One of the downsides of our interconnected, Internet-dependent world is that it is difficult to recall how, exactly, we came to know the people we know.
Did I see her at a party before I became her Facebook friend?
Did he and I Tweet at each other and then meet at that donut shop?
How many Jens, Jennys, and Jennifers do I actually know?
This downside is an insignificant one, especially when weighed against the numerous benefits of living in The Internet World: friends who are more like us, an accelerating humor-advancement curve, the opportunity to look at Jen/Jenny/Jennifer’s pictures without her knowing it.
And really, who cares how we know who we know.
At least, that’s what I tell myself when I can’t remember, which is exactly what happened when I tried to trace the genealogy of my friendship with Riley Breckenridge, all-star contributor to FlipCollective and, more germane to this particular piece of writing, the drummer for the alt-thrash-emo-postpunk band Thrice.
Thrice’s new album, Major/Minor, was released into the wild today. After two more sentences (including this one), I’m going to provide you with the lyric video for the first single, “Promises.” And then I’m going to tell you why you should buy the album.
Now here’s why you should buy the album.
After a drink of water and three push-ups, I was able to put together how I know Riley. Almost two years ago, I appeared on the Lying In Traffic podcast. Afterward, I became Twitter friends/followers of the hosts, Zack Hite and Rick Savage, who were both devotees of the drummer from Thrice. After watching Zack and Rick interact with this drummer, I decided to barge in on their conversations like a drunken Anklyosaurus. A few @s later, Riley caved to my advances, and we became fast (Twitter) friends.
Then, Riley came to Kansas City with his band. He and I and my brother had dinner and then it happened – we became (real) friends.
There was one pesky obstacle to our friendship: I didn’t know very much about Thrice. In my mind, Thrice was the same band as Taking Back The Used Sunday Fallout Mars. Or, a band that I didn’t much care for.
In the course of a normal piece of nonfiction writing, this is the part where I would write, “But that all changed when I went back and listened to Thrice’s back catalog.”
But I didn’t go back and listen to Thrice’s back catalog. I bought it, because I hoped that some of that money would trickle its way into Riley’s checking account. But I didn’t listen to it. I’m not sure why this is – maybe because I’m afraid that I won’t like Thrice’s previous work and that this opinion will make my friendship with Riley more difficult. Or maybe it’s because I’ve been too busy thinking about how to be more like Tim Riggins.
So, if I haven’t actually listened to Thrice’s body of work, how can I convince you to buy the new Thrice album?
Well, as a less important reason, I have listened to Major/Minor and, while there are at least three songs that I would classify as “overwrought,” it is far better than anything released by Taking Back The Used Sunday Fallout Mars.
But the more important reason for you to buy Thrice’s new album is that Riley Breckenridge is an astoundingly good human being. He is everything you or I could want out of a rock musician: hard-working, intelligent, cool, and, most of all, grounded.
In summary, Riley Breckenridge is the sort of human being we need more of.
And I think this is reason enough for you to take a chance on Major/Minor.
Even if you don’t like it all that much (and I think you will) – even if you listen to Major/Minor only once (which I don’t think will happen) – you’ll be able to rest assured that you did your part in supporting the continued creative prospects of a talented drummer and better human being: my friend, Riley Breckenridge.
Major/Minor is available on iTunes, on Amazon, and wherever decent records are sold.
If you like the idea of having more Riley Breckenridge in your life, follow him on Twitter for news from the road, tales about the Angels, and more about poop than you ever thought could come from the brain of one man. Who knows? Maybe someday, you’ll be tracing the genealogy of your friendship with him.
For more from Paul…
Past work on FlipCollective.com.
To follow him on Twitter.
To befriend him on Facebook.
To send him an email.
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