In researching the event that left a young woman severely injured Tuesday April 30 at a Trophy Eyes show in Buffalo, we came across this post from a year ago.
Tragic foreshadowing? Probably not. But pretty shitty nonetheless.
Let’s say this upfront: We are NOT accusing the band in any way of not caring about its fans or their safety. Neither are we saying that this post proves in any way that it was just a matter of time before something like this happened involving the band … that it was inevitable. We don’t believe that.
That said, the fact remains: A young woman named Bird Piché went to a show of a band she loves and now her life has been tragically altered in a way that is unimaginable.
What happened to Bird was a freak accident. It was an accident that didn’t need to happen. It was an accident that should have NEVER happened. Mohawk Place has a strict and well-known policy against stage diving and it was seemingly outright ignored. Still, it was a freak accident.
But that said, there’s a valuable lesson here for bands and the people who work for them when it comes to communication. Think before you speak.
The comment at the center of the headline in this post reportedly came not from the band but a band representative. And we get it. It’s punk rock. (Or ‘post punk,’ whatever the hell that means.) People have been staging diving and moshing and crowd surfing for more than 40 years. Toughen up, right? Go hard or go home. And all that other stuff.
But here’s the thing: The rep for the band wasn’t responding to some douchebag music critic basking in their own arrogance. Nor was the rep responding to some coalition of conservative moms or Christian fundamentalist ‘family research’ group bemoaning the evils of punk music.
Instead, “fuck you” was the reply this rep made to a fan of the band who had spent money to attend a show and who expressed concern about their personal safety.
Jesus Christ, be better.
“The band has always prioritized the safety of its fans and cares about their wellbeing. If someone feels threatened at our show, we ask that they remove themselves from any situation in which they feel unsafe. We want all fans to enjoy the experience of our live shows.”
Whatever… but say something like that at the very least. In other words: What’s to be gained saying “fuck you” to a FAN?
In the Internet age, nothing dies. Words have a way to come back and haunt you. And these words very well could haunt this band moving forward.
Punk, of course, is about rebellion. It is about release. It is about outsiders finding a home. But it is also about community.
We love stage diving. We love crowd surfing. We love moshing. We also love the tradition of ‘pit etiquette’ and taking care of one another.
But we don’t love douchebags. Think before you speak.
After all, nothing dies on the Internet.
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