Radiohead are "ambivalent" about their nomination to enter the 2018 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
The indie band are one of a host of British acts to make the shortlist to potentially be recognised for their contribution to music and have their history immortalised at the Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, next year. Other UK artists listed include Depeche Mode, Kate Bush, Dire Straits, Eurythmics and Judas Priest as well as Nina Simone, Rage Against the Machine, The Moody Blues and Bon Jovi among others.
But Radiohead guitarist Ed O’Brien admits he and his bandmates – frontman Thom Yorke, lead guitarist Jonny Greenwood, bassist Colin Greenwood and drummer Philip Selway – are not really bothered by the nod because to them it’s just another awards ceremony.
Speaking to Esquire magazine, he said: "It’s in our DNA to be a little ambivalent with award ceremonies.
"As a British band, it’s one of those things that it’s very lovely to be nominated, but we don’t quite culturally understand it. It’s a very American thing. Us Brits are very bad at celebrating ourselves."
Clarifying that he means no disrespect to the organisers or other artists nominated, he added: "One of the things I’ve always loved about coming over to America is American bands you can always have a really good chat with and you could talk. With British bands, there was a lot of hostility. It’s in our DNA to be a little ambivalent with award ceremonies. We haven’t had great experiences. I would never want to disrespect anything because obviously some amazing artists have been nominated. But if I’m honest I don’t understand it. It’s just kind of a British person going, ‘OK, thanks, what does this mean?’"
O’Brien, 49, also thinks the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame needs to induct more "black artists" and he believes that the hip hop genre needs far more representation.
And the ‘Paranoid Android’ rocker thinks Dr. Dre should be top of the list of artists to go in.
He said: "It’s a little bit thin on black artists and hip-hop artists. I’m just speaking as a fan of American music, I would have thought that Dr. Dre should have been in there two years ago. His name should be first on the list way ahead of Radiohead."
The final shortlist of five inductees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will be announced in December ahead of next April’s ceremony.
Radiohead ‘ambivalent’ about Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nomination
