international news _ JONTY SKRUFFF _ 6th September, 2005

Tom Tom Club - Fenders Are Sexier Than Laptops

Chris and Tina from legendary punk-funk-disco combo Tom Tom Club chatted to Skrufff this week as they visited France to help restore Tina's mother's house in Brittany, and revealed they remain firm believers in the vitality of rock music.

"Mick Jones (from The Clash) said to us about ten years ago 'you know there's a lot of music today that's got fuck all to do with playing the guitar'," said Chris "Still, kids keep on rockin' the guitar and the drums. Let's face it, a Fender is sexier looking than a laptop."

The American duo first made their names as the bassist (Tina) and drummer (Chris) in seminal new wave punk band Talking Heads in the 70s, playing at New York's infamous rock club CBGBs and both, unsurprisingly, said they're worried about its possible closure due to rent hikes in the hugely gentrified neighbourhood.

"In our lives, CBGB's has been the place where we built our musical dreams. Had there been no CBGB's there might not have been any Talking Heads or Ramones or Blondie or Television," they continued, "Our kids play there now and their fans love it. Rock and Roll will never die and neither should CBGB's."

The pair also stressed their ongoing commitment to alternative values, stressing 'we do feel patriotic, but in an international way. We try to have an eye toward world affairs. We are not provincial or xenophobic. We're hip."

"We believe that research into alternative sources of energy should be subsidized by our government the same way the 'space race' to put a man on the moon was back in the sixties. People are smart and can find solutions. Only greed and lack of vision are preventing this." (Jonty Skrufff)