Iggy Pop has revealed that his record label rejected the opportunity to release his new album Apres, a collection of covers sung partly in French.
Speaking at a Paris press conference ahead of the release of ‘Apres’, the punk icon said that he was not surprised that Virgin EMI were not interested in the album – calling the music industry ‘humiliating’ and a ‘torment’.
“They would have preferred that I do a rock album with popular punks, sort of like ‘Hi Dad!’ I was not going to do that!” said Iggy. Asking; “What has a record company ever done for me but humiliate and torment and drag me down?”
Speaking about the Virgin EMI rejection, Iggy added: “They didn’t want it. They didn’t think they would make any money, they didn’t think my fans would like it – very sensible attitudes for a sensible sort of person – but that’s a different sort of person than I am.”
Apres, which will be available online only via French website vente-privee.com, features unique covers of songs by The Beatles, Edith Piaf and Frank Sinatra amongst others.
Iggy Pop – real name, James Newell Osterberg – was lead singer of The Stooges, a 1960s-1970s garage rock band that influenced heavy metal and punk rock and whose live acts included Pop taking drugs, self-mutilating, verbally abusing the audience and leaping off stage.
His best-known solo numbers include “Lust for Life“, “I’m Bored” and “Real Wild Child“.
Though he will probably work with a major with the newly-reformed Stooges, Iggy Pop said as a solo artist he was unlikely to go back.
“I’ve always had a very rough time in the big time music business,” he joked. “I got kicked off every label.”
‘Apres’ is the second French inspired album by the punk pioneer following 2009′s ‘Preliminaires’.
