Interview (8)

OK Thom Yorke

By: Javier Blánquez

The charismatic Thom Yorke takes a break from working with Radiohead to focus on Atoms for Peace, his new futuristic pop project.

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"Are you really going to record the interview with this?". On the breakfast table in the Barcelona Arts Hotel where Thom Yorke and Nigel Godrich eat from a platter of strawberries, purée, juice, and cups of cappuccino, there is a Blackberry...mine, in fact, and defenseless against their arrogant-looking iPhones. They both look upon it as if it were a dog's fecal matter and erupt into noisy bursts of laughter. "I would never have the courage to do anything with a Blackberry. I commend you," adds Nigel.

It may seem humiliating, but there couldn't be a better way of beginning my talk with the frontman and producer of Radiohead. This reaction, one that's along the lines of amusing and harmless fair play, defines them in a single moment like refined connoisseurs of technology. This is especially in the case of Thom Yorke, who, at 44 years old, takes time to live almost on the other side of rock, feeling more comfortable with a computer between his hands than playing a guitar. In fact, when he doesn't have to stay in charge of Radiohead, a band with a balance of power more complicated than that of the protagonists of Game of Thrones, Yorke dedicates himself to being a leisurely tourist in a spacious field of experimentation.

...

When did you have this epiphany, or rather, the moment when you came to understand how to use technology as a vehicle for creating music?

THOM YORKE: I first became aware of it around OK Computer (1997).

NIGEL GODRICH: That's why it's called OK Computer (laughs).

TY: Nigel mixed the album for us on a computer using programs like Pro Tools. I then became tremendously curious about it. I'd never learned how to work a mixing desk that had multiple tracks, but a computer program...shit. It was able to learn on its own. I also began to buy Aphex Twin's albums at the time. I suppose all of that was part of the epiphany: understanding that we could change the way we work and make the entire recording process into something more surprising and fun.

Do you consider yourself addicted to technology at this point?

TY: I don't know. I still enjoy sitting at the piano in order to write a song. But when I'm milling around pieces of junk that are hard for me to understand how they work, I need to solve those puzzles and end up sleeping on it. I almost never figure it out, but that in itself is good. From luck and error come great ideas.

When you first released OK Computer, that album conveyed a sense of uncertainty. It wasn't exactly clear if it was criticizing a capitalist world reinforced by computers or if the title of the album implicated blind faith in technological progress.

TY: The change that we noticed then encouraged us greatly. We saw it as an incredible opportunity to gain creative independence and harvest better communication. On occasion, we would go on fansites with chatrooms and introduce ourselves: "Hi, we're Radiohead, and we're in the studio recording an album". No one believed us. That was when demanded to EMI that we set up our own web page like Massive Attack. We learned how to program html and all that.

It seems like everything you do is a continuous learning experience where you adapt without halting to a world that's always changing. Is that easy for you, or has it gotten more difficult with age?

TY: It's a daily struggle. It's a lot harder to learn how the Internet works now. Social networking sites...shit, each day brings a new problem. When you've adapted to Twitter, it suddenly becomes Instagram and so on. You never know what kind of real impact they have, nor do you know how to reach the public through them. On top of that, you feel helpless. They're mounted tools for someone who is getting rich by channelling private matters to people. I may be showing my age, but all of this has become problematic to me.

A few weeks ago, you participated in a sentimental advice session for the website Rookie, which is geared towards adolescent girls. Did you do it to try to connect with today's youth or to understand it better?

NG: It piqued our curiosity. It's one of those methods of unexpected promotion that comes your way and normally you would say no to that, but this was something so peculiar that we had to say yes. We had heard about it from Tavi, a 16-year-old blogger who runs the page.

It seems that the generation gaps are much stronger than before. Now there's hardly a difference between each year and there seems to be little in common between those in their 40s and the "millennials".

TY: Do you have kids? I'm sure that if you were to have kids, it would be a lot easier to understand. What are the millennials, by the way?

It's the generation of kids who were born at the end of the 80s and the beginning of the 90s. They reached their adolescence at the turn of the century. It's the generation that's portrayed in shows like Girls.

TY: Oh, I get it. I take back what I said. My kids are a lot younger than that.

NG: I don't have children of my own, but I have friends who have them at that age. It's true that it's hard to connect with them on a cultural level, but I also feel that we still have that youthful spirit at our age. Our work still allows us to keep in contact with a younger audience.

Now you're even working on a DJ side project.

NG: Thom was a DJ even when he was still going to university. He took a shot at it at parties on Friday nights.

TY: Yes, but now it's something entirely different. I want to create a kind of live hybrid that could result in throwing in unexpected things at the drop of a hat. I'm fascinated by the kinds of shows that artists like Flying Lotus and Modeselektor put on. Everything is under their control, but at the same time, it sounds spontaneous. With Atoms for Peace, we're attaining this effect a lot of the time. People come to the shows and dance while we give them an incredibly abstract experience.

AMOK is like a continuation of The Eraser, yet the album sounds stronger and more complete. Thom's first solo album was precisely that: a single person making a lot of noise. What kind of effect have you been looking for now?

TY: I had to be something more distinct. It's been seven years.

NG: At the time, Thom was going through a strange period in his life. It was very disoriented because he was learning new ways of making music without the help of his bandmates from Radiohead. But neither Thom nor I like to work alone, so we brought a lot of people to play in the studio. We then filled the studio with more sounds and ideas so that the process would seem more dynamic. We didn't plan anything. Their strengths came about naturally.

Why the name "Atoms for Peace"? Putting together the words "atoms" and "peace" makes it sounds like a criticism on ecology or something along those lines.

TY: The truth is that there wasn't any sort of intention like that. We picked "Atoms" because it seemed like a good idea. It describes particles of sound that create energy.

But AMOK isn't a peaceful album. It's dynamic and overwhelming.

TY: Yeah, you have a point. I don't know. But it's an album made of atoms! But here the band worked to share their own ideas. It's much more distinct than working with Radiohead, where Colin and Jonny Greenwood would also have a say in the matter and their own perspectives on things. How can those clashes be mediated when it comes time for them to record the material?

NG: I don't know how it's done, but I have to do it. Jonny and Thom are the two most prominent composers in the band. They bring in their ideas and finally, I have to piece together the puzzle. With Atoms, we only had to recruit the people that we needed. Radiohead is something more complicated. There isn't much room for improvisation. You have to plan so a lot of people are satisfied with the results.

Of course, we're not talking too much about a certain anniversary, since this year marks two decades since the release of Pablo Honey.

TY: Ugh!! (Thom fakes some coughing and choking sounds)

I'm sorry, I know that you don't think too fondly of that album. But that was how you got your start even though you're a different musician now. What's one thing you could have never imagined to become reality 20 years later? 

TY:  It's precisely that, that there was such a thing as a future. At first, we didn't know what was going on or what was happening. All we knew was that something wasn't going right. We hoped that we would be signed to EMI and that they would help us all the same, just like they did with Pink Floyd or The Beatles. But we soon discovered that those big corporations have a very sinister side to them. They only wanted money. We knew that something had to happen so we wouldn't be eaten up by that awful system. Then we wrote "Creep" (1992) and since that moment, the managers came, shook our hands, thanked us, and said, "Boys, from now on, you do what you want". And you think, "That's fucking great!". But that was a stroke of luck. Without that stroke of luck, I wouldn't be here. 

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Source:

http://www.metropoli.com/musica/2013/04/26/517a455a6843410f43000003.html

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"Radiohead: amor y luz" Translation

For the past few days, I've been working on an English translation of the "Radiohead: amor y luz" that was posted a little while ago. Here is the finished product. I'm sorry if there are a few errors.

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Article source: http://www.frente.com.mx/2012/04/12/radiohead-amor-y-luz/

Radiohead: Love and Light

Their third visit to Mexico is just around the corner. With this in mind, we have conducted this extensive interview with the guitarist of Radiohead, Ed O'Brien, where he talks about what the band does above and behind the scenes, in the studio, and of the unexpectedly happy period that his band currently thrives in.

