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Slash tells NME why he loves Radiohead
first posted on Treefingers by Miro · rewritten for the archive
Slash, the Velvet Revolver guitarist, tells NME why he loves Radiohead. He missed them at first and only caught on in about 2001, with Kid A, and then bought all their records.
Hail to the Thief came out just as Velvet Revolver were getting started, and it is one of the few recent records he has bought. Driving around with it took him back to the earlier albums, and for a couple of months he played nothing but Radiohead, though he admits the mood can be draining.
What he admires most is the guitar sound, unlike anything he has heard in years, however much electronic texture surrounds it. He likes the depth and strain in Thom Yorke's voice, and songs that start as plain rock and take a turn nobody expects. He accepts the comparisons with U2 and Yes but thinks the band have something of their own.
He would not try to sound like them, or seek them out to work together. He has only ever seen them on television, after trying and failing to get to their Hollywood Bowl show.
I like anything that has sincerity and originality and integrity and some fucking balls. And Radiohead have all those things.
Slash1