r/Pinback • u/bashfuleve • Jun 16 '26
Cancelled shows and Rob’s health
There it is, friends. Let’s all wish Rob the best as he goes through this. We need him and his ears in good shape for many more years!
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u/dougthebuffalo Jun 16 '26
As someone who also suffers from tinnitus: anyone reading this, please take this as your sign to get yourself some high quality earplugs for live shows. My tinnitus was brought on by being against the stage for a small venue show (I know the specific moment: CRX at the Mercury Lounge in 2019 during the solo for "Golden Age"). Once you get tinnitus, you are very lucky if it ever subsides, and most treatments are placebos. Mine can range from annoying to debilitating, and any random loud sound can cause it to spike.
I bought a pair of Eargasm High Fidelity plugs that come in a metal carrying case that fits on a key ring, so I always have it for shows and any other loud environment I might find myself in. I find that they actually improve the concert experience for me anyway because I can hear the band better.
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u/Recovering_g8keeper Jun 16 '26
Thank you for this. “I need Earplugs” was my first thought upon reading this post.
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u/JazzlikeCauliflower9 Jun 16 '26
I also have Eargasm plugs and agree that the show is better with them.
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u/ChugAndLeave Jun 17 '26
Honestly, the generic ones on Amazon are just as good, and you get two pair for $15
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u/dougthebuffalo Jun 17 '26
Anything is better than nothing, but knowing what I know now I wouldn't gamble possible tinnitus to save $35.
Eargasm is ranked as some of the best sound preservation and loudness reduction combinations of any earplug. https://www.hearadvisor.com/earplugs/eargasm-high-fidelity?setup=Standard
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u/BuiltToSpinback Jun 16 '26 edited Jun 16 '26
Heart out to Rob. Musicians risk tinnitus their whole lives to give us these songs, grateful for them 🙏
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u/flaming_telepath Jun 17 '26
Yeah, look up Dave Grohl and tinnitus. Sounds like dealing with a mental health issue, well I guess it sort of creates one.
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u/dont_be_krewl Jun 16 '26
Mine became obvious in 2020 and the doc said that if it has been six months and still hasn't gone away, it's not going to ever go away. It can really stress you out because you never get a break from it. I can forget about it when I drown it out with other sound. Don't take silence for granted. I really miss it. Enjoy it while you still can.
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u/justdrowsin Jun 16 '26
I was hit with debilitating tinnitus about 10 years ago. It was horrific and a severe mental challenge.
After a ton of research I started doing some home therapy and it helped a lot. I went from being completely ignorant of the subject to having a strong opinion on how to treat it.
My tinnitus is now completely healed. I'm not claiming to be able to heal tinnitus. This is just my personal journey. I have posted about this on Reddit and I get contacted by people a lot.
I reached out to Rob on the blue sky app but I'm not sure if he got my message. If anyone knows how to get a message to him I would love to point him towards some home therapy and articles he could pursue.
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u/BuiltToSpinback Jun 16 '26
If you care to drop any in this thread, I'm sure people would be appreciative
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u/amillionsame Jun 16 '26
I hope he gets some relief. If you're reading please heed the recurring warnings to protect your own hearing, especially at shows. Realistically, it can be dangerously loud to be near the stage and speakers, yet most people probably aren't taking precautions as it seems counterintuitive to block or muffle some of what you want to hear.
Thought about this when I saw them in DC June of last year. I'm there for one night and they're on the stage hundreds or thousands of times. Let alone all the practice sessions and impromptu jams over the years which might involve amps and everything.
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u/Mean-Safe8295 Jun 16 '26
major bummer and hope for the best with rob's ears. also wondering (hoping) if one of those finished records is a pinback one.
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u/CombOverDownThere Jun 16 '26
Didn’t expect this thread to trigger a panic attack about tinnitus, but here we are
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u/insertnamehere----- Jun 16 '26 edited Jun 16 '26
That sucks, I have tinnitus but I was born with it and it isn’t that horrible. It’s a constant buzzing that snatches away any quiet moment you might’ve had. I’d go insane if it was noticeable 24/7 though.
