Thom Yorke talks about the upcoming Radiohead tour and his new solo album

On the sidelines of Thursday night's Ivor Novello Awards ceremony, Thom Yorke spoke about his upcoming solo album, a possible live return for Radiohead, and the state of the music industry. He was surprisingly introduced on stage by Harry Styles, who called Radiohead his favourite band and joked that he lost his virginity while listening to “Talk Show Host”.
Speaking to NME, Yorke confirmed he's working on a new solo record, which had already been mentioned in recent days by bandmate Ed O’Brien, whose own album “Blue Morpho” came out today. The work was made together with Sam Petts-Davies, the producer and sound engineer who also worked on The Smile's recent projects. “I'm trying to finish some things off,” Yorke explained. “It's a solo record. I'm still trying to work out exactly what it is, I'm working on the mix. Doing it with Sam Petts-Davies has been really fun, and it's quite a different thing for me.” As for the final result, the musician admitted he doesn't yet have the distance to judge it properly: “There are moments where I think, 'This is good, I like this.' For now that's enough for me.” He also revealed the title of one track: “Arse-Kissers”.

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In his acceptance speech at the Ivors, Yorke then launched a scathing attack on music industry executives and streaming platforms, accusing them of ignoring the issue of economic sustainability for musicians. According to the singer, the industry keeps hollowing out the value of emerging artists' work through self-serving playlists, opaque payment systems, and accounting practices reminiscent of the major labels of the past. "This industry will die, along with the arseholes running it, if you keep devaluing the new generation of artists in front of their fans," he stated. "Without us, you're nothing."

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Yorke also spoke about Radiohead's recent live return to Europe last autumn, calling it an “overwhelming” experience. In an interview with BBC6 he said he had no idea what to expect before the tour: “I'm really glad we did it. But before we set off I didn't know what it was going to be like.” He singled out the first show in Madrid and the Berlin gig, describing the atmosphere as one of the most memorable moments of his career.
After joking that he'll never go on tour again because “this stuff is killing me,” Yorke nonetheless left the door open to more Radiohead shows with a wry: “Yeah, maybe.” It's a possibility that seems to tie in with O'Brien's recent comments, suggesting the band is considering the idea of continuing to perform around twenty shows a year, switching continent with each new run of dates.

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