The lobby of Chateau Marmont emanates as much affluence (or, at least for this journalist, intimidation) as it could muster. It's pure Hollywood, with its architecture hailing from the twenties, and features classic furniture, low light and elegant clientele. It has been the den of celebrities like Fitzgerald and Hunter S. Thompson, Tim Burton and Sophia Coppola, who have produced or devised some of their most memorable works under its roof or in its gardens. In this same lobby, Led Zeppelin rode on their motorcycles and the reverend Manson fell in love with a miss Evan Woods. The pool appears in Lana del Rey's most famous video and, in one of its bungalows, Anthony Kiedis recorded "By The Way". It was also here that the legendary John Belushi passed away. I am just getting used to the springy armchair when my contact approaches. 

He drives me to the restaurant where Ed O'Brien, the guitarist of Radiohead, is sitting alone. He smiles. He vaguely remembers me from the 4 or 5 interviews I have given him (since the first time they arrived in Mexico, when they were still a one hit wonder) and invited me to go up to his room so there would be more privacy. He proudly shows me the Jaguar guitar model Johnny Marr (one of his heroes) finished and will send to Fender. He talks to me about Marr's virtues, of how the old guitarist of The Smiths notably improved it, and plays the guitar a little. On an armchair is a top hat and on a nightstand a mountain of marijuana the size of a baseball. Before starting up the tape recorder, we talk a little about music and who he's listening to. He goes to his computer and plays me Swiss Movement by Les McCann and Eddie Harris.

His band, possibly the most legitimate heir to the Beatles, is in the middle of a tour that will stop at Foro Sol in Mexico City on April 17th and 18th. This is an excuse to chat with O'Brien, a level-headed spokesperson and the best speaker of the group, about the business that the band fully realized and of the surprising moment that Radiohead discovered themselves.

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Since you're coming back to Mexico, how was it for you the first time you visited?

It was a pleasant surprise. We went there for the first time in 1994. We got to know each other better on this tour, don't you think? And to have returned to play at Foro Sol was incredible. The curious thing about it is that it was part of a South American tour that took us from Mexico to Brazil, Chile, and Argentina. What we discovered was that Mexico responds to us the best when we do a tour in the United States. Mexico City could be the height of our North American tours. The spirit of the people fascinated us, and we had a giant party after the second concert.

Your tour began on the first night of your visit to Mexico and I understand that you weren't very comfortable on stage. Does this always happen to you when you begin a tour?

The scale of it all was...you have to constantly get used to these things. It's very overwhelming to leave the stage and have 50,000 Mexican fans showing you their admiration, their support, cheering...it takes some time for you to become accustomed to it all. At the start of the tour there is a transition: becoming the father of a family, a husband...you get past being on stage in front of 50,000 people, since they are two very different worlds. The start of a tour can be complicated. Imagine  any person in this situation. It could be a shock, despite whatever you have done before.

How do you feel the day before embarking on a tour? Are you content? Excited? Nervous?

Well, the beginning of this tour was in Miami -taking three weeks- and it was, above all, very concentrated. There is a lot of work involved. We could take some 55 songs, but then there are many things about them to remember. At this point I really don't feel nervous or excited. I only try to be focused and find myself in the best mental, emotional, and spiritual state possible, because doing shows is something incredible, but it demands a lot out of you. You have to hold off being a husband and father and change yourself into a musician. On the day before leaving on a tour, I try to relax and find myself in placidity and calmness.

After all these years, do all of your tours seem the same or does each one have its share of peculiarities?

They're different. Just before you arrived, I talked a bit with our manager: this tour doesn't seem like anything we have done before. On albums like The Bends, OK Computer, or Kid A, there is a lot of darkness. You hear a very profound melancholy, and the tours were just that, but Radiohead really isn't like that. Now we are love and light, and because of that, these concerts have been very, very different from all the ones before. These concerts are edifying, very much alive and full of love...it's like The Beatles, "All you need is love". It's true. We have found that and we have taken it to our concerts. In the past, we were on stage, seeming distant from the public and it really wasn't like that. Now there is an energy that spreads around, goes out and comes back, and any person in the audience comes back being as important as Thom or myself. We only facilitate love. It's very powerful. These past few weeks, we have offered the most different shows of our careers and, for me, the best we've ever done, because our spirit is different.

What brought the band to this point? What happened?

I talked a little to someone about this and I stated that...we have always moved ourselves. On OK Computer, we entered an incredibly dark place. It was like being in a tunnel, which we were in during OK Computer, Kid A, Amnesiac, and Hail to the Thief. It seemed that we had just found our way out, but that was not the case. On In Rainbows, part of the fight was trying to leave that tunnel. When we look at that album, we feel that we had already left that dark place. We didn't want to go back to that because we have spent too much time there. You could be very creative when you're there, but it kills you as a person. It's very tough. It drains you. It's not a good place to be. It also makes you feel bored musically because it only allows you to makes a certain type of music. Now we are in a very illuminated state and creatively different. It's flowing, but in order to get here, we had to overcome the darkness in order to appreciate that. The last two years are a new era of Radiohead.

But isn't the world a much darker place now?

Yes, you're right about that, but in times of darkness, people feel that the light can come. I don't read newspapers because the news puts you in a bad mood. For example, Mexico: 50,000 or so deaths in the past few years. It's terrible, but I don't want that to personally change me. It's not that I don't care, of course I care, but if you are reading the news all the time, it affects your behavior, like when you relate to others. I don't want to walk in fear while in Mexico City worried that some drug traffickers could attack me. When we went to Brazil, the people there told us that Rio was afraid, that they were going to rob us. Dammit, I want to coexist with people, to become infected by their happiness. Yes, there are shitty situations, but I don't want to be afraid every time I go near a Brazilian and think that he's going to con me in some way. And yes, the world is in a dark place, but I also know a lot of people that have been in similar situations and have then found light at the end of the tunnel.

At the point you say that you entered a dark period, there had been much optimism in the world, particularly in the United Kingdom. Tony Blair rose to power, having lived in Cool Britannia (or whatever it is). Now that the world has darkened, you've begun to light up. Is your state of mind a reaction to what happens in your environment?

Yes, though we weren't a part of Cool Britannia. Whatever Thom saw (and said in his lyrics) was that in spite of whatever people celebrated, there had been a lot of shit coming from the truth and people couldn't see it. They were blind to it. We have been playing "The Amazing Sounds of Orgy", a B-side. A dark song written more than 10 years ago that says (singing): "I want to see you smile again/ Like diamonds in the dust/ The amazing sound of the killing hordes/ The day the banks collapse on us". And having anticipated something, Thom wrote something that he had just noticed. There were already signs that the financial and baking system wasn't going to last. The banks effectively collapsed around us 2 or 3 years ago. 

What Thom was doing was seeing beyond what people praised and pointed out the shit around them, and now that it has muddied us over, we need to bring ourselves above it. You have to move forward. Yes, you recognize the signs and the evil of it all, but you can't sit there thinking that it's all so difficult to conquer. You have to think about how you can make yourself a better person, how you can make the world a better place from a modest perspective. Every one of us, with our way of being, can do it. It seems like we can't change anything, but yes, being positive can be contagious to another person. It makes them happy.

So what it means is that there is no point in feeling miserable all the time. We couldn't continue living here if we did. You have to have hope for the future, hope that the world can get better. You also begin to see that things are, in fact, getting better. Yes, the world is in a bad place, but humanity and its potential are both incredible. We could do many things and this is a great time to do them. We are in a crisis, but with each crisis come solutions. If we want, we could make things better, but that depends on us.

I would like to think that you are hoping that something good comes soon.

I don't know about that. We're only musicians. What we put in our music is what we feel. 

Going back to the topic of your tour, how do you decide on which songs to play, how the band is going to sound, how the stage is going to looks and all these different things?

The lighting on this tour is crazy. Andy, the one in charge of it, has worked with us since '94. In November he came to us so he could show us his plan. He wanted something that would be big, and he wanted to go back to using the light tubes that we used on our last tour, but he also built this incredible wall of light made of recycled plastic bottles at the back of the stage. Then we have these screens that move themselves around.

