Creativity Quote by James Iha

There is a whole career’s worth of band politics compressed into Iha’s casual shrug. The line starts in the language of logistics - “they kind of left to find a guitar player at the very end” - but it’s really about status. “They” does the heavy lifting: a distancing pronoun that politely redraws the boundary between decision-makers and the person being decided about. He’s narrating exclusion without lighting the match.

The emotional strategy is soft armor. “So you know” and “kind of” are classic musician deflection tactics, sanding down a story that could easily sound bitter. Iha insists he doesn’t “take it as any slight,” which is exactly what you say when you’re trying not to admit it did, in fact, sting. He’s managing the audience’s expectations: don’t turn this into a feud, don’t make me the wounded ex-member, don’t make them villains either.

Then he pivots to gratitude: “It’s flattering just to play with them period.” That “period” is a tight little full stop that works like PR and self-preservation at once. It frames participation as an honor rather than a negotiation, reframing powerlessness as generosity. In the context of legacy bands and reunion-era recording sessions - where old hierarchies reassert themselves and credits become currency - Iha’s intent is clear: keep the door open, keep the tone classy, and keep his dignity intact. The subtext is less “no hard feelings” than “I’m not giving you the satisfaction of seeing hard feelings.”