Nuno Bettencourt has no fears over AI: “Look at all the technology that’s happened since the 1930s… What has changed in the guitar? Nothing”

Nuno Bettencourt has no concerns over the effects of artificial intelligence on music, in fact he believes it will only make rock ‘n’ roll “bigger”.

The Extreme guitarist believes that if anything, the sterilised sound of AI-created music will only make people want to seek out that imperfect, humanness even more.

• READ MORE: “It’s like you play the show – before you play the show. It doesn’t work”: Why Nuno Bettencourt doesn’t warm up before shows anymore

Speaking to Metal Journal (via Blabbermouth), Bettencourt explains, “Everybody’s worried and everybody’s scared, [about] how it’s gonna change anything. I love it, man. You know why I love it? I’m like, bring it on. Do more of it. Because what that does, the people who use it and think they can emulate emotion, the bigger rock ‘n’ roll is gonna get.

“Rock ‘n’ roll, if you notice – look at all the technology that’s happened since the 1930s, everything from telephones to television, to cell phones, to computers to synthesise, everything else, what has changed in the guitar? Nothing. Zero. What has changed in a drum set? Nothing. What has changed in a bass guitar? Nothing. A microphone.”

He further explains, “Rock ‘n’ roll, to me, is always there because it’s broken. It’s not artificial. It’s not perfect. It’s all the imperfections [that make] us shine. It’s the danger of it. AI can do all you want – to write lyrics, to write songs, to do whatever, even record – but it’s always gonna sound sterilised.

“Even if they tried to sound like, let’s say Led Zeppelin… Led Zeppelin didn’t even sound like Led Zeppelin every night. Sometimes they were great, sometimes they were sloppy, sometimes it was amazing, and that’s the danger. That’s the thing of rock ‘n’ roll that you will never be able to capture with AI. I don’t give a fuck how much they’re gonna try.”

Check out the interview below:

Extreme released their latest album, Six, last June. They are touring from June-September, and you can view all of their scheduled live dates now.