I once got high with Connor Oberst in Paris after a show at the Boule Noir. It was honestly one of the highlights of my music going career and a story I often tell whilst playing that tired ol’ game of ‘Who’s the Coolest?’ in regards to bands seen live with trendy kids and hepcats in bars in whatever major city around the world I happen to be in for the night. But that might change soon. Can I still expect to retain my integrity after “First Day of My Life” was featured in a real estate advert for the company Zillow?
It’s doubtful, but then again most of them kids don’t watch TV and almost none of them have funds enough to be interested in a commercial targeting real estate investors. It’s still a shame though, last week the Yeah Yeah Yeahs with luxury automobiles and now this?
While Saddle Creek remains independent, and what’s better their offshoot Team Love breaks its back bending over to sign highly creative, highly promising acts, this is still something of a black eye for Mr. Oberst himself. After spending years defending his music, and DIY strategy in the face of so many loser hipsters, this commercial pairing comes off as just a little insulting. But then again, with the decline in music sales and the even bigger dump in real estate, hopefully this venture was motivated by necessity to keep all the good work Mr. Oberst has been doing afloat through rough times, and not for- as those self loathing hipster parasites will attest- pure greed.
