David Byrne explains why he doesn’t want a talking heads reunion
David Byrne and Talking Heads have become an icon and mentors for the new generations, from Olivia Rodrigo to the Paramore. After a bad break and not really pleasant statements, they found themselves two years ago for the return to the room of the classic “Stop Making Sense”, a masterpiece concert film directed by Jonathan Demme. But to go back to the stage together with playing it is not talked about. While preparing the release of his new solo album, “Who is the sky?” And an international tour – which will arrive in Italy in February – byrne explained to Rolling Stone America as the past and the present sees.
“I understand very well the requests of the fans,” explained Byrne. “I am a fan of music like everyone else. And there are artists who have stopped working, or bands that have melted, that I discovered in a period of my life in which music counted a lot and I was lost to me, I would like to see them live now. But I realize that I cannot go back. When you listen to the music at a certain moment of your life, it means a lot, but it does not mean that you can go back to it again.” Then, on the aburition of the old songs: “I am aware that they risk being a real trap: you risk becoming a Legacy Act. You earn immediately, but then you got away a hole.”
Speaking of that short return with the band to promote the reprint of the film “Stop Making Sense”, after years of tensions, he adds: “It went well. We were all very proud of that show and the film that Jonathan Demme made. We are excited that the public still wanted to see it. So we put aside our differences. Fortunately, I have not read many of the things they had said.
Byrne also reflects on the role he has assumed as a reference point for the new generations of musicians: “I don’t like to think of myself as an icon, but if people like what I do, that’s okay. I have no psychological problems about it. However, for the most part, I am enthusiastic about what I am doing at the moment, whether it is a record, a tour or anything else. And perhaps this is a great reason why some of these people are appreciating what I do. I have a certain freedom to try things and do different things, which is rare in the world of music. “
Meanwhile, “Who is the sky?”, The first solo album complete with Byrne after “American Utopia” (2018), will be released on September 5 through Matador Records: produced by Kid Harpoon, already winner of Grammy for work with Harry Styles and Miley Cyrus, includes 12 songs arranged by the Ghost Train Orchestra, Ensemble Cameristica in New York. Long -date friends and collaborators appear on the disc and new collaborations: from St. Vincent to Hayley Williams of Paramore, from the drummer of The Smile Tom Skinner to Mauro Refosco. Byrne shared the third single “The Avant Garde”. As already anticipated by Rockol, Byrne will also be on tour in Italy in 2026, with concerts in Milan, in the contexts of a tour that includes Australia, New Zealand, Europe and North America. European concerts will begin at the end of February 2026 with two dates also in Milan, on 21 and 22 February at the Teatro degli Arcimboldi.
