Ahead of his appearance as a judge on Sky Arts TV talent show Guitar Star, Tony Visconti has heavily criticised modern pop stars, questioning how great Adele’s vocals really are.
In a recent interview with The Daily Star, Visconti commented: “You turn the radio on and it’s fluff, you are listening to 90% computerised voices,” he told the paper. “We know Adele has a great voice but it’s even questionable if that is actually her voice or how much has been manipulated. We don’t know.”
“There’s a sound to pop now that is so perfect it’s boring, because everything is fixed,” he continued. “I’m looking for virtuosos like Hendrix, Cobain, and Bowie.
“There’s no fluffy backstory, there’s no: ‘I lost my pet dog in 97 and that made me want to play’ nonsense. No-one can mistake me for Simon Cowell. Today is the worst time ever in the music industry, but Guitar Star is a step in the right direction.”
Adele hit back in a clip uploaded onto Twitter by a fan at a recent concert. The singer can be heard ranting as she says: “Some dickhead tried to say that my voice was not me on record… suck my dick.”
Recently, Visconti – who worked with Bowie from 1969 until his last record, Blackstar – said there would be “some great Bowie stuff coming out” over the next few years.
Guitar Star starts on 14 June 2016 on Sky Arts.
