Win Butler: “I am not sure Wayne (Coyne) is the best judge”

From a post titled “I still like clouds taste metallic” on Win’s scrapbook @ arcadefire.com:

Wow,
I can’t believe I am actually writing to defend my bands (sic) “real” personality. I wish I could not respond to something like this, but the reality is is (sic) that people will be asking me questions about it for the next 5 years. I also fear that people will base their opinion of our band on the media quotes of a guy who doesn’t even know us.

The only time we have ever shared a stage with the Flaming Lips was our last show on the Funeral tour at a festival in Las Vegas (over 3 years ago)…we arrived the morning of the show from Brazil, slept all day and awoke into some kind of surreal Vegas jet-lag dream in which we were playing after the Flaming Lips…how strange…I was really excited to meet Wayne. Clouds Taste Metallic was a huge record for me, and growing up in the weirdness of Houston, I always imagined Oklahoma City to be in the same universe. I was really nervous to meet him and I felt a little weird that we were playing after them. We traded a little hello, but he was a hard guy to get a read on. Steven Drodz (sic) was super nice, and I felt good after talking to him…

So…I am not sure Wayne is the best judge (based on seeing us play at a couple of festivals) if we are righteous, kind and goodhearted people like The Edge and Justin Timberlake (who I am sure he knows intimately as well). I can’t imagine a reason why we would have been pompous towards The Flaming Lips, a band we have always loved, on that particular night, all those years ago. Unless I was way more jet-lagged then (sic) I remember, I hope I was less of a “prick” then (sic) telling Rollingstone that a bunch of people I don’t know at all are really assholes. As a closing note, the main point that I am offended by in this whole thing is for Wayne to say we treat our audience like shit…

At times like these I am comforted by knowing that even though Wayne slammed Beck all those years ago, he seems like a really nice guy to me. I guess everyone has a different idea of what being pompous means.

Win (arcadefire.com)

My only question is how did one festival in Vegas become a couple of festivals between the second and third paragraphs. Otherwise, pretty quick and somewhat surprising same-day rebuttal from a guy whose publicist officially offered “no comment” for the band earlier today. I also think this entire thing is completely ridiculous and intensely entertaining, and promise not to keep posting these goddamfoolhardy pullquotes and carefully-worded responses on a piecemeal basis until David Byrne chimes in. (Also seriously waiting for Gibby Haynes to throw his hat into the ring any second now.)

EARLIER TODAY IN ROCK STAR TRASH TALK
» Wayne Coyne: “Who does Arcade Fire think they are?”

Top photo by Victor, AF @ The Greek, May, 2007