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25/01/10

Some little known album covers I love. Because of the…

type,

photography,

extreme, graphic close-up,

typography, again,

size of the man,

graphic idea,

composition,

composition,

layout,

mood,

oddness.

21/12/09

Merry kissmass from DHM

Fresh breath. Check.
Cold-Sore free. Check.
Got that spinach out of your teeth. Check.
Chewy in your back pocket.Check.
Looks like you’re all set.
Remember, no-one likes a biter.
The Newburgh Street Mistletoe is now up and open for action.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_t_KB3IX6Y

17/12/09

Just when it was getting interesting...

I can see the commercial sense in Accenture dumping Tiger Woods.

But it’s a shame creatively.
The idea was just about to get interesting.

At launch, ‘go on, be a Tiger‘ was pretty anodyne, exhorting expected corporate virtues like courage and the will to win.
Which wave slave worth his salt wouldn’t expect to be a tiger in those circumstances?

But now ‘go on, be a Tiger‘ feels like a much bigger, more polarising concept - a teasing, tantalising invitation to the darker part of ourselves to cast off its chains and run free.

I could see it now working as a powerful, universal metaphor for all sorts of current contexts:

‘Take over that nice family firm though it will throw hundreds onto the dole? Go on, be a Tiger…’

‘Demand a record bonus, though your bank was bailed out by the taxpayer? Go on, be a Tiger…’

Go on Snowy, be a Tiger...

In fact, I can see its spirit inspiring a whole new approach to advertising.

One that, following Rory’s orders, embraces our new understanding of human psychology.
That sees Robert Heath’s low attention processing theory, then boldly raises it (or, rather, lowers it.)

Namely, advertising to the unconscious.

Let’s call it idvertising.

(Just business as usual in New Zealand then.)

Let’s face it, the conscious mind doesn’t pay attention to advertising anymore anyway.
So let’s bypass it and go direct to the id!

idvertising would be impossible to pre-test (our Superegos would set upon all such concepts and club them to death) but the proof would come via the dark anonymity of the sales results.

And it would guarantee a glorious new era of bold, provocative creativity.

So go on adland - be a Tiger…

07/12/09

Help me out here

Saw this on the tube this morning…

So…

Brilliantly subversive, ironic even, challenge to stale placement conventions?

Or complete failure to communicate between creative and media agencies?

01/12/09

Come on then, optimists: right here, right now...

A friend sent me an e-mail yesterday, recommending an ‘optimism workshop’ run by a mate of his; ‘could be another tough economic year, optimism training could be helpful‘… that sort of thing.

It’s had the same effect on me as French exchange student Sebastien’s infamous critique of new blackcurrant flavour had on Ray Gardner, Spokesperson for Tango.

I’m ready to march.
I’ve had enough of optimists’ smug sense of superiority, their implacable belief that if only pessimists could be cured of their philosophical ailment then peace and happiness would reign across the globe.

So, Johnny Optimist, come and get this…

1. Your central premise has a serious factual flaw

I am not sure exactly how many human beings have come into existence since our race began, but it must now be at a level of statistical significance to satisfy even an IPA Effectiveness Awards judge.
So far, without exception, every single one has ended up dying.
I’m sorry, but everything doesn’t turn out well in the end.
It just doesn’t.

2. Optimism is the enemy of world peace, not its deliverer

Remember Dick Cheney promising Dubya that US troops would be greeted with flowers by cheering crowds of grateful Iraqis?
Remember our leaders telling us how, after a quick win in Iraq, democracy would ripple across the Middle East, opening up new hope even for the Palestinian question?
Afghanistan?!
Pessimists don’t start wars.
We know the light at the end of the tunnel is just an oncoming train.

3. You could get Arsene Wenger sacked!

Why should we be top of the league?
While we struggle on trying to balance our budget, their only challenge is finding new ways to spend it!

I could go on, but I think I’ll stop here.

No-one will be reading anyway…

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