In the case of the songs: we play what we feel is best for this tour. We play The King of Limbs because it doesn't seem like it's perfect to us. Much of In Rainbows is very good. As for the older songs, it's been really interesting to see which ones work for us. For example, one song from OK Computer that really works in our favor is "Lucky", which comes out incredible every night. There's also "Paranoid Android" . We have on stage a second drummer alongside Phil, Clive Dreamer, and he gives the song such an incredible groove. We played "No Surprises" during our sound check and it sounded awful. It's very interesting to see which songs work and which ones don't.

We always play "The National Anthem" off of Kid A but it still doesn't feel right. We've already played it two times on this tour and it just doesn't work for us. On the other hand, "Kid A" sounds surprisingly good. Same with "Pyramid Song". Last night, we played "Packtd Like Sardines In a Crushd Tin Box" and it sounded good. A little half-baked, but it comes close to what we're looking for.

Our spiritual and emotional state is what determines which songs work for us. As an example, "No Surprises" doesn't work at the moment because it's such a sweet and pretty song and to find ourselves consumed by its melancholy, by the darkness that I told you about up until now, would bring about an interesting kind of tension. Now that we're content, full of love and happiness, when we play this song it's sickly sweet. It doesn't contrast with anything. It's just too sweet. 

Does the rest of the band coincide with you on these kinds of feelings?

Yes. Myself, in particular. I can be very expressive about all kinds of things. I'm one who would come out to say, "Stop! There's such a pathetic amount of love here,". I'm just like that. It isn't something that's very English, but then again, I'm not someone who's very English. Like I told you before the interview, my grandmother was born in Mexico. But in general, we agree on a lot of things. We all know that we are living in a great moment, that this is another kind of tour for us.

And why have you included a lot of B-sides in your repertoire? Is it to surprise the fans?

Yes, it's to surprise the fans, but it's also the result of how good it is to go rediscover songs and see which ones seem best to play. We are a lucky band. We have a huge archive of songs. We don't have to play "Fake Plastic Trees". We don't have to play "Creep", "Paranoid Android", or "No Surprises". I think that people who like Radiohead understand -at this point they should have gotten the message- that we play what we feel is appropriate. We're not planning on deceiving them and we're not going to tell them that it's THE SHOW FROM THE HUGELY-SUCCESSFUL RADIOHEAD. When we go to Mexico City, that's what we're offering them. It's good, it's honest, and it's real. 

I understand that when you do shows for 50,000 people, the majority of them understand what Radiohead is all about, but then there are those that will go home sad because they didn't hear "Creep".

We played it in Mexico. What we can't do is get up on stage thinking that we have to play this or that, because then it's not honest. When "Creep" works is when, all of the sudden, it occurs to us that we should play it. It's not something that we can force out.

So you are at the wrong concert if you hope to see and hear the band's greatest hits.

Yes, but it's an interesting thing to play in a place as big as Foro Sol. We know that there are 50,000 people who want to see a spectacle that spans across the different stages of our career, but they have to be songs that we think we can play well. It's not going to be like a U2 or Coldplay concert. The concert is close to where  the band stands at the moment, and I think the audience understands that. We're lucky in that respect. I hope no one becomes disillusioned at home after a Radiohead concert because we didn't play "Creep".

There could be a percentage of people that know us superficially, that don't understand that we are becoming another kind of band. On stage, it's like a living organism in full transformation.

My impression of the people in Mexico -and correct me if I'm wrong- is that they notice it. They have big hearts and lots of feeling. Because of that, we're going to Mexico as something new. It's an outpouring of emotions, and that's something I like about Mexicans. I feel that there is a lot of honesty with the people of Mexico. It's incredibly powerful.

Going back to the songs at each concert, how do you decide on which ones to play? 

It's very simple. We arrive at the show site at around two in the afternoon. We get there. We have lunch. At lunch, Thom, Phillip, and I put together the setlist. There are certain songs that we know work together. "Bloom" is a really good way to open the show, since it puts us in the right mood. We ask ourselves what we want to play, always looking to see how it flows, how it's all balanced out, and how it can take the audience on a journey. If we can do it between the five of us, there would be a lot of opinions. It works well this way so Colin and Jonny can make observations and suggestions after the concert.

And so you had to choose between 55 songs...

Yes. We tried out a lot songs we didn't know all that well, and then there were 4 days of preproduction in London. 

A question that a pair of fans passed on to me to ask you: Is The King of Limbs a transition album?

It's an album of feelings, compared to In Rainbows, which was a very direct album of songs. Nigel [Godrich, their producer] was around the DJ circuit a lot, so he brought something to the world of the album...

Sorry to interrupt you, but is that why there is such a predominance of rhythms on the album?

Yes, I think so. 

The first thing I felt after listening to it was that the rhythm took over everything else on the album.

Yes, you're right about that. The rhythm dictates the album. It's very important.

And this is reflected in the concert?

Yes. We joke about it and call it the Big Rave. The rhythm is king. Our manager, Chris, says, "It's like a rave with guitarists", and yes, it is. It's fun. We have Clive and Phil on drums and we're moving to another place. We are very fortunate to always find ways to take ourselves to new heights. It's exciting, and I know that I said this before, but it feels better than ever. Last night ,Thom said on stage, "Why do we keep doing this? In order to try new things". Our past is fantastic, but that's not what makes us move forward. We're playing new [unreleased] songs on this tour!

Three, from what I understand.

There's still one more to follow!

After you released the album, you had put out a couple of more songs ["The Daily Mail"] and now you are premiering songs you haven't even recorded yet. Why weren't they included on The King of Limbs?

We didn't record them. "The Daily Mail" came about because we went to work on a program called "In The Basement", which lasts 55 minutes, and The King of Limbs only lasts 38, so we needed more material. We put out "Staircase" when we recorded the album, but at that point, it didn't seem to come out right. "The Daily Mail" we had since 2005, but nothing about it seemed to work for the reasons that they are. And then, literally, in 10 minutes, we finished writing it for the program. I like how we can write a song and as soon as it's there, we put it out. We did it with "Lucky", you know?

Right, for the War Child album...

And it turned up on OK Computer that year. We were kids born in the sixties, and we were influenced by The Beatles and The Stones. They were in the studio recording "Paperback Writer" with "Rain" as a B-side and they put that single out. Two of the greatest songs ever in history were on one of their albums! The Beatles legitimized that so we can do everything else. And they're next to being gods.

Have you rejected the idea of the album?

No, I LOVE the album.

But does Radiohead work on thinking of albums, of EPs, of singles, of songs?

The thing with albums is that they demand to be in a certain mental state. You are going to record a collection of songs that ask for a level of compromise and concentration that's sufficient, but it isn't the easiest thing to do. When we made The King of Limbs we were just like that. The music that we put out in between albums is very different. It has a little of this and a little of that. "Supercollider" is very different from "The Daily Mail".  We love the mentality of those B-sides. We have made ones that were very good and ones that were very important because you make them with a freedom that you don't have while recording an album, which can be incredibly tedious.

I imagine that in order to record a good album and make it worth something, you should have enough things to say on it...

You're right. From the point of view of the lyricist, you have to have something coherent to say. The B-sides don't ask you for anything. It could be a song from 10 years ago that works. Then, when we are recording an album, we are living in that moment, with more rigor than before. When we're not, we're only thinking about writing songs that we like.

I'm going to go back to the question about transition. I think that the two fans that wanted me to ask you their question felt that there will be an important change in Radiohead from The King of Limbs onward.

Totally. It's "Radiohead MKIII".

Which one was MKII? Was it back during Kid A?

Yes. MKI was from Pablo Honey to OK Computer. MKII from Kid A until the recording of In Rainbows, and MKIII are the last two years. This is an age of love, happiness, and light. 

You talk about that a lot. Is it much easier to be Radiohead today than 10 years ago?

