ok. one of the many reasons i'm so amused by observing the communities that surround these musicians that i'm so into is because when there's band-related news, everything just comes alive. for example, howie day has just signed with epic. the chatter around the message boards and stuff revolves around threads like "do you think howie will become as popular as dmb?" or "what will happen to the reps program" or "should we start a fanclub with warehouse-like benefits?" or someone will post about you know...what other artists have signed to epic, speculation on whether it was a good or bad move...

or when the first bit of the new dmb album "leaks" to the internet(oh, come on. like there's a doubt it'll happen.)...it's just mad frenzy. and mad kicking myself in the ass that i'm still on dial-up, but that's besides the point.

i remember when the lillywhites leaked, and i got a call at 4 in the morning(we're not talking a weekend, here folks. it was an early monday morning) with crazy people on the other end insisiting that i listen to "big eyed fish" and "captain" while they played it over the phone.

but anyway...

you see these threads go across all the different mailing lists and message boards, even if you're not really reading, and...well...it amuses me, dammit!

then again, i am a sociology major.