Friday Mailbag - 6/18/21

On Drive-Thru Records, fatherhood, and Machine Gun Kelly

Greetings, dear readers! Welcome to the Friday Mailbag. I hope you’ve been well. I’m doing fine. Just out there hustling, no days off, gotta work hard to play hard, etc..

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A “brick” of NFG stickers currently being offered on eBay for $99 + S&H

PAT’S eBAY CORNER

In weeks past, I’ve shared my love for stickers and cheap eBay come-ups. Well, today is no different. Today, we’re talking band stickers.

Back in the day–and even now, to an extent–record labels would make stickers to celebrate the release of albums. The labels would send stickers to record stores, concert venues, “street teams,” and so on, in hopes of drumming up enthusiasm for a project. Most stickers wound up on skateboards, laptops, school lockers, and light posts, but some never got used. And some are currently for sale on eBay.

In case you can’t tell, I’ve narrowed my search to include only stickers from the venerable pop-punk label, Drive-Thru Records. Bid hard.

The Starting Line - Say It Like You Mean It - $4
New Found Glory - Sticks and Stones - $5
Home Grown - Kings of Pop - $3
Allister - Before the Blackout - $2
Finch - What It Is To Burn - $4
Midtown - Living Well is the Best Revenge - $7

^^ If you like frosted tips, teen parties, and old pop-punk merch, you really gotta watch this ^^

AND NOW TO THE MAILBAG…

Loyal N.E.H. reader, Charles, asks:

“Does having a kid(s) make you feel like a true adult?”

Great question, Charles. Technically, I’ve been an adult for 16 years, but for how long have I been a “true adult?” Have I ever been a true adult? What even is a true adult?

I think I understand what you’re getting at. For better or worse, here are some “true adult” milestones:

• Career

• Homeownership

• Marriage

• Parenthood

So I’ve done most of these things, but all the while, I’ve felt like an imposter of sorts. This is because I’m an immature, emotionally stunted buffoon who more or less skates by.

But! But… Parenthood is slowly moving me toward my end goal, which is to become a better, “truer” adult. Parenthood is this great equalizer that obliterates your ego, rendering you defeated, humble, more self-assured, and less concerned with childish nonsense like attention, praise, having the cool new sneaker (as if such a thing exists), being “up on” the celebs who got cancelled for defending other cancelled celebs, etc..

So in a sense, yes, having kids makes me feel like a true adult. But it also makes me feel incompetent. Whenever I learn some parenting skill, my kids inevitably grow, and then some new issue presents itself, requiring more of my attention and work. It’s exhausting! But I guess this is growing up.

Loyal N.E.H. reader, Marc, asks:

“If ‘Forget Me Too’ came out when you were 17, how big of a Machine Gun Kelly fan would you be?”

Terrific question, Marc. I admit that, until today, I was only vaguely aware of Machine Gun Kelly. But I did my research, read some of his Wiki, and most importantly, listened to “Forget Me Too,” and I’ve got to say, I’m not mad at the song or MGK. It’s perfectly acceptable pop-punk. It sounds like Paramore. But would I have liked it at 17? That’s another question entirely.

At 17, I was a real brat about music. I had extremely narrow tastes and drew arbitrary lines in the sand between me and certain artists. Good Charlotte were posers, but Simple Plan had tracks. I couldn’t abide Hawthorne Heights because of their “screamy” parts, but I loved Converge. And so on. Truthfully, I just wanted to be cool, and when you’re 17, being cool means hating stuff.

So to answer your question, I would’ve hated MGK when I was 17. Too mainstream, too digestible. At 34, however, I admit I enjoyed the tune. It’s catchy, well-produced, and reminds me of being 17. Oh, the irony.

Got a question? Feel free to comment on this post or e-mail me at newexperimentalhours@gmail.com. Thanks!

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Well, that’s it. Another reflective, pop-punk-leaning entry in the bag. Father’s Day is on Sunday, and next week marks the start of summer break. Crazy! Until then!