Wire's Robert Gotobed's interview audio clips

Robert Gotobed was interviewd by
Mike Thorne at the Stereo Society,
New York City, on May 16, 2000

What does it feels like to be on your first American Tour?
That’s a capital "A" and a capital "T."
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The tensions you referred to is something I have observed from a distance and sometimes close-to for many, many years. Do you think those tensions are an essential part of intense music making or do you think they’re not necessary to make intense music?
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A lot of people don’t understand the social element or the social dynamic of a group, and the way everybody spars sometimes in very aggressive ways,
sometimes in very supportive ways.
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What were you doing in the few years when you weren’t part of Wire and, secondly, when you came back to Wire, in view of what you just said,
what did you bring that was fresh?
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At some point in your life, you started calling yourself a drummer as opposed to somebody who enjoys drumming occasionally which is probably about the time that Wire was being formed. What do you think flipped the switch there?
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Was there a period after you left Wire where you didn’t play drums at all?
Did it drive you crazy?
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While you were away from Wire, you went through quite a few other drumming situations, as it were. What did you do during that period? Who else did you play with and with what type of ensembles?
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You’re always coming back to being concerned that you’re not a proper musician. Do you think most musicians are always worrying about being found out and that’s what keeps a good musician on the toes as opposed to being complacent?
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One thing that struck me with your drumming last night was that it was even more coherent and concise that it was in the olden days. In other words, the pre-break. How did it feel to you coming back? What were the differences when the four of you got back together again? Or the improvements.
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What was it like settling in with the others again, on a personal level?
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Did you all settle back into the same creative patterns or did you find yourselves taking different roles between the four of you in any way?
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There are so many artists and musicians who mention Wire as being the seminal influence in what they did--the group which started them off and which projected them. You seem to have had an undue influence in that respect. Is this something which startles you or something which inspires you?
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What’s next for Wire? I have to ask the question. I do apologize.
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