Jay Reatard spoke to Spinner about the acrimonious departure of his backing band as well as his hopes for 2010:

We'd just gotten home from a really hard tour. They called and said 'We're on your porch and need to talk to you.' I knew that voice. I asked 'Are you quitting? Just choose yes or no. It was never supposed to go on so long. It's a solo band. One tour turned into another for two-and-a-half years, pretty much nonstop. You get caught up in what's comfortable. Things that are comfortable aren't always healthy. But of course those guys are still my friends.

That's what Twitter is for -- getting blackout drunk at 6 in the morning and typing some dumb shit about your friends.

He also feels that you don't have to like him to like this music:

I don't enjoy the idea that you have to like people to like the music they make. "I don't see a Pollock on the wall and think 'I bet that Jackson dude was great to hang out with.' I look at it and I'm completely engulfed. It doesn't even matter who made it. It's an object to be enjoyed or not. You'd think people who are into independent music, who supposedly have independent thoughts, would be above [gossip]. What's the difference between Pitchfork and Weekly World News? It's usually just sensationalized crap.

As for 2010:

I might go to Puerto Rico for awhile and sleep on the beach. When I restart, I'll have a clean start. I want to have no ideas bouncing around my head. I'm going to start from scratch.