Manic Street Preachers: Nicky Wire says band is 'more subtle now'

Manic Street Preachers bassist Nicky Wire says the band have become more subtle with their political messaging over time.

Wire, from Blackwood, Caerphilly, said the Manics had taken some "gigantic" steps over the years.

The Manics made their sixth Glastonbury appearance at the weekend, 35 years since recording their first single.

Famous for their political lyrics, the band still try to write about things that interest them.

"But whether the audience is there for that anymore, I'm not so sure," Wire told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast.

"You don't want to be that bloke in your 50s just shouting at everyone telling them that you know best.

"We've always written about things that interested us… we're probably more subtle [now], I'll admit that."

"We've always enjoyed reinventing ourselves. You're not going to last as long as we have if you don't, I guess," Wire added.

"You go from that pure punk anger and rage.

"Then you get the sort of glam rock of Generation Terrorists and then the nihilism of the Holy Bible and then you're into the orchestral, classical period of Everything Must Go and This Is My Truth," he said.

Wire said getting If You Tolerate This Then Your Children Will Be Next, a song about the Spanish Civil War and people from Wales who went to fight in it, to number one was a "crowning achievement".

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He said the band were able to keep their fan base while moving into a different direction, because their fans were "dedicated, loyal and intense".

"A lot of them have stayed with us. A lot of them drift away and then they come back.

"We're a pick and mix band. People can come in and they can leave and they can come back again," Wire said.

Deciding on the set list had been a difficult task, Wire said.

"We've done 14 studio albums and I'm the designated set list writer and it's really complicated.

"I think we've written 400 to 500 songs and to narrow that down to 15, it's a tough job."