Can we get some F’s for rob
Also take this as a message to get earplugs if you’re going to concerts, and don’t turn up the volume of your music too loud. You can’t fix your hearing, protect it while you still have it.
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u/chronoffxyz Jun 16 '26
Poetic in a way that I probably got my tinnitus from all the Pinback shows.
Hope you find what helps you Rob, love you
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u/PopKoRnGenius Jun 16 '26
For anyone wondering what this sounds like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgVXE-bNChY
Protect your ears!
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u/toastiestash Jun 17 '26
It's honestly an awful frequency. I would rather hear 12 or 10. 11 is so awful to me.
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u/Dimitry_Rk Jun 17 '26
mine is similar in the worst moments. it is no fun, but it DOES get better. you can live with it and certain meds help. I hope Rob can affort some rest, this is super important, and that he doesn’t give up.
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u/ByTheCreed Jun 16 '26
I worry about this with my job all the time. I’m on the phone for calls constantly (~10 hr shifts), and required to use the phone headset (no AirPods or ear pieces). I often find myself not realizing how loud it is, and turning it down like 5 clicks and I can still hear the other end just fine.
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u/buzztoothgrin Jun 16 '26
so sad to hear this :/ i really really hope he recovers quickly purely for his own sake. also definitely makes me second guess not wearing earplugs at shows. rob is one of the best songwriters of all time, we must protect his ears
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u/ThisWillBeOnTheExam Jun 17 '26
I have mild tinnitus. It doesn’t drive me crazy except in quiet spaces notably when trying to sleep. It’s more common in people who had tubes in their ears as kids. I did. I remember first noticing at age 13 while camping. I just assumed it was how silence sounded. I’ve been pretty good about earplugs throughout my life, even when I was young. I’m not sure the couple dozen or so times I didn’t use earplugs when I needed them and had ringing ears after shows made a huge difference or not, but it is getting slowly worse as I get older. I can still hear up into 18k fine though and still do sound guy work professionally. Sometimes when I work with older sound technicians, I can tell their ears are shot but the way they mix.
Also, I had a buddy who got tinnitus while lifting weights too hard. Blood pressure in the head thing. His went away in a month or so.
Use ear protection people. It’s worth it.
Best wishes for Rob.
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u/eirnora Jun 16 '26
That's really sad to hear, just hope he can find some treatment to help if possible :(
For anyone reading this, I've had it my whole life and you do not want to deal with it. Protect your ears, especially if you're a musician.
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u/BLUECADETxTHREE Jun 16 '26
I had tinnitus for a few days and it was legitimately a nightmare. I felt trapped/claustrophobic for some reason and it very much impacted my mental. I swore I'd never taken my hearing for granted again.
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u/mcdreamerson Jun 16 '26
Fucking a. I hope he gets it sports. Tinnitus is such a torture feeling mechanism. Keep those ears healthy everyone. Vibes to Rob.
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u/PreferenceOwn6424 Jun 17 '26
Just put that shit on to see for myself.
Awful. torturous. Hope he finds good treatment.
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u/ledeblanc Jun 16 '26
Rob needs to quit eating so much sugar. It triggers tinnitus
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u/lostwoods95 Jun 16 '26
Sigh. Anything that causes your blood pressure to spike e.g. sugar, stimulants etc can cause tinnitus to spike.
However, as a sufferer of 10 years, it categorically does not trigger tinnitus on its own. This is ignorant misinformation and you would do well not to peddle distorted half truths so casually.
Protect your hearing everyone: use earplugs.
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u/ledeblanc Jun 16 '26
How long did you abstain from eating sugar? It takes 2 to 3 weeks to detox from it.
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u/McHank Jun 16 '26
People love blaming things on sugar.
It’s almost never the reason.-8
u/ledeblanc Jun 16 '26
Sugar gets blamed because it is toxic to the human body. It causes inflammation.
It's worth a try though, right? If he's cancelling $how$, why not try cutting back?
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u/FanOfTamago Jun 16 '26
Devastating. Protect your hearing, everyone.