Thom Yorke might not completely get the whole “being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame†thing, but it turns out some of his bandmates are picking up what the Rock Hall is putting down. “We’ve always been very blasé about that stuff. We just think that we just don’t quite understand it,†the Radiohead frontman said back in January about the band being amongst this year’s inductees. “We’ve had it explained to us, so it’s cool. But we don’t really understand it as English people.†While Yorke was a no-show, his bandmates, guitarist Ed O’Brien and drummer Philip Selway, turned up to accept the honor nonetheless. (They did not perform, though; instead a video retrospective of the band’s career led straight into David Byrne’s presentation.)
“We’re certainly not the most media-friendly of bands,†Selway joked on stage during Friday night’s ceremony. But just because the whole crew didn’t attend doesn’t mean the honor didn’t hit home. “This is a beautifully surreal evening for us,†O’Brien added. “It’s a big fucking deal and it feels like it … I wish the others could be here, they would be feeling it.â€
O’Brien had previously seemed not too fussed about attending, telling Rolling Stone, “I’d rather be sitting at home in front of the fire or going to a gig … it just feels non-authentic to us.†Good thing those plans fell through!