that its customers could identify. So we hooked them up with an established background music provider and worked with its music programmers to curate a mix that complemented adidas’ brand persona.

Of course, adidas loves truly original music. So in addition to the major label tunes we incorporated Rumblefish catalog music in the program as well. Walk into any adidas Originals store and you’ll hear banging cuts from Rumblefish artists like: The Procussions, Free Diamonds, Two Sheds & Night Kills The Day alongside contemporary hit bands like Architecture in Helsinki, the Verve Remixed Series, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Devendra Banhart and more.

Check out adidas Originals here.

 

RENEWABLE NRG â?? TV and WEB CAMPAIGN
Featuring “Can’t Stand Me” by Brightwings

We know a good environmental cause when we see it (we do live in the 3rd “greenest” city in America, after all) so when Renewable NRG approached us for music through their agency Leopold Ketel, we were excited. We found the perfect song to use both for background music on their website and in a series of TV commercials promoting their solar energy products.

Russ Wright, CEO of Renewable NRG, is a musician himself so he had some ideas for music and the Brightwings “Can’t Stand Me” provided exactly the right match. The band was delighted to be affiliated with such an environmentally friendly ad campaign and there is even talk of a continuing their association with a series of live shows in 2008.

Check out the song on their website and see/hear the synergy in real-time.