My Internet: Max Collins (Eve6 Guy)
The singer and columnist hasn't figured out how to mute viral tweets.
Embedded is your essential guide to what’s good on the internet, written by Kate Lindsay and edited by Nick Catucci.
Most weeks, we quiz a “very online” person for their essential guide to what’s good on the internet.
Today we welcome Max Collins, the singer and bassist of the band Eve6, whose Twitter account he uses to post absurd and sometimes poignant commentary on late-‘90s radio rock, his life in music, politicians, and Elon Musk’s Twitter. He’s working on a book, Heart in a Blender, due later this year, and writes an advice column of the same name for Buzzfeed News. Max is pro echo chamber, befriended Marianne Williamson on Twitter, and was recently added to a group chat for people who love relaxing. —Nick
EMBEDDED: Has your Twitter experience changed since Elon Musk took over? What would it take for you to quit?
MAX COLLINS: I’m seeing a lot more right-wing stuff on account of his default For You tab. Apparently right-wingers are seeing more left stuff too or at least they’re making that claim. The whole notion that people should see posts from accounts they disagree with more often is really funny to me. Like I’m gonna see a tweet from catturd2 that says “pronouns are satanic” or something and be like Oh wow I never thought of it like that before maybe Republicans are right. One of the cool things about pre-Elon twitter is that you could more successfully forge your own echo chamber which really just means curate your own experience to a degree. I’m never leaving though. I’ll be on Twitter til the lights go out.
EMBEDDED: What are your favorite Substack or other independent newsletters?
MAX COLLINS: My friend Luke O’Neil has a fabulous newsletter called Welcome to Hell World. It’s kind of an intersection of journalism and poetry and if that sounds bad to you I get it but trust me it’s great. He’s a brilliant writer and I rec it hard.
EMBEDDED: Have you had posts go viral? What is that experience like?
MAX COLLINS: Going viral for a joke can be pretty fun. Going viral for an opinion is usually hell because a lotta people invariably get furious with you and I still haven’t taken the two seconds to learn how to mute a tweet and I’m not a big fan of blocking so I just end up seeing it all on account of my own laziness.
EMBEDDED: Who’s the coolest person who follows you?
MAX COLLINS: Marianne Williamson. I used to go see her speak every Wednesday night at a theater on La Brea and Melrose when I was in my first few years of sobriety and she just helped me tremendously. We became friends on Twitter and have since met and she’s just such a lovely and inspiring person. I send her all of my columns and she reads them and offers critiques, insights, and occasional praise which is just so cool of her cuz she’s a very busy person.
EMBEDDED: Do any of your group chats have a name that you’re willing to share? What’s something that recently inspired debate in the chat?
MAX COLLINS: I was recently added to a gc for people who love relaxing. The name changes almost daily but the word relax is always in there. It’s a great group of people who just love relaxing and also love anchovies on pizza. We don’t debate anything on there cuz debating isn’t relaxing.
EMBEDDED: What do you use Instagram for?
MAX COLLINS: I barely go on there at all. It’s just a terminally boring website to me. If we have a tour or music coming out we’ll do pretty standard boring promo stuff on there but that’s about it.
EMBEDDED: Who’s someone more people should follow?
MAX COLLINS: @vrunt. He’s very wise. Loves a good anchovy pie. Has the face of an honest man.
EMBEDDED: What’s the most basic internet thing that you love?
MAX COLLINS: Sometimes Eric Alper’s banal prompts get me. They’re like comfort food. I’ve grown to appreciate his consistency.
EMBEDDED: Are you into any podcasts right now? How and when do you usually listen?
MAX COLLINS: During quar i was listening to tons of podcasts. Like any and every podcast. I think I kinda burned myself out on the medium. The only spoken audio I listen to now are Agatha Christie novels to fall asleep.
EMBEDDED: Do you text people voice notes? If not, how do you feel about getting them?
MAX COLLINS: I do but it’s usually when my girlfriend and I are sharing songs we’ve written about our cats. We write lots of bangers about our cats and do harmony arrangements and send them to our friends.
Thanks Max! Read his column and follow him on Twitter.
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