Riff Rant: Apple Has Made The Pixies Uncool
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: Apple is making The Pixies really uncool.
Remember the first time you saw this fun new iPhone commercial featuring a track by one of the most influential indie rock acts of the late 
‘80s and ‘90s and thought, ‘whoa, look at Apple go!’
Now, can you tell me how long it’s been since you’ve almost thrown your iPhone at your TV screen because seeing that commercial 72 times during primetime felt a little excessive?
This is what Apple has done to you through using The Pixies’ “Gigantic” in a commercial that it doesn’t mind running an insane number of times in a given hour, on a single channel. Somehow, Apple feels like it has struck gold with this ad and wants to ram it down our throats until we’re too dizzy to stand.
It’s hard to blame The Pixies’ role in this. Royalties attached to this type of song usage can be a beautifully plentiful thing. And with their first album in 23 years – Indie Cindy – out and likely in need of some decent promotion, bringing the band to a more mainstream viewership is very clever.
But, at this point, one has to wonder about how Mr. Black Francis feels now about the placement of a song he co-wrote with the now-departed Kim Deal. As the weeks go on with “Gigantic” over-infiltrating TV land, the song and Apple campaign has become a running joke.
People are sick of hearing it. People are sick of watching hipsters use apps to help them accentuate their experience with the song. Moreover, people are now going to forever associate “Gigantic” with this iPhone commercial, because Apple hasn’t given anyone the chance not to automatically connect the two.
Overplayed tracks become a major reason why many musicians wind up becoming the ire of the population. I mean, “Royals” is a cool track, but after a couple thousand spins in or around you, don’t you begin to build a little distain for Lorde? It’s only natural. I just never expected The Pixies to allow themselves to be put into this type of position.
While the Apple-addressed cheques are likely serving The Pixies quite well, “Gigantic” will never be the same again. This is a shame, but in an era where Apple can seemingly do whatever it likes, isn’t terribly surprising.
-Adam Grant
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