I write about random things a lot. I write a lot about random things. On September 7, 1957, Elvis Presley appropriately set the bar for fan appreciation when he told Illustrated Magazine in an interview, "My fans want my shirt. They can have my shirt. They put it in my back."

The relationship between artists and their fans is a crucial, fragile thing; everyone has their favourites when it comes to their music collection, and the kind of loyalty that is inspired by musical taste is arguably second only to that which people have for their faith.

Though I've loved and cherished music since before I can remember, I can tell you that my favourite record of all time is now and will always be Bush's Razorblade Suitcase. The story happened for me like it does for so many — there was simply something perfect about all the conditions involved in the first time I listened to it, and I was forever inspired from that moment forward.

I found insight in its lyrics, found inspiration in its tones, found comfort in its themes. And interestingly enough, Bush — and its leader, front man Gavin Rossdale — are the epitome of the power of a positive relationship between a band and their fans. Case in point: in December 1999, shortly after the release of The Science Of Things, Bush performed an exclusive show in Toronto for radio listeners.

The show was preceded with a signing at a record shop downtown, on Queen Street — fans showed up hours before, lined up out the door and around the corner in the cold. And when the time eventually came for the event to end, the band insisted on staying long enough for every person who lined up to walk through, say hello and shake hands with the band. A small gesture, but very large for fan appreciation.

Fast-forward 12 years and into the new digital music age, and the relationship becomes all the more important. As blogs increased in popularity, they were quickly utilized by music writers. Music blogs have had a very important hand in shaping music produced since about 2003.

Without diving into the debate of who has the most influence on the industry (music bloggers vs. label A&R reps), it's fair to say that music bloggers and web-savvy fans - armed with social services like Myspace and Twitter — have made a huge contribution to the discovery of great new sounds and artists.

Bush is back, as well; Rossdale announced back in the summer that he and drummer Robin Goodridge would be joined by guitarist Chris Traynor and bassist Corey Britz to release a new album and resume touring, emphasized by a large—scale concert gig at Epicenter 2010 in California. The new album will be released next month, however no official date has yet been announced.

Yet in the meantime, Rossdale and his bandmates have all witnessed the influence their fans now wield: on Twitter, the Bush Army unites all the band's biggest fans, and serves to network their collective of blogs; on Facebook, fan pages and profiles synchronize campaigns to trend topics and drive radio requests.

Wisely, Bush have all joined Twitter — there's no official band account, each member joined individually - and are using it to interact directly with the Army, sharing photos and stories and expressing their gratitude for the support. The power of the connection they're making with their fans grows every day, particularly in anticipation of a February Tuesday without a number.

With the music industry evolving the way it is lately — what with Myspace dying, The Pirate Bay promising a-piracy-pocalypse, and foolish music writers everywhere postulating that "rock is dead" — the power is up for grabs. Considering that we live in a time where public uproar can both call for a song to be banned from radio airwaves and then call for the ban to be reviewed (see the Dire Straits' Money For Nothing controversy if you don't already know it), it feels safe to say that it seems that power is currently held by the listener.

Rock isn't dead, it's just back where it belongs - in the hands of the fans.

Watch for Everything Always Now, Bush's fifth studio album, to be released in February. Follow Gavin Rossdale @GavinRossdale, Robin Goodridge @RobinGoodridge, Chris Traynor @CT3Guitar, and Corey Britz @CoreyBritz on Twitter, or check for updates on the band's new website at bushofficial.com.

And as always, check out the latest music news, views and streams by following @FSU_Bobbyisms or by checking out the Music Recommendations thread in our FSU social network. Everything zen, everything zen, I'm out of words.