Josh Homme of Queens of The Stone Age Rants Off..
Posted December 6, 2007 — in Music News
I don’t know if this interview with Josh Homme is a rage or a rant but this is a must read. In this no-holds barred interview Hommes talks about his disgust with Interscope Records:
‘Fuck the labels man, they suck. The last thing they’re stripping down is their own expense accounts and shit. I mean, Jimmy Iovine of Interscope Records takes a private jet or rides first class to tell a band they don’t get tour support.
I THINK OF INTERSCOPE AND ALL THESE LABELS AS THE BIGGEST FUCKING IDIOTS ON THE PLANET. And print that in capitals, because they can’t do anything to me. That’s the difference. The reason is because finally, for once, the fact that this is just their job and this is my life does a flip flop on them because they can’t stop me from being me and from playing, but they can lose their jobs and have to fucking work at Shakey’s pizza like they should’ve all along. I’m really sad for the days of the glorified groupie with the fucking hundred thousand dollar expense accounts. They’d drop bunches of bands before they would ever cut their expense accounts.
Lovely! read the full rage here..
Facebook Apologizes for Spying: Mark Zuckerberg CEO of Facebook apologized to the site’s users for the controversial new advertising feature which tracks the actions of its members when they use other sites around the Internet. Let’s hope this program is suspended soon.
Capitol v. Thomas trial not unconstitutional: A single 30 year old mother Jammie Thomas who spent hours stealing music (1,702 songs) recently said the damages handed down by the jury were unconstitutionally excessive. The Department of Justice said the $222,000 damage award is NOT unconstitutionally excessive and that Thomas’ motion ignores the fact that statutory damages are given in place of actual damages. I suggest Jammie finds a job, begin a series of weight watchers meetings, and starts supporting her favorite artists.
Holiday Layoffs: The NY Post has a column today titled ‘SONY HUMBUG’ LABEL CUTS JOBS IN WAKE OF WEAK MUSIC SALES. Universal are anticipating cuts within Universal’s Interscope/Geffen/A&M division, headed by Jimmy Iovin.
“I suggest Jammie finds a job, begin a series weight watchers meetings, and starts supporting her favorite artists.”
what a fucking stupid thing to say. you’ve just lost a reader. goodbye.
Comment by drbaker — December 6, 2007 @ 11:56 am
I probably won’t stop reading (though it’s been a loooong time since you’ve posted a band that I thought was worthwhile), but I have to agree with drbaker — what a petty, juvenile comment.
Comment by jalan — December 6, 2007 @ 12:52 pm
Where is every ones sense of humor? C’mon, stop being scrooges.
Comment by jim — December 6, 2007 @ 12:55 pm
though it’s been a loooong time since you’ve posted a band that I thought was worthwhile..
tell me, its been to long for KOAR as well. Talent sucks right now, music is in a pathetic state. But don’t worry, we have crop of bands we will be launching in the New Year…We are tough critics..
Comment by gotleib — December 6, 2007 @ 12:58 pm
guys..hit the link that KOAR has on Josh Homme
and read the comments at the end of the interview.
Comment by larry anderson — December 6, 2007 @ 1:42 pm
There’s still a Shakey’s pizza somewhere?? I thought they went out of business long ago.
Comment by DaveT — December 6, 2007 @ 1:47 pm
If you want to poke fun at her for getting busted or illegally downloading songs, sure. But a fat joke? It’s cheap and immature, not to mention totally irrelevant.
Comment by jalan — December 6, 2007 @ 2:19 pm
I still don’t understand why the labels chose to sue a single mom who only had 1702 songs. They could have sued a college student who has 30,000 songs.
I guess the labels are TRYING to show that they can do it to any normal computer user, but they CAN’T sue everyone who illegally downloads because they would be broke. Until Big Brother has a say, downloading can only be stopped by cutting the head off the snake. Attacking the problem at its source.
She’s a single mom and if I remember correctly from the first article, she doesn’t have much of income. Looks like the kids christmas gifts are coming from Goodwill this year.
Comment by Rick — December 6, 2007 @ 2:29 pm
Sounds like your pockets are doing the talking, Dean. No need for a personal attack like that.
Comment by Jon Cole — December 6, 2007 @ 3:38 pm
Homme’s interview = Priceless.
Comment by Scott — December 6, 2007 @ 3:41 pm
Cool — Capitol gets a few bucks in their coffers to buy booze for their holiday party and look like complete DOUCHEBAGS to the entire music-buying community.
