Ed toujours
Is it true that during the tour about ten years ago you were tired and had decided to quit Radiohead?
"Yes. I told them, and there was a moment of disbelief and... Nothing, then I simply said, 'ok: I'll stay and finish the tour'."
Are the different views within the band on the Middle East a source of tension?
"There's this widespread idea that, since we played in Israel in 2017, we were pro-Netanyahu and in favor of what was happening there. And obviously, Jonny (Greenwood, ed.) has ties to Israel. The problem is that we live in an era where everything is black or white. Instead, nuances exist. Years ago I published a post after the IDF had entered Gaza and it had been horrible. I wrote: I stand with the peacemakers. I got slaughtered. By both IDF supporters and pro-Pal. Obviously, what the Israel Defense Forces are doing is absolutely horrible, but what Hamas does is too. Even to their own people. So, if you criticize both things nowadays, both sides attack you. I was lucky when we played in Israel to spend time in East Jerusalem. I went to the Shuafat refugee camp, to Sabreen Studios, and met Palestinian musicians. Some were boycotted because they wanted to play music with Jewish musicians. Not everything works like the social media algorithm; nuances exist."