Alice Cooper claims Tame Impala and Vampire Weekend aren’t real rock bands
In a recent interview, Alice Cooper discussed the state of modern rock music, claiming Vampire Weekend and Tame Impala are incomparable with groups of yesteryear such as Guns N’ Roses or Mötley Crüe.
Cooper, who recently released his new album Road, said: “Here’s the problem, and in some ways it’s a good thing. When you think of Guns N’ Roses, when you think of Mötley Crüe, when you think of Aerosmith, there’s a certain edge and danger. When you think of Vampire Weekend or Tame Impala, I say, ‘Who wants to call themselves Tame Impala? You’re a rock band!’ I have the same problem with baseball. Why would you call your baseball team the Orioles?”
He continued: “Vampire Weekend is very good at what they do. Vampire Weekend were on Saturday Night Live, and I’m expecting vampires. But they had enough nerve to have two keyboards, and they’re wearing Polo golf shirts. Now that works if the golf shirts are stained in blood. If they’re totally bloodied out and they’re singing these nice songs, then I get it.
“That appeals to my sense of humour. But when I saw what they did, I went, ‘What a horrible waste of a great name.’ They should have been Guys That Cut the Lawn. I think they missed the joke,” he added.
Cooper later clarified his view during the conversation with Vulture, claiming that while Vampire Weekend and Tame Impala are talented at their craft, they fail to exhibit classic rock’s “attitude”. The singer explained: “Vampire Weekend and Tame Impala do something that I can’t do, so I’m not knocking them. I’m just saying don’t put them in the same category as the Who or the Yardbirds”.
He concluded: “Because I protect rock. Rock should have an attitude. Rock should have a standard, and some of these bands don’t”.
His latest comments follows a recent backlash against the shock rock icon after he made a series of comments about transgender people, controversially describing it as a “fad”. Cooper told Stereogum: “I say let somebody at least become sexually aware of who they are before they start thinking about if they’re a boy or a girl. A lot of times, I look at it this way, the logical way: If you have these genitals, you’re a boy. If you have those genitals, you’re a girl.”
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