Definitely. It's a beautiful place where we are now. It's always been very natural, never forced. Ten years ago, it was much more difficult. It wasn't necessarily the band, but perhaps ourselves as individuals. We changed and evolved, but things grew dark. It was hard and not fun at all, but you endure it and you don't give up. Everything that's worth something in life can be difficult to maintain at times. There is always something to strongly hold on to, something to endure. What I have learned from life is that bad things don't always last. It's then that you show the strength of your character and things change. The darkness only lasts a moment. It passes and everything becomes easier. That's what life is about. It's in cycles, I believe.

That's how it has been with Radiohead. Now I'm glad that we are in a wonderful period of our career, that the shows flow, and that everything is different. It's another kind of feeling.

As for the people that surround you, your producer or for example Andy, your light technician, who have been with you for almost 20 years...do they perceive this state of mind and do they incorporate it into their work?

Andy talks about that with Thom, but above all, he's creative, a master with a lot of intuition. We know him well. We don't spend a lot of time together, but he understands what we feel and what we want, and adds beauty, color, and drama. As the tour moves forward and satisfyingly grows, he makes it better. All of the show grows, and every time we treat it, it gets better.

At the end of the tour, what is there: a worn-out band or the best show of the tour?

It's not set in stone. That doesn't depend on us. It depends on the public. They play a bigger role than all of us. 

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Ed O’Brien Interview

 

 

11010898463?profile=original

 

 

Fuente: Al Tuntún

 

 

“Uno tiene que encontrar su voz”

 

Primera parte de nuestra esperada entrevista exclusiva a Ed O’Brien. El hombre se explaya acerca de todo y de todos sin pelos en la lengua, aunque nunca pierde la amabilidad ni la calma. Lo que se dice un gentleman.

 

Desde Londres, una charla sin desperdicios.

 

English version coming soon

 

Pensar en Radiohead es pensar en algo gigante. Es pensar en una de las bandas más importantes de la historia del rock, ufff, pero no como mito fosilizado, sino más bien como materia encendida, viva y constante. Una usina de sonidos, electricidad pura de un rayo eterno que arrancó en, ufff, los benditos noventas sintonizando el pulso de una toda una década y toda una generación definiéndolas desde su amanecer (sí, estoy hablando de Creep), otorgándoles un color, para después romper con todo como única manera de seguir el mejor camino: uno propio. Por eso no es casual que luego de Ok Computer (1997), disco que de tan definitivo agotó, perfeccionándola a nivel maestro, una fórmula de hacer canciones estos cinco extraterrestres entraran en crisis, el cambio como único rumbo, para pasar a otra cosa, pararse en otro lugar, otro siglo, otro milenio, con dos discos pergeñados desde la lógica de una tormenta feroz que estalla en un sonido maldito: rugidos, lamentos y oasis detonados desde máquinas bestiales en esos dos diamantes oscuros que son Kid A (2000) y Amnesiac (2001). Desconcertando a muchos, alimentando habladurías que hoy son hojas amarillentas hinchadas de humedad en revistas viejas, Radiohead nutrió su cuerpo, se hizo fama y echó a andar subido al fuego eléctrico de un sonido mutante que, entre explosiones y una suavidad contenidas en el abismo de un repertorio inmortal, es el combustible inagotable de una llama que aún hoy continúa creciendo.

 

Esta entrevista es el producto del delirio de dos que viajamos en un auto por horas escuchando las mismas canciones de siempre. Cantándolas como locos, sin que importe demasiado su verdadero sentido, si es que lo tienen, pero en las que nos gustaría (me gustaría) quedarnos a vivir. Porque en definitiva, y por más vueltas que le dé, no sé qué es “I will raise up Little babies eyes” pero sé que es parte de la canción más dulce del mundo. Tampoco puedo explicar por qué me hace tan feliz escuchar el corito de Ed en Karma Police, o cuando él le hace la segunda a Thom en Paranoid Android, pero hay algo que me hace intuir que todo lo que rodea a estos cinco gigantes está lleno de un amor inmenso por el mundo. Y como dije, este fue nuestro delirio de un día decir, “¿y si le pedimos una nota a Ed?” Y si bien la lógica indicaba que no íbamos a tener ninguna respuesta, aunque en el fondo guardáramos la esperanza de que nos contestaran que sí, yo por lo menos nunca pensé que unas semanas después de ir cantando en un auto los coritos de este gigante hermoso que es Ed O´Brien, lo veríamos llegar en una bicicleta amarilla y plegable a un cafecito en Londres para vernos a nosotros y decir “ Hey Sam, Casandra! How are you?”

 

Por Casandra Scaroni y Samuel Dietz.

 

Fan.

Casandra: ¿Fuiste fan de chico? Y si es así, ¿qué recordás de ese sentimiento después de haber estado del otro lado durante tanto tiempo?

 

Ed: Si fui fan…

 

C: De una banda…

E: Ah, sí, más bien. Es decir, todavía lo soy. Soy fan de la música. Pero vos decís de adolescente, ¿no? Sí, uno de chico sigue a una banda, pero no es lo mismo que ahora. Uno podía ir a un show de The Smiths, o U2, o lo que fuera en los ochentas… así que sí, me acuerdo perfectamente de lo que se sentía porque era algo muy vívido, un sentimiento muy fuerte eso de sentirse seguidor de una banda, o cuando te topás con música nueva es una cosa muy importante para uno.

 

C: O cuando sale un disco nuevo y uno va a buscarlo a la disquería…

E: Exacto, es tremendo eso, te consume, se apodera de tu vida durante días, semanas o lo que fuere.

 

C: En entrevistas que te hicieron, te describías a vos mismo como un “adicto a los singles”.¿Te acordás de cuál fue el single que te hizo coparte con la música por primera vez?

E: Tuve mucha suerte porque crecí en una época, en el año 79, en la que estaba muy al tanto de la música en los charts de Inglaterra. Era la época del post-punk, así que tenías un montón de música como Siouxie and The Banshees, Adam and The Ants… Estaban cosas como Depeche Mode, XTC, The Police, David Bowie… todo lo que sucedió en este país fue muy fértil para la música porque la gente que fue a las Escuelas de Arte de repente pensó: “Uh, yo puedo hacer eso”. Así que fue una gran época para la música. Uno escuchaba y grababa las canciones de la radio en cassette y podía tener Walking On The Moon, de The Police, Spellbound, de Siouxie and The Banshees… el primer Hip-Hop. Pasaban cosas muy diversas, mucha música diferente, experimental. Es decir, eso era la música Pop cuando yo crecía, ¡escuchando todos esas canciones que llegaban al número Uno!¡Increíble!

 

Guitarra.

Sam: ¿Cómo empezaste a tocar la guitarra? ¿Por qué la elegiste en primer término?

E: Probablemente por dos cosas que pasaron al mismo tiempo. Yo había visto un póster de The Jam, ahí por el año 79. Era una foto de ellos tres, Paul Weller saltando con su Rickenbacker era increíble y esa imagen fue muy fuerte. Por otro lado estaba Andy Summers de The Police: cuando lo escuché fue como… “Guau, tengo una conexión con eso”. Y también fue escuchar a gente como Johnny Marr, ¿no?.

 

S: ¿Por eso tenés una Rickenbacker?

E: Por eso la primera guitarra que quise después de haber firmado un contrato fue la Rickenbacker, sí.

 

S: Ya que mencionás a Paul Weller, a Andy Summers, a Johnny Marr, y alguna vez nombraste a Peter Buck (de R.E.M.) como determinantes en la decisión de hacer música y de tocar la guitarra, ¿era porque sentías que querías ser como ellos?

E: No es que quería ser como ellos, sino que me gustaba lo que hacían, aunque fueran todos diferentes. Me gustaba que no hicieran tantos solos sino que trabajaran con el espacio. Era buenísimo.

 

C: ¿Es importante para vos ser parte de una banda y no estar exponiéndose tanto?

E: Sí, estar en una banda es como un equipo, un buen equipo de fútbol. En una buena banda te ves incentivado por los tipos que están a tu alrededor y tenés que esforzarte más.

