i used to go to local punk shows all the time and I bought all these excellent band shirts, like the one from AJJ that just says
AJJ
in times new roman, under a picture of jeff rosenstock and chris farren, neither of whom are in the band AJJ. i wore them until they were full of holes, and ended up throwing several away
when it started happening I felt like putting them on hangers and never wearing them again. like, this isn't metallica or kiss or something, these are never going to be reprinted. "some guy who hangs out with the band" made them while hung over the day before a tour and probably never saved the .psd. if i wear them out they just won't exist anymore - I can't even find a picture of the AJJ one. so i feel like preserving them, but what's the point?
merch was just a way for me to give the band more money and for me to rep them for a while. nobody wants me to stick those shirts in a safe so i can drag them out ten years after the band breaks up and smarmily explain how I Was There, Man. nobody cares that i was there except me, and I have perfectly good memories of the occasion.
even if someone did care, those bands all detest everything about our society and economy and i'm sure they didn't make merch so i could treat it as a goddamn Investment, and even if I can't sell a PUP shirt that i baked in the oven for $1200, a clout investment is no different than a financial one.
i love that there is an actual song from one of the bands i like that captures this sentiment perfectly and very intentionally
they recycled the song off their first album into a reminiscence about playing the song live on their second album