It’s only Social Media, but I like it

A lot has happened this year, both good and bad… The good seems to be winning, but we’ll see as the rest of this month goes on. Earlier this year, a couple of my favorite bands Echo & the Bunnymen and Garbage shared my photos on their Social Media channels! This is to me a monumental occasion, I was able to promote my love of these favorite bands and they in turn gave me some unexpected love in return.

Here’s the post from Echo & the Bunnymen’s Instagram and Twitter accounts dated August 16, 2020:

 

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Remember to tag us in pictures of yourself wearing @officialbunnymen merchandise and we will repost the best, just like @porcupiny did.

A post shared by Official Echo And The Bunnymen (@officialbunnymen) on Aug 16, 2020 at 1:59am PDT

Order your Voodoo Billy bandana here – https://t.co/nFQZGE6AaM pic.twitter.com/aEveTNRk9a

— Echo & the Bunnymen (@Bunnymen) August 16, 2020

I know the music industry is completely different these days and now anyone can have internet celebrity without being anyone. This was my 15 minutes of fame, as Andy Warhol predicted… though I do feel having a sort of Bunnymen inspired screen name for many years has helped. I’m not a fan they’d recognize in person (possibly), but who knows?

Maybe they have great memories for those late 90’s/early 00’s shows that I attended with my brother in college? My show count for them has dwindled, but I got to a few Meteorites shows and Ocean Rain 25th Anniversary. Most of my attendance is sadly online.

Even bigger and possibly more significant was Garbage on their Instagram. Shirley Manson has become a personal hero and feminist icon to me. In which case, the image and caption she shared was even more flattering and lovely! Being called young on the eve of your 41st birthday is extremely sweet and “a healthy hint of playful defiance in your eyes…” awww, she has a way with words!

 

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I woke up this morning and saw first thing, this pic of a young garbage fan @porcupiny wearing one of our T shirts and it caught me off guard in ways that are difficult to fully process or articulate……..so I’m just going to repost her here as a mark of appreciation. As one stranger and soul to another. It means more than can ever be adequately expressed to see you standing proud in our shirt, straight to camera. A healthy hint of playful defiance in your eyes. Thank you. Love to all the music fans. Everywhere. Of everything. But especially of us. 💝

A post shared by 🎀 garbage 🎀 (@garbage) on Oct 24, 2020 at 9:06am PDT

My response to her on Social Media was more immediate because they have over 300,000 followers and that post got over 5000 likes! Not to say Echo & the Bunnymen’s 40K Instagram or 32.6K followers on Twitter is less significant, their audience is older and clearly more established as some of their fans include NASA astronauts and a woman in British Parliament! So clearly, they have important fans and to be among the ones chosen to show off their merch is an honor.

I’ve seen Garbage solo twice, which is a big deal for me since I rarely go to shows alone and they’re a band that seems to have a strong fan community. I might not be part of it, but just to be recognized despite not being a fan they’ve met is very significant. I obviously still buy some merch on their online stores too, so I appreciate that they noticed! It’s not a huge amount, but I’ve loved and cherished the merch I have from them!

Anywho, I accidentally quoted David Bowie – who is clearly someone that has influenced both bands and so many others… including a ton of friends. And this is truly how I feel, it’s not just Social Media – it’s genuine appreciation and love to be re-shared and even commented on. Any bit of attention is valuable these days, we don’t understand how short people’s attention spans have gotten so I’m honored to get just a little bit of the Bunnymen and Garbage’s!