 

S: ¿Cómo funcionan como banda ahora? Vos solías decir que si Radiohead fuera las Naciones Unidas, Thom York sería los EE.UU. ¿Sigue siendo así?

E: ¡Sí! (Risas). Es decir, él es el cantante del grupo.

 

S: Y también el compositor principal.

E: Sí, él dirige la música. Otros dirigen la banda.

 

S: Pero vos seguís aportando mucho a las canciones.

S: Sí, sí, por ejemplo para el último disco Thom no tenía mucha idea de cómo sería. Hicimos las canciones zapando juntos y por ahí él traía alguna letra o melodía. Cada uno de nosotros tiene completa libertad creativa.

 

S: ¿Tenés algún patrón recurrente para componer?

E: En el último disco la música vino primero, después las letras y más tarde las melodías. Lo que teníamos era bloques de música y entonces Thom escribía alguna línea melódica para cantar y le agregaba letra. Pero fijate que en OK Computer las letras son como una base, y los temas están delineados en guitarra acústica. Después íbamos a la sala de ensayo y los arreglos cambiaban, y las letras evolucionaban conforme a la música.

 

S: Y a veces la canción cambia totalmente, como Reckoner, que tiene una primera versión muy rockera y después se convirtió en eso hermoso que está en In Rainbows.

E: Sí, eso pasa porque estábamos grabando Reckoner 1 y se nos ocurrió que necesitaba otra parte musical. Así que Thom y Jonny escribieron eso otro y nos gustó más, por lo que terminamos usándolo para Reckoner 2. Y quedó mucho mejor.

S: Totalmente.

 

Conciertos.

C: ¿Tenés recuerdos de algún concierto que consideres el mejor, y por el otro lado, el que te haya parecido peor?

E: Te puedo decir el peor. Fue en 1986, el de una banda llamada Lloyd Cole And The Conmotions. Fue horrible, muy aburrido. De los otros hay un montón, pero uno de los mejores fue Sonic Youth en la Brixton Academy, en 1992. La banda soporte era Pavement. Salió Pavement, y era la época de su primer disco, Slanted & Enchanted: fue hipnótico, una cosa increíble. Y después salió Sonic Youth, estaban presentando su disco Dirty en ese momento. No sé si lo conocen. Es un gran disco. Y el show fue tremendo, sorprendente. Era una de esas noches en la que uno estaba viendo no una sino dos bandas increíbles. Pavement era buenísima, pero Sonic Youth…

 

C: Hablando de esos momentos, una vuelta dijiste que algo muy especial ocurre cuando se miran mutuamente arriba del escenario, y se ven las caras de que están dando lo mejor en ese instante. ¿Te parece que el oyente puede captar algo de eso en los discos?

 E: Definitivamente sí. Ese es un aspecto maravilloso de la música: se puede capturar algo de magia en la grabación. Quincy Jones tiene una expresión para eso, él dice que cuando se graba una pieza musical, vos podés tocar diez veces lo mismo pero una vez que la magia ocurre es como que Dios se manifestara a través del ritmo, el espíritu es…

 

C: Y el momento en el que realmente lo sentís y sabés que es ese momento.

E: Sí, se siente algo muy fuerte, como un escalofrío.

 

S: Son todos ustedes al mismo tiempo, cada uno siente lo mismo y lo sabe.

E: Sí, onda que nos miramos… Igual, no ocurre siempre así. A veces nos pasa desapercibido. Pero otras nos damos cuenta, nos decimos “sí, es ahora”.

 

S: Por ejemplo con Lucky. Si mal no recuerdo fue grabada en una o dos tomas.

E: No, me parece que no. Creo que mucho del material de OK Computer, como Let Down, Climbing Up The Walls o No Suprises fueron así.

 

Televisión.

C: Hay un rumor de que van a tocar en Saturday Night Live.

E: Sí, ya lo anunciamos. No es más un rumor.

(Risas)

 

C: ¿Les gusta ese programa?

E: Yo mucho no lo vi. Varios comediantes maravillosos salieron de ahí, pero acá no lo pasan.

 

S: ¿Pero ya tocaron más de una vez allí?

E: Me parece que una vez sola. Estuvo bueno, muy divertido.

 

S: Están buenos esos programas donde se puede tocar música en vivo.

E: Sí, totalmente.

 

S: ¿Hay total libertad para tocar en esos programas? ¿Pueden hacer lo que quieran?

E: Sí, es muy fácil. Te dejan hacer lo que quieras en el tiempo que tenés pautado.

C: Y no tienen la presión del conductor, van, tocan y chau.

E: Sí.

 

S: Me acuerdo de un programa de televisión en Francia, Hit Machine, que en 1996 ustedes tocaron Just, pero era playback y Jonny tocaba…

E: ¡Con la mano izquierda, sí, me acuerdo perfectamente!

S: Era muy gracioso de ver. Hacían cualquiera. ¿La idea era arruinar el show o era solo para divertirse?

E: Me parece que lo hicimos por diversión. Era como que nos hacíamos los Beatles. Solo para joder.

S: No es que odien hacer playback en televisión.

E: No, la idea es que ya que es playback divirtámonos un poco.

 

Argentina.

C: Desde Kid A, antes de que salga un álbum han estado tocando en lugares pequeños, pero no lo hicieron con The King Of The Limbs, ¿por qué?

E: Terminamos la gira de In Rainbows y queríamos volver a los estudios de grabación enseguida y tratar de hacer las canciones allí mismo. Pero vamos a tocar estas canciones en vivo. Estamos planeando algunas fechas para el año que viene.

 

C: Perdón por esta pregunta obvia, ¿la Argentina está incluida?

E: Uh, no sé, pasamos momentos maravillosos en Sudamérica la última vez. Era nuestra primera vez y Buenos Aires fue… Nos gustó mucho tocar en Brasil, en Argentina y Chile, y se podía sentir el sabor de cada país a partir del comportamiento de los fans, de la respuesta del público. En Buenos Aires el público estaba enloquecido.

 

C: Yo no pude ir pero tengo un amigo que sí y le pareció que en un momento Colin y vos miraban asombrados a la audiencia.

E: Increíble. Fue algo mágico. Esa noche había magia.

C: Y hubo un episodio en el que alguien le tiró un zapatazo a Thom…

E: Sí, es probable. Yo estaba mirando para abajo y era una locura, al frente era como una jauría de perros salvajes y me imagino que volaban cosas.

S: Y Thom agarra el zapato en el medio de la canción, retrocede por un segundo y sigue cantando, no para. ¿Vos lo viste?

E: Sí, sí, lo vimos, pero no fue la gran cosa, era parte del entusiasmo.

C: Estábamos preocupados con que después de eso no quisieran venir de nuevo…

E: ¡No, no, no, fue genial!

 

11010898695?profile=original

Segunda parte de nuestra entrevista exclusiva con Ed O´ Brien. La charla se suelta, nuestro entrevistado también, y todo termina en una conversación de amigos en la que Ed se explaya sobre algunos de sus gustos personales, fútbol, y particularmente sobre Carlitos Tevez. Que la disfruten.

 

Maduración.

C: En algún momento dijiste como que estabas preocupado por la ausencia de guitarras en Kid A o Amnesiac.

E: Sí, fue años atrás.

C: ¿Ahora disfrutás jugar más con los efectos de sonido?

E: Mirá, cuando dije eso estaba hablando del principio de la grabaciones de esos discos, pero duró nada (hace un gesto con los dedos). Fue un ajuste que había que hacer. Nosotros habíamos grabado tres discos llenos de guitarras, y de repente no había espacio para eso. Así que, inevitablemente, como con cualquier cambio que hay en la vida…

C: ¿Hubo algún momento en el que, como banda, se plantearon cómo pararse frente a la audiencia? Porque hace poco vimos el show del Astoria de 1994 y se veían mucho más rockeros.

E: Lo que uno hace en el escenario ni siquiera lo piensa, simplemente se da. Probablemente antes nos movíamos más.

S: Sí, por ejemplo, vos saltabas.

E: Sí, sí, ya no lo hago más, no sería apropiado… Aquella música se prestaba más porque yo era joven. Más joven.

