Biography

I would never do it just for the money, but would not have a problem with it if it was for the right reasons. Like if a member of Suede sent me a great piece of music, and I was inspired to write to it and felt we could make a great record. I'd do it if it didn't come across as sad, but that's a big if - I don't think bands can reform without it looking sad.

The part about being in a band that had become tiring and repetitive for me was having your life mapped out for you, and this childish need to belong to something which tells you what to do all the time. I wanted to develop beyond being an emotionally immature person who just gets up and writes songs. This solo record has made me shoulder virtually all the responsibility. (On recording a solo album)

They were the first band I loved. They're the most important band ever. They turned music on its head and reinvented what it was to be a performer. (On Sex Pistols)

Because live music pays better than making records people are being rewarded for not being creative. Time spent in the studio creating new music is sacred to me. If you're rewarded for that less, that's not a good thing.

When there's something really cheesy in the mainstream like The X Factor it inspires something in the counter culture to oppose it. The interesting flipside is with people like Bat For Lashes - people making exciting left-field music. It's a reaction to the dross in the mainstream.