THE BEAST

Rolling Stone just published an epic new interview with U2 frontman Bono conducted by, you guessed it, Jann Wenner. In it, the Irish icon reflects on the band’s latest album, Songs of Experience, as well as his own approaches to faith and activism.

He also touches on the current music landscape, viewing it through the lens of his children. His views, however, are a bit confusing. After mentioning that one of his sons believes a “rock & roll revolution is around the corner,” he goes on to claim that “music has gotten very girly.”

“And there are some good things about that,” he continues, “but hip-hop is the only place for young male anger at the moment – and that’s not good. When I was 16, I had a lot of anger in me. You need to find a place for it and for guitars, whether it is with a drum machine – I don’t care.”

He goes on to say “rage is at the heart” of “great rock & roll,” and while that’s no doubt a valid statement, it’s a bit strange to care only about “young male anger,” yeah? Has this dude even heard of Pussy Riot? If “girly” is your word for “light,” “safe,” or “inoffensive,” you might want to update your vocabulary. Then again, he was Glamour’s Woman of the Year, so maybe he just knows something we don’t.

More interesting are Bono’s thoughts on the seismic shifts brought on by streaming culture, noting that he feels we’re on the verge of “a revolution in the way artists and their fans interact.” Even by his estimation, record labels are becoming more and more a thing of the past.