(Risas)

S: ¿Te parece que la música refleja en los discos la madurez de la banda y de ustedes como personas?

E: Creo que lo que ocurre es que conforme uno se hace más viejo como persona va cambiando, se mueve. Y la banda cambia porque sus miembros lo hacen. La música es una cosa muy honesta en ese sentido. Cambia con uno. Sale de uno, así que es inevitable.

C: ¿Tenés algún sitio personal donde vas cuando querés desaparecer?

E: Bueno, teniendo hijos se vuelve cada vez más difícil hacer eso, pero supongo que ese lugar es mi casa. Cuando quiero desaparecer voy a casa. Y me gusta pasar tiempo en el jardín o ir al bosque, acampar con mis amigos… Pero no lo hago. Sería lindo tener tiempo para desaparecer, pero no tengo tiempo.

S: Pero ahora, como banda, ¿se dan más tiempo para su vida personal que antes?

E: Sí, o sea, cuando tenés hijos tenés más responsabilidades, y desde que firmamos nuestro primero contrago como banda en 1991 no paramos hasta 1998. Así no se puede ser padre, ni marido. Ahora las cosas están más balanceadas, porque uno tiene su responsabilidad, es importante que tus hijos crezcan como seres humanos con equilibrio, y eso significa que tengan un padre con el cual encuentren su camino.

 

Proyectos.

C: ¿Cómo se las arreglan para estar juntos como grupo después de tantos años?

E: Para empezar, porque sentimos que todavía nos gusta hacerlo, seguimos amando tocar juntos, haciendo música que, fundamentalmente, amamos. Es una parte de nosotros. Y segundo, somos como hermanos. Como en cualquier familia, no vamos a todos lados juntos, pero somos hermanos, hay un montón de amor involucrado. Pero más que nada podríamos ser hermanos pero no tendríamos necesariamente que hacer esto, así que lo principal es que seguimos amando hacer música. Nos sentimos muy afortunados.

S:¿Y ocurre a veces que tenés ganas de matar a tus hermanos?

E: ¡Sííííííí, por supuesto!

C: Si no fuera así no sería realmente amor.

E: ¡Exacto!

C: ¿Qué proyectos personales tenés en este momento?

E: Bueno, me propongo crecer como guitarrista, así que estoy en eso. Escribo canciones. También paso tiempo con mis hijos: no van a ser niños toda la vida, tienen siete y cinco años. Pasamos unas lindas vacaciones las últimas seis semanas, estuvimos recorriendo Francia, acampando y eso. Pero siento que lo que más me ocupa, aquello en lo que estoy metido, es Radiohead. He hecho otras cosas, tengo pequeños proyectos musicales, como tocar con otra gente. También estoy involucrado en la Featured Artist’s Coalition, que nuclea artistas para tratar de tener voz y voto en la industria discográfica. En este momento hay un montón de artistas siendo esquilmados, así que fundamos esta coalición para ver si logramos hacernos oír a la hora de las negociaciones en la industria. Y está bueno, es interesante. Así que estoy muy ocupado.

S: ¿Y estás pensando en sacar algún álbum solista quizá?

E: ¡Quizá! No quiero sacar un disco cualquiera. Ya hay mucha gente sacando discos que están más o menos bien. A mí me gustaría hacer uno que fuera realmente bueno, así que cuándo será eso no lo sé.

S: Si se dan las posibilidades…

E: Sí, absolutamente. Me gustaría mucho. Ya sea cantando yo o que cante otra persona. Hay que encontrar la gente apropiada, no quiero hacerlo todo yo. Me gustaría trabajar con grandes músicos.

S: ¿A lo mejor con miembros de Radiohead?

E: Sí, a lo mejor. ¿Por qué no?

C: Me encantaría oír un disco en el que cantes vos… Soy muy fan tuya.

E: Uh, ¿en serio? Bueno, muchas gracias. Mirá, como cantante estoy mejorando. Uno tiene que encontrar una voz propia y yo todavía no lo conseguí, pero en eso ando.

C: En verdad vos usás la voz como si fuera un instrumento más a veces. Por ejemplo en Karma Police, cuando hacés la segunda voz. Me encanta cómo queda, hay un sentido de plenitud ahí.

E: ¡Bueno, gracias! Qué lindo oír eso.

Industria.

C: Recién hablabas de ayudar a que los artistas sean escuchados. ¿Cómo ves el futuro de la industria de la música?

E: No lo sé. Me parece que las cosas son difíciles para las bandas jóvenes. Quiero decir que en realidad toda la vida fue así. Siempre habrá buenos músicos y gente dispuesta a oír lo que hacen, ese es el lado positivo. Ahora, cómo se desarrollará la cosa no sé, no estoy seguro.

S: ¿Te parece que los fans estarán dispuestos a pagar para obtener música online y dejarla de bajarla gratis? Tenemos entendido que vos no estás en contra de las descargas, en el sentido de que ayudan a difundir más la música.

E: Mirá, cuando éramos chicos había un intercambio en el que uno pagaba por algo y realmente se ponía a escucharlo. Ahora cuando vía las discográficas o lo que sea me llega un disco la verdad es que no lo escucho. En cambio cuando lo compro es distinto. Lo que me parece es que a lo que te bajás gratis no le das mucha bola. No sé, quizá estoy equivocado.

C: Es verdad, porque cuando valorás algo…

E: Claro, cuando tenés toda la música te falta el tiempo para ponerte a escucharla realmente. Cuando conectás de verdad con la música la escuchás un montón. Yo no escucho mucha música, pero lo que escucho lo hago de verdad. Si lo obtenés sin costo alguno, tenés la canción y… (hace un gesto con la mano como de tirar algo lejos). Pienso que muchos músicos necesitan que se pague por oírlos. No estoy hablando de nosotros, sino de músicos que recién empiezan. El problema es que las compañías discográficas han amenazado duramente a la gente que quiere escuchar música, a los fans, y ahora lo que está ocurriendo es el resultado de eso; así que tratamos de hacer las cosas más fáciles para los fans, que paguen menos plata. Pero las nuevas generaciones de chicos no están dispuestas a pagar por los discos. Y si yo tuviera la edad de ellos tampoco lo haría, así que no voy a ser yo quien…

C: Sí, es como que está ahí y basta con clickear.

E: Es una lástima, pero es como es.

C: Pero también pasa que uno tiene la posibilidad de conocer cosas a las que no accedería de otra forma.

E: Sí, totalmente. Es un modo de descubrir cosas, y eso está buenísimo, es muy excitante. Como cuando uno era chico y alguien compraba un disco y nos hacíamos copias, lo escuchábamos y, si de verdad nos gustaba, íbamos a comprarlo.

S: ¿Por eso hicieron el “pagá lo que quieras” para In Rainbows? ¿Sirvió para descubrir el valor que la gente le otorgaba a la música y lo tuvieron en cuenta para The King Of The Limbs?

E: Sí, hubo todo un debate acerca de cuánto debería costar un disco, qué cosa debería ser un disco, y se estuvo dando vueltas al asunto, todos haciéndose la pregunta: “Cuánto te parece que vale”. Está bueno, hace que la gente discuta. Me gustó oír de familias donde el chico de catorce años quería comprar el disco, pero como no tenía tarjeta de crédito le tenía que pedir al padre, y se daba esa discusión acerca de qué precio ponerle.

S: Así que están contentos con el resultado del experimento de In Rainbows. Fue un gran tema de debate en Internet.

E: Síííí, fue increíble.

 

Música, fútbol y otras yerbas.

C: Y, ¿qué música estás escuchando últimamente?

E: Mi disco preferido desde hace varios meses es de una banda que se llama Tame Limpala. ¿Los conocen? Qué más me gusta… Me gusta bastante Adam & The Ants. Me gusta las cosas que suenan como School of Seven Bells. También me gusta Carbou, con su disco Swim. La semana pasada fui a ver un grupo que me encanta llamado Other Lives, que tienen un disco que está por salir que se titula Tamer Animlas. Son una gran banda originaria de Oklahoma.

