Marc Ribot

“For me, the most radical demand of art is that it be art.”

“I feel that a lot of what I do is about trying to create a context where things can go wrong.”

“The point of protest music is to be part of a protest.”

“There's a political dimension to throwing a wrench in the gears of the smooth consumer experience.”

“You have to be willing to sound bad. That's one of the first things.”

“I've come to feel that if I can't make something happen in the first take, it's not going to happen in the fourth take.”

“Improvisation is a way of being in the world.”

“I don't think music is a language. I think music is music.”

“For me, punk rock was a moment of permission.”

“The thing about working with Tom Waits is that he creates a world, and you get to live in it for a little while.”

“Silence is a really important part of music.”

“I was interested in what happened when you took music that was supposed to be beautiful and made it ugly.”

“The history of the electric guitar is the history of noise.”

“I'm not interested in virtuosity for its own sake. I'm interested in expression.”

“My goal is not to be a 'good' guitarist. My goal is to be a guitarist.”

“There's a difference between making a statement and making a good piece of music.”

“I think artists have a responsibility to be politically engaged, but I don't think it's their only responsibility.”

“The avant-garde is a space where you can fail.”