Airport Closed Because Of Band Sticker

Pensacola, Fla. folk-punk band This Bike Is A Pipe Bomb have built a dedicated following since their first single was released 12 years ago, but one fan's devotion landed him in trouble and shut down part of Memphis International Airport on Monday.

A bicycle bearing a sticker with the band's name was spotted near the passenger ramps at a terminal by an airport police officer who mistook it for a real threat. The ticketing and baggage claim desks at the terminal were closed down and people were evacuated while a canine unit sniffed around. They found no explosives.

Traffic was briefly shut down at a portion of the airport, and the bike's owner was detained and searched by authorities before being released.

This Bike Is A Pipe Bomb stickers have apparently prompted similar alarm in Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania in the past and have resulted in building closures, arrests and, ironically, bikes being destroyed by bomb squads.

"I was at work and just kind of freaked out," TBIAPB lead singer/guitarist Ryan Modee told the Pensacola News Journal on Thursday of his reaction to hearing about the incident. "I was like, 'Oh, God, not again. How could this be happening?'"

Modee is urging fans to remove stickers from items at airports and other high security areas to avoid such problems, and says the band will replace them afterward.

This Bike Is A Pipe Bomb have toured Europe, which means security and immigration officials in those countries are either more lax than in the U.S. or just not as clueless as the Memphis airport cop. Take your pick.

Modee is joined in the politically oriented band by bassist/vocalist Terry Johnson and drummer Teddy Helmick. Their most recent album is last year's Convertible.

This Bike Is A Pipe Bomb will play the Habana Bar in Austin, Texas on March 18 as part of the South By Southwest Music Festival.