Sex Pistols bassist and songwriter Glen Matlock gave an interview to NME earlier this week, in which he comments on John Lydon’s pro-Trump views, an upcoming Blondie album that he plays bass on, the possibility of a new Sex Pistols album with Frank Carter singing, and more. He commented on his replacement in the Sex Pistols back in the day, the late Sid Vicious, becoming a culutural icon (“Sid played bass on one track. It’s a bit galling, to be honest. I knew Sid – we were neighbours. We hung out a bit together and he was a likeable nitwit.”), and he also gave some thoughts on Oasis, who he was asked to play bass for in the mid ’90s. He called their live show “boring,” which led to the headline “Glen Matlock on being asked to play bass for ‘boring’ Oasis,” though his full quotes are a little more measured:
What have you made of the excitement around their reunion shows?
If you’re a fan, it’s understandable. They’ve got lots of fans. I’ve always seen Oasis as a bit Status Quo. [With Quo], to hear one song once was enough. It’s a bit like that with Oasis: to hear one song once is enough. I just find them kind of samey. I know the guys. Nice blokes. I’ve gotta be careful what I say because I bump into Noel [Gallagher] quite a lot. He lives around the corner from me. I think Liam is fantastic. He sings great – he’s like Johnny Rotten but can carry a tune. He’s got a magnetic stage personality: he can just stand there and it’s riveting. The rest of the guys? No. I think they’re boring live. I’d never go to see ‘em.
Have you ever been to see them?
There was a bit of talk about me helping them out with bass a long time ago – in ’95, ’96 – and then they sorted out the problem they had with the bloke who was doing it. I got invited to see ‘em at Earl’s Court. I left. It was boring. I went again to see ‘em in upstate New York with [Blondie’s] Clem Burke. Nah – I couldn’t wait to go.
No chance of you filling in on bass for them next year, then…
The reason they didn’t want me in the first place is because they wanted someone who’d stand still. Alan McGee asked me. So I went to see ‘em and I thought: the last thing they need is someone else standing still.
Though he does say Liam is “fantastic” and “sings great,” that didn’t stop Liam responding like this when a fan on X (fka Twitter) asked what he thought of the “boring” comment: “FUCK HIM SID WAS THE PISTOLS.” There you have it.
In addition to playing in Blondie, Glen and Blondie drummer Clem Burke are also accompanying Cheetah Chrome on his just-announced new Dead Boys album, which will also feature contributions from James Williamson of The Stooges and Michael Monroe of Hanoi Rocks. That news came after vocalist Jake Hout (who joined in 2017) left the band and claimed that the band’s label, Cleopatra, wants to use A.I.-generated vocals that replicate the late Stiv Bators on the band’s new album.
Oasis’ reunion tour begins next year.