Amanda Palmer has shrugged off an apology from Pixies/Nirvana producer Steve Albini in which he labelled her an “idiot” for asking fans to play in her band for free.
In an interview with Moshcam this morning (published later this week), the New York artist said that although she is a “huge fan” of Albini’s work, he is also “a grumpy fuck”.
The Dresden Dolls frontwoman hit the headlines earlier this year when she raised a whopping US$1.2 million via online fundraiser site Kickstarter to release her new solo album ‘Theatre Is Evil’. Palmer later reached out to her fans again, asking for “professional-ish horns and strings” musicians to join her onstage in each stop of the tour.
In exchange, Palmer and her band The Grand Theft Orchestra offered to “feed you beer, hug/high-five you up and down (pick your poison), give you merch, and thank you mightily for adding to the big noise we are planning to make.”
Watch Palmer’s video for ‘The Killing Type’
Taking exception to the initiative, last week Albini published a lengthy rant on the Electrical Audio forum, saying he believed if “you are forced by your ignorance into pleading for donations and charity work, you are then publicly admitting you are an idiot.”
He later apologised on the same forum, writing: “I don’t think Amanda Palmer is an idiot, and it was rude and sloppy of me to make that impression. I’m sorry Amanda Palmer, the internet is going to tell you that I think you’re an idiot, and while that’s not true, it’s my fault.”
In addition to her 2932-word response posted over the weekend, a seemingly unfazed Palmer told Moshcam that she doesn’t “need to accept his apology… or his insult”.
“I adore Steve Albini and I’m a huge fan of his work, and I know he is a grumpy fuck,” said Palmer.
She added: “[My band] knows our fans very well, and they know us very well. We always have a good time and we are very respectful of each other. When this turned into a controversy we turned to the musicians who had volunteered and said ‘if any of you are feeling uncomfortable and want to back out, we completely understand’. Not a single person backed out. In fact a lot [of musicians] took to their own blogs and explained why they want to be part of the community.”
Palmer also explained that she doesn’t hold anything against Albini, and that she feels his comments were lifted out of context.
“He has a reputation of being very opinionated, but I feel his comments were lifted out of his online forum, and that is one of the problems with the internet. I don’t take it personally in the slightest. I know Steve Albini well enough to know if I called him up tomorrow and said can I book a session with you, he would say yes, because that’s the kind of person he is.”
However, the solo artist also added that she felt Albini’s “apology wasn’t exactly an apology,” adding “I think his apology amounted to Amanda Palmer isn’t an idiot, she’s just a dick. I don’t need to accept his apology and I don’t need to accept his insult. I just need to accept his Steve Albini-ness.”
Amanda Palmer and her band have previously revealed she’ll be touring Australia in February 2013.
:: See the awesome photos from Amanda Palmer’s Webster Hall show
:: Read the review of Amanda Palmer’s Webster Hall show
Photo: Jesse Deflorio
