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Guitar.com Live: IDLES’ Lee Kiernan says “for me, playing live is therapy”

The guitarist spoke to us about pedals, feedback, practice and more.

Image: Visionhaus / Getty

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Guitar.com Live: Lee Keirnan, one half of the guitar section of IDLES, spoke to us about the power of performing – among many other things – and shared some wisdom on the therapeutic benefits of playing live.

“If I’m having a bad day, I get on stage and go absolutely apeshit,” he told us. “And then I come off, and I feel a bit clearer … that’s my safe place, my zone.”

Lee also noted that’s only the case if he and the rest of IDLES are well-rehearsed: “I can’t do that if I don’t know the songs. Because I’ll have to concentrate. I don’t want to concentrate on how to play our own songs!”

“I can spend all of this time off stage, practising, getting tight, and then when I get on stage – nothing. I don’t want anything in my head. I just want to have fun, dance around, throw my guitar around. And spend time with my friends.”

We also spoke to Lee about his approach to pedals and his appreciation for hefty guitar feedback. Take a look at the full interview above.

Our chat with Lee follows the release of IDLES’ highly-anticipated third LP, Ultra Mono. Read our review of the LP here.

For more from Guitar.com Live, head over to guitar.com/live.

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