A conversation with the photo editor at work…
LAUREN: Sean Paul’s here. I got a Sean Paul thong in the kitchen.
STEREOGUM: THE Sean Paul handed it to you? Or his entourage?
LAUREN: Well, his posse … but they handed it to me on behalf of Sean Paul.
STEREOGUM: Dancehall reggae posses are the best.
Who wants it? Never worn, as far as I can tell. Log on next week for the Wolf Parade thong giveaway.
Actually, I’ll turn this into a useful thread. What’s the best/worst piece of band merch you ever saw?
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Devendra Barnhart incense sticks.
Stole mine, Dan. The Double balloons were rather fun. There were also Ninja Tune rolling papers.
Matador always has had the raddest promo schwag, anyone hear anything about Early Man Condoms?
Once saw a “Cradle of Filth” thong advertised in a music mag. Had the band name in big goth-looking letters on the front.
But this is my favorite CoF piece of merch:
http://stores.musictoday.com/store/product.asp?dept%5Fid=2253&pf%5Fid=BGCTCF15&band%5Fid=638&sfid=2
Not work safe, click the link at your own risk.
a few years ago i saw soulcracker of vh1′s bands on the run fame (it was right after the show ended and flickerstick wasn’t coming nearby) and they were selling thongs. imagine the disgust of looking back on that purchase.
i am just waiting to get a clamidia themed merchandise item from cyhsy
The inflatable sheep Epitaph sent out with NOFX’s heavy petting zoo.
the strokes’ gay porno dvd?
Worst: Mmmm…Sean Paul panties?
Best: Tenacious D “cum rag”!
URL for above:
http://www.kungfunation.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=51
Nurse With Wound women’s underwear! it was awesome, but too expensive.
here it is. the worst ever ever. totally.
Among the merchandise sold at Peaches gigs? Black fun-fur merkins. “A merkin is a pussy wig,” Peaches once explained. “It’s from Victorian times. They had to shave because of diseases, so they’d wear pussy wigs.”
http://www.anecdotage.com/index.php?aid=16788
honorable mention goes to the who tshirt I bought years ago at the kids are alright tour. it was the worst thin crappy see through white tee. complete ripoff. at the time, I thought, fifteen dollars for a teeshirt?! now many indie bands do that. crazy!
kiss has been cornering the crappy merch market for years.
What’s your job again? And since when is Stereogum a multi-person blog… or am I just slow?
Hard to beat these two for best band merch:
Super Furry Animals Snow Domes
http://www.sfashop.com/furry_things.php/products_id/75?sid=a4860693149fcb63bee8f584288a9c83
Sly & The Family Stone Thong
http://www.cafepress.com/slystone.16596868
It’s really a piece of promo and not merch, but Pre)Thing (of the infamous V2 seance-meeting hoax fame) had stickers featuring his face Photoshopped in to replace the victim in that incredibly famous / nauseating Vietnam War prisoner assassination photograph. Tasteful!
Harry and the potters concert- a toothbrush with the inscription “brush away evil with harry and the potters”
Of course, that said, the Peaches merkin is getting my vote.
OKGO sold wrist sweat bands a few years ago.
Amon Tobin earplugs. The opening act (P-love of turntablelab fame?) helped toss these out at the crowds before Tobin layed out a WALL OF BASS that flattened the first few rounds of the crowd. beautiful
Pansy Division condoms.
That is actually kind of awesome though.
I actually have two Cradle of Filth thongs, one just says ‘Filth’ in shiny silver. I don’t wear them but they make me happy just sitting in the underwear drawer…
devendra banhart incense? are you shitting me?
Not so much shitty merch, but…A few years ago I saw Piebald in Little Rock and they were selling Piebald Socks, and they said during the show, “Better buy some Piebald socks, because we’re gonna rock your socks off!” Silence…Embarassment.
interpol used to have these velcro flip out wallets. which is possibly the aesthetic polar opposite to the band, so i have no idea who allowed that atrocity to happen.
