I want to have control.

I wouldn’t say that the new album (OK Computer) is computer friendly, maybe it’s a bit computer questioning? I don’t know, it’s like it wants to believe computers are friendly, but it deosn’t know. It wants to place trust in technology of the future, but it doesn’t know if that trust will be repaid.

Creeps, weirdos, or the new U2?

I don’t think Radiohead will be the new U2. I just think it’s wish fulfillment on other people’s parts to see some kind of pop rock thing continue or whatever and it’s like such different bands. I went to see U2 actually in Philadelphia just after the Tibet festival, and they were fantastic. I don’t know, I think the longer the record’s out the less people will make those comparisons because it obviously doesn’t stand up particularly. It’s mad, isn’t it? I respect U2’s desire to look for different things in contemporary music, trying to do different things each time. We try and do that as well. We just get bored so easily.

Creeps?

I think we’ve managed to overcome that pigeonhole three albums down the road. But initially I think it was very difficult to overcome that kind of stigma. To show how we’ve overcome it, the new record has gone into the American charts higher than Pablo Honey got with “Creep” on it. So that’s an exciting thing, and we thank whomever, the higher powers and the kids (giggle) for that ‘cause that’s f%cking brilliant.

Weirdos?

I love America. They’ve been good to us, and it’s fun. You know the tour we’re just about to do is the first proper tour we’ve done of anywhere since the last American tour, about two years ago. We’ve just been doing bits and pieces supporting various people and doing festivals. We haven’t done the proper on-the-road bus tour since then. We’re taking out a band called Teenage Fanclub to open for us, lovely band.

What the hell am I doing here?

This is our seventh or eighth tour of America and we still don’t have a clue about what America means or is or where it is. It’s such a huge country with so much diversity. I don’t think we’d ever patronize America or flatter ourselves that we thought we knew what was going on.

I don’t belong here.

You know, I just want to be able to come back here and buy some records and have a good time—oh, that sounded like Spinal Tap, “have a good time all the time.” At least we’ve always been consistent with how we’ve been over here except when we started ‘cause it was so different and scary and big. I don’t think you should ever take a band’s first album or so and have them tour America and think that’s how the band is. It’s a bit of a head-f%ck experience for a group of young, scared English boys from Oxford or wherever, you know. You can behave quite strangely for a few months. But it’s amazing.

Whatever makes you happy.

We released a six- to seven-minute single and video, and they f%cking played it. It’s cool, isn’t it? We really love that video (for “Paranoid Android”). You see, to be honest with you, we really hate making videos, because it’s really expensive. We have to do it, though, and it’s money that’s spent on stuff that’s not music. It’s depressing. But we always try to do the best thing we can or work with different people. And “Paranoid Android,” the video for that is so good. Very rarely it happens that certain videos, when you hear the song the images actually lodge in your mind.

I want you to notice.

A couple of images in “Paranoid Android” were inspired by things that happened in Los Angeles actually, of certain kinds of people who were over-wealthy and over-privileged and sort of under-intellectually powered, let’s say. About the fall of the Roman Empire? I suppose it’s kind of apocalyptic in its length, and it also tears itself up at the end. I think we’re making a reference to America there probably. Which country do you think would be closest to the concept of the Roman Empire today? Not going to be Russia, is it?

She’s running out again.

The other thing about the song… I mean, we’re just having a laugh, just taking the piss, seeing how far we could stretch things. We were really into listening to DJ Shadow and the Beatles, into the idea of cementing these completely different pieces of music together and seeing how successful it could be. That’s all it ever is really, it’s just taking an idea and seeing how far you can go with it and get away with it before someone holds up a red card and sends you running out.

I wish I was special.

As long as we get a chance to play in all these different places, to try out new songs, I’m a happy bunny, really. Yeah, no, hang on a minute. I did say it, didn’t I? I’m a happy bunny? That’s not very rock ‘n’ roll, though, is it?#