In 2004, a group of pranksters called Improv Everywhere embarked on a project to “pick a struggling rock band and turn their small gig into the best show of their lives.”
They settled on Ghosts of Pasha, which had only played three live shows, and recruited 35 people to memorize all the band’s songs, print T-shirts and create temporary tattoos.
The Improv Everywhere crew trickled into the venue to avoid suspicion, mingled among the night’s few paying customers, and then, when Ghosts of Pasha took the stage, went completely bananas, chanting the band’s name, shouting requests and singing along with perfect timing.
The band, meanwhile, was bewildered. Milo Finch, the singer, later said, “I remember turning to the drummer … and being like, ‘What’s going on?’ Honestly, it was really off … guys were ripping off their shirts and swinging them over their heads in, like, helicopter fashion.”