Pet Shop Boys planning to let AI finish off their songs
The Pet Shop Boys are thinking of letting artificial intelligence finish off their songs.
Neil Tennant, 68, and his bandmate Chris Lowe, 63, were recently left amazed when the 15-year-old daughter of their manager asked an AI bot to produce a song in their style, which it quickly pumped out.
Singer Neil told the new issue of the Radio Times: “There’s a song that we wrote a chorus for in 2003 and we never finished because I couldn’t think of anything for the verses.
“But now with AI you could give it the bits you’ve written, press the button and have it fill in the blanks. You might then rewrite it, but it could nonetheless be a tool.”
The group added they are also looking at other technology as they prepare to launch their ‘Dreamworld’ greatest hits tour in Britain and Europe this summer.
Neil said he found it “quite moving” to see Abba Voyage, the “virtual residency” show in which the Swedish group were represented by avatars capturing them in their youth.
When asked if the Pet Shop Boys had thought about following in the band’s footsteps, Neil said: “Well, as we say, ‘They’re all looking at it,’ but I think Abba is a unique phenomenon.
“They’re perfect for that presentation because their sound was striving for perfection, they were only together for a short while, then they disappeared in a way that nobody else has disappeared.
“The idea that everybody always liked Abba is not true. Nobody talked about them for years. It wouldn’t be the same with, say, The Beatles.”
Chris added: “So the answer is, we’ll probably do it.”
The Pet Shop Boys recently released their first new music in three years, and put out a four-track CD called ‘Lost’ to go with their 64-page book ‘Pet Shop Boys Annually 2023’, which is out now.
Pet Shop Boys put out a new issue of ‘Annually’ every year and the 2023 edition features a host of other special content including a diary and behind-the-scenes photos from the first leg of their ‘Dreamworld’ tour, which included headlining the Other Stage at the Glastonbury Festival.
Radio Times can be ordered at www.radiotimes.com.