C: Y sé que te gustan los Smiths ¿Los seguís oyendo a ellos o a Morrisey?

E: Mmmmm, muy ocasionalmente escucho esas cosas. Por ahí los oigo en la radio, pero no, no me pongo a oír un disco de los Smiths o de Morrisey actualmente, salvo muy cada tanto.

C: ¿Pensás que no envejecieron bien?

E: No es eso, hace poco me estaba registrando en un hotel y en la recepción estaban pasando This Charming Man, de los Smiths, y sonaba muy bien. Así que no es que suene fechado sino que ya lo escuché tantas veces que por ahí prefiero otra cosa.

C: ¿Y aparte de la música, qué te gusta?

E: Me gusta el fútbol, el cricket. Los deportes.

C: ¿El fútbol para jugar o para mirar?

E: Para mirar, todo para mirar. El fútbol me encanta.

C: Sos simpatizante del Manchester.

E: Sí, del Manchester United. Me intrigó mucho el descenso de River Plate y todo el quilombo que se armó alrededor.

C: Yo soy de River.

E: Uh, ¿vos sos de River Plate? Tengo un amigo cuya familia tiene plateas en River Plate y me dice que cuando vaya a Buenos Aires la próxima vez tengo que ir a ver un partido. Me encantaría. Me acuerdo del Mundial 78, ese equipo en el que estaban Mario Kempes, Pasarella… Kempes estaba en River Plate, ¿no? Era una estrella. Pasarella era Capitán. Y me acuerdo de que fue el primer Mundial que vi. Estoy al tanto de que eran tiempos complicados en la Argentina.

C: Sí, y en verdad el mundial fue medio como una puesta en escena.

E: Por el partido con Perú, ¿no?

C: Sí, se supone que la dictadura en ese momento usó aquello para disimular, porque en el país estaban haciendo desaparecer gente.

E: Sí, sé que fue terrible. Sabés que Johan Cruyff, que jugaba para Holanda se negó a ir a la Argentina por lo que estaba pasando, lo que es un gran gesto. Me habría gustado que más jugadores y más equipos hubieran hecho lo mismo. Siempre me acuerdo de la iluminación en lugares como Córdoba, Mendoza… era muy, muy gráfico, asombroso.

C: Eso pasa, ¿no? Que cuando sos chico y mirás un mundial es muy vívido, te queda el recuerdo.

E:¡Totalmente! ¿Vos de cuál te acordás?

C: Italia del 90.

E: Ah, ese fue buenísimo.

C: Y la Argentina llegó a la final.

E:¡Es verdad!

C: ¿Y te gusta Carlitos Tévez?

E: ¿Carlos Tévez? Sí, es decir, es un jugador extraordinario. Podría ser el mejor del mundo, pero el problema son sus actitudes. Yo entiendo que él estaba lejos de sus hijos y todo eso, que había roto con su mujer… pero podría haber sido un héroe en el Manchester United… y se fue al Manchester City. Es un gran jugador, pero tenemos mejores recuerdos de tipos con integridad y verdadero corazón, gente como Cantona. Y Tévez no es así. Es un mercenario.

C: Juega por la plata.

E: Es una pena, porque podría haber sido como Cantona, pero no tuvo huevos.

C: ¿Cómo está el Manchester ahora?

E: ¡Bien! Es un equipo muy, muy joven, con mucho entusiasmo. No ganaremos la Champion’s League pero podríamos ganar la Premiership. Es un lindo equipo. El promedio de edad es de veintidós años. Increíble.

S: ¿Le resulta fácil al Manchester United conseguir jugadores jóvenes?

E: Sí, tienen buenas inferiores.

C: ¿Y tu relación con el cine?

E: Buena, no mucho pero algo veo. Me encanta Stanley Kubrick

C: El que también te gusta es Wim Wenders, ¿no?

E: Sí, Wim Wenders me gusta. No he visto todas sus películas, pero Paris, Texas significó mucho para mí cuando era joven. También me encanta el actor inglés Peter Sellers. Me gusta la buena comedia. También está esta película de Charly Braun, Por el camino. Un hermoso viaje a través de Uruguay entre un chico y una chica, con un lindo romance. Me fascinó. Les dejamos que usen música nuestra.

C: Ahora que mencionás lo de la música y el cine: han estado en diferentes películas, como Twilight. ¿Realmente les gustó ser parte de esa clase de cine?

E: La que es interesantes es la primera de la saga. Mucha gente decía “escuché la música de ustedes en esa película”, y la vi con mi mujer y en verdad la disfruté. Pensé que estaba bien y que si fuera adolescente iría a verla a full. No sé cómo serán las otras. Pero también, lo que estuvo bueno fue que mucha gente joven escuchó nuestra música con la película y les gustó. No participamos en muchas películas como esa, aunque todo el tiempo nos están solicitando que lo hagamos.

C: Está buenísimo eso de conocer determinada música a partir de una película.

E: ¡Sí, absolutamente! Me copé con la música de Ry Cooder a partir de lo que hizo para Paris, Texas. Yo estaba onda “¿y esto qué es?. Fue increíble.

C: Y con el poder de la imagen se hace mejor todavía.

E: ¡Sí!

 

Agradecemos a Julie Calland, Richard Walsh y, muy especialmente, a Ed O’Brien por su amabilidad y buena onda.

 

Interview with Ed O’Brien. Part Two.

 

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rabid fans?

I'm currently listening to an interview with Radiohead on Spotify. Here's the link if you're interested.
Anyway, so there was this american woman who was an editor at a music magazine or something. She said "the band (Radiohead) obviously has fans, and those fans are very, very rabid." (The stupid statement is around 20-25 minutes in the interview.)

Sorry, when did she get to generalise crazily like that? So we're all rabid now, because we like/love (!) Radiohead? What's up with that? I mean, really?
Sometimes I wonder why some people have the right to speak their minds.
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WAITING FOR THE NEW ALBUM !

11010877297?profile=original

Lady Newell & Friends ( Guest Curator WASTECENTRAL) ladynewellandfriends@gmail.com


English

There’s a new Radiohead album !!????????????????!!!


Gilles Peterson: ‘There’s A New Radiohead Album If You’re Wondering’

Gilles Peterson (BBC Radio 1) says: “I think we’re just lucky that Radiohead are having some free time at the moment. And Thom was just hanging out. He enjoyed himself. And there’s a new Radiohead album if you’re wondering. Just done I believe,”DIY »

http://www.thisisfakediy.co.uk/articles/news/gilles-peterson-theres-a-new-radiohead-album-if-youre-wondering

News » Radiohead » Posted 27th January 2011, 5:57pm

Gilles Peterson: ‘There’s A New Radiohead Album If You’re Wondering’

Those are the words of Gilles Peterson, speaking during the highlights show for his Worldwide Awards on BBC Radio 1.

“I think we’re just lucky that Radiohead are having some free time at the moment. And Thom was just hanging out. He enjoyed himself. And there’s a new Radiohead album if you’re wondering. Just done I believe.”

Those are the words of Gilles Peterson, speaking during the highlights show for his Worldwide Awards on BBC Radio 1. The Radiohead frontman made an appearance to present the award for Album of the Year to Flying Lotus, and is suggested to have spilt the beans at some point
during the evening.

Of course, with Radiohead, you're never exactly sure if it's true. Expect a denial and claims they've scrapped the lot
within the week.

Español

http://www.crazyminds.es/?p=5919

Nos hacemos eco de una de las noticias que pueden dar que hablar en las próximas semanas. Hace unos días, durante la gala de entrega de los Worlwide Awards de la BBC Radio 1, el líder de Radiohead y Gilles
Peterson, locutor de la cadena, estuvieron hablando sobre el
nuevo disco de la banda británica.

Al menos eso es lo que se desprende de las palabras de Peterson en el resumen que hizo de la gala. El presentador afirma que Thom Yorke le dijo que la banda se estaba tomando un periodo de descanso en estos momentos. “Thom está un poco desconectado de
todo. Está disfrutando de sí mismo. Y si me preguntas, ya hay un nuevo disco de
Radiohead. Ya hecho, creo”, fueron las palabras de Peterson.

