Band accuse VW over ad

The ghostly vocals, echoing guitars and swelling chorus could only be Beach House, the Baltimore duo acclaimed for their “dream pop” sound.

But the group are taking legal action against Volkswagen after accusing the car maker of creating a "sound-alike" track for its latest advertising campaign.

The Volkswagen song emerged after Beach House had refused requests from the car manufacturer to use their song "Take Care" in a UK campaign. The lyrics to the VW song, produced by musicians hired by the DDB agency, include: "I'll watch over you/ I'll watch over you." The Beach House song goes: "I'd take care of you/ If you ask me to."

Volkswagen denied any intention of copying Beach House's song. A spokesman said: "We greatly respect the talent of Beach House and never set out to replicate a specific song."