Musical Relevance Quotes

Why would heavy metal ever go away?

At one time they've been the most important thing to me. So I can't hear our records on the radio, I can't stand it, because they sound so out of what everyone else is doing.

I think my legacy is important because my songs - perhaps more than those of any other songwriter I know - cover every movement from 1965 on, socially and artistically. If you want songs about ecology, I've got ecology songs; if you want songs about spirituality, I've got spiritual songs.

The great music for so many artists - the Beatles, the Rolling Stones - was always at the moment when they were closest to pop. It would be easy for U2 to go off and have a concept album, but I want us to stay in the pop fray.

'Far Beyond Driven' was a record that was probably ahead of its time, and to this day, it still sounds as fresh as just about any other band that's out there. It was a record that was pushed to another level.

I don't want people buying my records for this summer's hit. I want people buying them because they're interested in what Ministry will have to say in the future.

For me as a solo artist, I never want to be a nostalgia act.

My worst fear is my music won't connect with the public.

So many young kids are fickle when it comes to music. There comes a time when you're not cool again.

True music must repeat the thought and inspirations of the people and the time.

If you don't write good music, people aren't going to listen to anything you say.

I'm not interested in how well someone can sing. It's what you're singing that interests me.

I hope my fans will grow with me. I want to be like Michael Jackson: 5-year-olds love his music, and 75-year-olds love his music.

With a Nine Inch Nails show, I'm building on a legacy that comes with a certain set of expectations. I have to push that forward, I have to reinvent myself, I have to feel current and valid.

I think it's something to do with the structural quality of the songs. We weren't actually trying to make stuff that was cool, or of the moment, although a lot of it was. We were trying to make stuff that was good enough to stick around and lo and behold, it has.

I feel like I am a real artist and I want to be able to feel what I am singing about. So when I sing, 'Leave (Get Out),' I have been through that. I think it is just a new generation, whether people are ready for it or not. Teenagers are dating.

Dream Theater has never been a band that hit at a particular fashionable point and said, 'OK, that's basically it.'

If 'Bobby McGee' lasts, if 'Star Is Born' lasts, if 'Help Me Make It through the Night' lasts, if all of 'em last, man... who cares?

I remember immediately - immediately - feeling like, 'I don't want to play 'We Are Young' when I'm 35. I don't want to be defined by this.'

The best music of any era lasts well, I think.

I have no interest in making music that's built for an antique shop.

I find that when I get on stage now, I don't want to perform a lot of my songs because they don't feel like me. So I want to make songs that are timeless.

One of my favorite things about 'Spring Awakening' is that it is enjoyable and important for both kids and adults to see.

I don't know if One Direction will stand the test of time. I have a niece who goes crazy for them. But the only way to judge art is to wait and see if it becomes evergreen. This takes a bit of time. Adele is a very good musician and I'd like to sing with her. But, again, time will tell if her music will become evergreen.

It's just rock and roll. A lot of times we get criticized for it. A lot of music papers come out with: 'When are they going to stop playing these three chords?' If you believe you shouldn't play just three chords it's pretty silly on their part. To us, the simpler a song is, the better, 'cause it's more in line with what the person on the street is.