Smart thinking.
If they don’t take that money and donate it to charity (or at least buy some PSA’s explaining why music should be paid for and not illegally downloaded), someone over there should be fired.
Comment by Stu Gots — December 6, 2007 @ 4:06 pm
Josh Homme seems fairly ungrateful. Where would his band be without ever being on a label. How about Josh giving back everything he’s earned from being on a label? I doubt that would happen. Somebody at a label took a chance with his band and helped him get to the status where he is now. He must have forgot that part.
Tim
Comment by Tim — December 7, 2007 @ 2:47 pm
He probably didn’t forget.
Comment by Keith Freund — December 7, 2007 @ 5:28 pm
The fat joke was tasteless.
Comment by Dave — December 8, 2007 @ 8:39 am
Oh c’mon, Tim. Kyuss had a legendary record & a cult following. And I’d like to see the worldwide numbers for their debut. Interscope had PLENTY of reasons to believe in the band, not the least of which being that Josh fronts an undeniably kickass rock band. Have you even heard the records? Josh had already spent a decade in a van building a fan base. You act like Interscope just pucked some chumps off of the street.
The labels should be grateful that a kickass rock band will to allow them to make money off of their songs. What’s fucked up is that the labels grew to be bigger than the music. So big that they became a necessary evil. You couldn’t compete on your own. And then the egos shot through the roof & now all of the sudden it’s privilege to have some jackass in a Maseratti ship your “product” across the country. Fuck that. Josh should be grateful for what? That he was allowed to keep 15% of the loot his art generated? Give me a break.
“I mean, Jimmy Iovine of Interscope Records takes a private jet or rides first class to tell a band they don’t get tour support. You know what I mean? Fuck that shit, I’m tired of it.”
The LABELS are the ones who seem ungrateful to me, Tim. Grow some balls.
Comment by Jon Cole — December 8, 2007 @ 8:16 pm
[...] The first is an interview to Josh Homme from Queens of the stone age reported by Kings of A&R. [...]
Pingback by Seeding Revolution « NuRev Blog — December 10, 2007 @ 2:35 am
jon cole is my hero.
Comment by brandon — December 10, 2007 @ 7:40 am
Jon, First of all, since the recording of music began the artist has always been at the mercy of the “money man”. This is changing for sure, but artists are still limited if they don’t have the $ to advertise and promote. Josh, knew the numbers (15% or whatever) when he signed on the dotted line. I’d like to see him try to distribute all the QOTSA records WORLDWIDE in a van.
In a perfect world, yeah, the artist would get 50% of everything. We both know that world doesn’t exist.
The good news is there is an artist empowerment because of the web, and such. Josh has a head start because his involvement with labels, that’s what I’m saying - for that he should be grateful. He’s lucky he’s established and not starting out right now with any of his bands, for that he should be grateful.
I don’t think the labels are ungrateful, but were very shortsighted, and running a business model that wasn’t very “music first” and obviously wasn’t sustainable through the changing times.
Tim
Comment by Tim — December 10, 2007 @ 8:52 am
Josh makes the records. The labels sell the record & take their cut. That’s the agreed upon system. I don’t think Josh has much of a problem with that. It’s everything else. It’s where the cuts are coming, now that revenue isn’t coming in. It’s how things are handled. It’s the fact that it isn’t & hasn’t been for a long time “music first,” it’s been “executive salaries first.” Just because the “money men” have always had some degree of power doesn’t even come close to justifying how out of hand it’s gotten.
Where do you get off insinuating that Josh should, out of gratitude, keep is mouth closed? It’s not about 50%. It’s not about “artist empowerment” or “the internet.” It’s about what happened to Trent Reznor in Australia. It’s about how all the folks who are actually in touch have lost their jobs, the bands who generate the revenue lose their support, & the fans are struck with lawsuits while clueless Doug Morris keeps the same salary he’s always had.
Oh the labels are ungrateful, Tim. You can put a million dollars in their pockets & they’ll drop you like a rock.
You should ask everyone on the Firm, everyone on Nettwerk, & maybe Clap Your Hands Say Yeah about that perfect world. While you’re at it, ask them what their personal relationship with the staff is like. How do you think artists view Terry McBride as opposed to Jimmy Iovine?
Pride comes before the fall, Tim. And the labels are falling.
Comment by Jon Cole — December 10, 2007 @ 9:30 am