Sometimes you have to wonder if people really understand the permanence of a tattoo. I say this not as someone who has committed nothing permanently to her body, but as someone who has gotten drunk and decided it was a great idea to get some shitty little owl from Halloween flash very poorly and prominently placed on her arm a few years ago. You know what totally sucks? Getting a tattoo covered up. The pain is ten times worse because they have to go even deeper into your skin than they did the first time while running needles through scar tissue loaded with ink. Band tattoos can be a rough lot to carry with you for the rest of your life, too. What happens when they make a record that you hate? Or a member betrays your sensibilities and you’re devastated that you are bearing an eternal mark of what once was? I won’t ever begrudge someone for getting a band tattoo, as the space just above my left elbow is occupied by the turntable from the cover art for Bikini Kill’s 7″ collection The Singles. It’s actually a thrill when I meet other people who have the same one because it’s like we’re all in the club together that shares a mindset about punk feminism. It’s why there’s a book about the Black Flag bars and its place as the secret handshake amongst likeminded fans. But these are things you have to be selective about. I carry my stuff in a Matador tote bag damn near every single day but I’m not about to get the Tanlines’ ;( forever on my person. I am not about that life. You know who is? Whoever is the owner of the above chest emblazoned with quite possibly the strangest tribute tattoo we’ve ever seen. A shoddily rendered image of Thom Yorke’s face with one nipple for an eyeball. A NIPPLE FOR AN EYEBALL. The tattoo-haver definitely went about this cheekily and probably has the kind of sense of humor that lends itself to never have a regret in favor of a good punchline, but it is a thing you can never unsee. Is this worse than the Adam Duritz backpiece? No way. More tragic than when a girl got “DRAKE” inked across her forehead in varsity lettering? Ugh, no. But this is definitely the worst Radiohead tattoo ever. Feel free to share your favorite bad tattoos, stories of regret, or really rad ink tributes in the comments.

(via Reddit)