Flying the flag

In the new GR, there's an interview with Nick from Death Cab, where we talk about the group's T-shirt designs by our mutual friend Jeana Sohn. I asked him if it's ever okay for someone to wear his or her own band's T-shirt and he came up with a list of rock 'n' roll rules. The first? "Thou shalt not wear thine own band's shirts or merchandise."

On Death Cab's latest tour, the band played a lot of minor-league hockey arenas that gave them custom sweaters! I left my camera in the car and had to use my phone...

And there I was on the bus this morning, wearing a GR sweatshirt. I realize helping to make a magazine isn't the same as being in a band, but there is crossover and I don't want to be lame. Maybe it's okay because we have stores that sell GR gear? It's like a brand, right? If we have a softball team and wear T-shirts when we play, is that okay? There's a Ted Leo + Pharmacists album cover where they're all wearing soccer jerseys, right?

Do I look doughy? This was taken from my lap on the bus, so it's from a low angle. I couldn't really take another one or pose because that would be silly.

Maybe we're less like a band and more like a gang. That's how Suicidal Tendencies gets away with it. (They also break Nick's rule of not wearing shorts.) In the end, rules are meant to be broken, and GR does that a lot in terms of typical publishing guidelines.

What, no flipped-up cap?