Esperemos que sea cierto lo que dice, aunque ya se sabe que con Radiohead nunca se puede estar del todo seguro. Algunos recordarán cómo con su último disco, In Rainbows, la banda decidió editarlo en formato digital al módico precio de la voluntad, después de que muchas de las canciones se filtraran. Con estos antecedentes, no sabemos qué nueva sorpresa nos podrá traer el grupo conla llegada del nuevo disco. Habrá que estar atentos a las noticias que salgan en las próximas semanas.


Frid, 12 November

Written translation

http://consequenceofsound.net/2010/11/10/jonny-greenwood-radiohead-almost-finished-with-new-album/


English:


I think this italian writer (referred to here) has, either through over-enthusiasm, or frustration at all my non-committal answers, mistranslated me a little....in fact we haven't quite finished the album - in the studio at the moment - nor have we yet considered any touring. The plan is to have no plan until the record is finished....hope that's a little clearer!

Jonny Greenwood



Pienso que este periodista italiano, tal vez porque estaba demasiado entusiasmado o frustrado ante mis evasivas respuestas, cambió un poco mis palabras.

De hecho, realmente no hemos terminado el álbum – de momento estamos

en el estudio - ni hemos todavía pensado en ningún tour.

El plan es no hacer planes hasta que la grabación del nuevo álbum esté terminada….

Espero que esto aclare un poco las cosas!

Jonny Greenwood


Jonny Greenwood: Radiohead “almost finished” with new album


11010877697?profile=original




English

The surprise redesign of Radiohead’s website gave us the first indication that a new album might be close, but now we have some actual words to back it up. Speaking recently with Rolling Stone Italia (via At Ease), Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood confirmed that the band is “almost finished” with the follow to 2007’s In Rainbows and plan to support the release with a “big tour.”


While Greenwood didn’t digress much on specific aspects of the album (he
even admitted he tends to remove himself from the decision making
process), the guitarist did say “10 pieces (tracks) maybe
some more” would be included. Greenwood also noted that the band has yet to
decided how to release the effort.
"


El nuevo disco está casi terminado


Español. Gracias por la traducción Radiohead Mexico


La revista Rolling Stone Italia lo entrevistó:


¿Y qué hay del nuevo álbum?


Ya lo estamos terminando, para después irnos a un enorme tour.


¿Van a distribuirlo del modo tradicional o han inventado una nueva forma de venderlo?


Aún no lo sabemos. Para el tiempo en el que hicimos In Rainbows pareció bien haber experimentado con él vendiéndolo gratis.


¿Qué tipo de álbum será?


Tendrá 10 canciones; quizá más. No sé a ciencia cierta. Es que en la banda soy alguien que se desespera rápidamente y por eso no tomo partido en la parte seria de la
producción.




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"Sadness falls upon the land..."

In a lengthy interview in the latest issue of The Believer magazine, Thom Yorke has revealed that we'll probably be waiting quite a long time for the next proper Radiohead album. We're more likely to get some EPs or singles or one-off musical releases (perhaps like "Harry Patch [In Memory Of]"?) in the near future."None of us want to go into that creative hoo-ha of a long-play record again. Not straight off," Yorke said. "I mean, it's just become a real drag. It worked with In Rainbows because we had a real fixed idea about where we were going. But we've all said that we can't possibly dive into that again. It'll kill us."He clarified that Radiohead doesn't inherently hate the concept of the full-length. He said, "I mean, obviously, there's still something great about the album. It's just, for us, right now, we need to get away from it a bit." Later, he added, "In Rainbows was a particular aesthetic and I can't bear the idea of doing that again. Not that it's not good, I just can't... bear... that."One kind of Radiohead-related music that might materialize? Orchestral works. As Yorke told The Believer, "Jonny [Greenwood] and I have talked about sitting down and writing songs for orchestra and orchestrating it fully and just doing it like that and then doing a live take of it and that's it - finished. We've always wanted to do it, but we've never done it because, I think the reason is, we're always taking songs that haven't been written for that, and then trying to adapt them. That's one possible EP because, with things like that, you think, Do you want to do a whole record like that? Or do you just want to get stuck into it for a bit and see how it feels?"The entire interview is well worth reading, with Yorke celebrating the death of the CD and the downfall of the music industry as we know it, reflecting on the difficulty of environmentally-friendly touring and music releasing, and musing on the state of Radiohead in general. There's also this wonderful exchange:The Believer: Do you feel like there's any definitive sound that you've been solidifying over your career?Thom Yorke: I fucking hope not.Here is part of the interview:THE BELIEVER: In some ways, the way Internet singles work is close to the way things used to be with the music industry in the ’50s, before full-lengths were the thing, and radio singles were what defined artists.THOM YORKE: Right, and if you forget about the money issue for just a minute, if it’s possible to do that—because these are people’s livelihoods we’re talking about—and you look at it in terms of the most amazing broadcasting network ever built, then it’s completely different. In some ways, that’s the best way of looking at it. I mean, I don’t spend my fucking life downloading free MP3s, because I hate the websites. No one seems to know what they’re talking about. I’d much rather go to sites like Boomkat, where people know what they’re talking about.BLVR: Boomkat is great.TY: It’s brilliant. To me, that’s a business model. It’s like when I used to go to music shops in Oxford. You’re looking at this and you’re looking at that and there’s a whole line of other things going down the side saying, “You’ll probably like this,” and “You might like this.”BLVR: I love those stores where everything’s hand-selected and the clerks write little descriptions about the music.TY: Yeah, and you can listen to it all. I mean, Boomkat is very specific with the type of stuff they flog there, but I can’t see why that wouldn’t work for all music.Source: The Believer MagazineHere's a bit more of that same interview:[Believer]: Do you think [the In Rainbows pay-as-you-will method] worked?[Yorke]: Oh, yeah. It worked on two or three different levels. The first level is just sort of getting a point across that we wanted to get across about music being valuable. It also worked as a way of using the Internet to promote your record, without having to use iTunes or Google or whatever. You rely on the fact that you know a lot of people want to hear it. You don’t want to have to go to the radio first and go through all that bullshit about what’s the first single. You don’t want to have to go to the press. That was my thing, like, I am NOT giving it to the press two months early so they can tear it to shreds and destroy it for people before they’ve even heard it. And it worked on that level. And it also worked financially.[Believer]: Do you think this method would work for other bands who aren’t as known as Radiohead?[Yorke]: With the press, we’re in a lucky position where we don’t really have to rely on a reviewer’s opinion, so why would we let that get in the way? If people want to play it for themselves, why don’t we just give it to them to listen to? I just don’t want to have to read about it first.[Believer]: And that style of release definitely promotes the album as a work of art, rather than a bunch of singles floating around the Internet.[Yorke]: Oh, that’s interesting. I appreciate that. Unfortunately, a lot of people got the album in the wrong order.[Believer]: What about the idea of an album as a musical form? You think that the format is still worthwhile amid iPod shuffling?[Yorke]: I’m not very interested in the album at the moment.[Believer]: I’ve heard you talk a lot about singles and EPs. Is that what you’ve been moving toward?[Yorke]: I’ve got this running joke: Mr. Tanaka runs this magazine in Japan. He always says to me, “EPs next time?” And I say yes and go off on one, and he says, “Bullshit.” [Laughs] But I think really, this time, it could work. It’s part of the physical-release plan I was talking about earlier. None of us want to go into that creative hoo-ha of a long-play record again. Not straight off. I mean, it’s just become a real drag. It worked with In Rainbows because we had a real fixed idea about where we were going. But we’ve all said that we can’t possibly dive into that again. It’ll kill us.
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Jon Stewart Vs Jim Cramer - MUST SEE!! !

In case you missed this incredible interview from last night's The Daily Show between Jon Stewart and Jim Cramer. It was refreshing to finally see television digging deep into what's really going on with the economy and what we are being fed by the media. Enjoy...Part 1Part 2Part 3Saludos!-SSA
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