John Lydon, aka Johnny Rotten, frontman for ’70s punk band, The Sex Pistols, is damn mad at Coldplay and Radiohead. He claims they are “ soulless” and don’t care about their fans. Which is funny, because Lyndon and Pistols bandmates used to spit on, curse and throw beer on their fans.
Apparently spitting was meant to be a show of affection. In any event, Lydon thinks the two bands are “pointless” because they lack passion and have no “heart and soul.”
“Coldplay and Radiohead bug the hell out of me because it’s so soulless. It just seems pointless. It’s nice but it’s tosh. They don’t care about you. They care about lining their coffers,” he said in a BBC radio interview.
“There’s nothing about heart and soul, they don’t know about heart and soul, they don’t know about people dying, living and aspiring,” he added.
The punk singer’s offhand opinion may not be entirely based in reality. After all, Radiohead famously released their last album, In Rainbows, to fans on a pay-what-you–like basis – with many choosing to pay nothing.
Coldplay is currently holed up in a London church writing a new “low-key” album, according to frontman Chris Martin. He’s worried about alienating his fans with the band’s epic sound of their last record Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends.
“Chris is determined not to be seen as a huge commercial rock juggernaut, filling stadiums and cashing in,” says a friend. “The plan is to keep them as close to their fans as possible. ”
Lydon, guitarist Steve Jones, drummer Paul Cook and bassist Glen Matlock created The Sex Pistols in 1975 and are credited with launching punk music in the UK. The notorious Sid Vicious joined the band in early 1977, replacing Matlock.
A year later, Lydon announced the break up of the band after a turbulent year on tour in which they often incited riots. Vicious was dead a year after that from a heroin overdose.