You gotta give it up for the KISS Kasket!
http://tinyurl.com/2t7fj
The ultimate, in my book.
–Ike
Naked Raygun used to throw out the best promo stuff to the crowd.
A few that I remember:
A black pocket comb that said, Get A Haircut NAKED RAYGUN.
Squirt guns.
Oh, and one night they had a pirate ship as a stage backdrop and threw out eye patches. Arrrggh!
They’d get about 5 songs into their show and people would just start chanting, “Free Shit, Free Shit, Free Shit.”
I was dragged to a kiss/ted nugent show a few years back. My boyfriend at the time was from Detroit, so I was skimming the motor city madmad’s merch. Low and behold, I see a stuffed moose wearing a t-shirt with a bloody target on it that says “Ted Nugent – Fresh Kill!”. I hate, hate, HATE ted nugent’s republican, racist, sexist ass, but I couldn’t resist blowing $20 on that stupid moose (the stuffed animal, not my ex.)
British Sea Power sold mugs on their last tour that read British Tea Power — which I thought was pretty funny.
The Fall, on The Infotainment Scan tour, the merch booth gave put your tshirt in a gift bag that included a pack of matches. Classy. Their tour bus, by the way, in that Destination banner above the front window, read “Fuck Off.” Also classy.
GBV bottle opener key chain.
Nothing says alcoholic rocker from Ohio better.
A limo driver back in ’99 gave me and my friends Big Pun condoms with the phrase “Punish Her” on the front. Apparently the guy was working for the rapper the night before.
If you weren’t involved in college radio in the late 80s, you probably don’t remember the Dead Letter Office letter openers. Something like that would be worth dozens of dollars today.
well, there was the Bjork Peppermint Pattie, and the Unrest “Perfect Teeth” travel toothbrush, Breeders tube socks…
I forgot about some really shitty things I’ve spent good money on for some reason.
I have a low-functioning Reel Big Fish backpack.
I also spent, like, 8 bucks on Goldfinger wristbands with the Van Halen parody logo on them. Why? they suck. Maybe I can still ebay them.
I also saw promos of a Kara’s Flowers flower back in the day. They had a plastic, battery-operated fan too.
i work at UW’s rainydawg radio station and most DJs table at events and there’s a lot of crazy promotional tools for bands. oasis coasters, willy nelson blunt papers, earliamart matches, people in planes “do not disturb” door handles, and stickers, pins, etc.
Last time I saw the Minus Story, I was given a free Hitler moustache. I think my alternative (I had a choice) was a plastic dinosaur, though I can’t quite remember. I have lots of plastic dinosaurs.
Poison “Open Up and Say, Ahhhh…” tongue depressor. Debbie Gibson “Anything Is Possible” magic 8 ball. Foibles “We’re #1″ giant foam fingers. Tom Waits “Big Time” wall clock.
REM “Stand” platic compass
well, ya’ll beat me to the Devendra Banhart incense, which i have, because it was in the free box at my local indie music store and i like incense. i didn’t figure out what it was until a week after i picked it up, and i laughed out loud for awhile.
but it’s kind of okay, because i like his music.
Jimi Hendrix’s estate briefly put out a brand of non alcoholic red wine. A bit tasteless if you consider how Hendrix died.
There’s an instrumental band from New Orleans who sold soap at their shows. Um, that’s weird, but they’re a good band, and the soap wasn’t bad, either. Go Mexico 1910!
http://www.mexico1910.com/
seeaaann pauulll is theee bbessssttt!
I love Sean Paul’s music. How did I miss his panties? LOL
Seriously, I did a nice blog entry on his new CD just yesterday, based on the Newsweek story he was just featured in. Now I’ll have to go back and add the thongs.
I won’t be putting these thing on my bubble butt, though. tee-hee
Sean Paul was arrested on suspicion of marijuana possession during the annual Swedish music festival in a small town outside of Stockholm. Check it out yourself!
http://www.finest.se/articles/article.php?aid=1681