Sex Pistols bassist Glen Matlock recently opened up about the band’s new singer Frank Carter and the renewed energy within the group, in an interview shared on Trunk Nation with Eddie Trunk.
When asked about the current state of the Pistols and how active their schedule would be with Frank Carter as the new frontman, Matlock gave a detailed update on the band’s touring activity and the positive shift in atmosphere since Lydon’s departure.
“Well, what’s happening with the band right now is we’ve been touring for the past year and a half, on and off,” Matlock said. “It sounds great. And every time we gig, somebody else wants to book us. We were supposed to be coming to America the fall just gone, or autumn as we call it, but Steve had a mishap and he broke his hand really badly, so we had to cancel or postpone the tour.”
“So the dates we’re doing at the end of the summer in America are basically fulfilling what we should have done last year,” he continued. “It changed a bit because of availabilities and things, but in the meantime, we’ve got a whole European tour in England, and from now to the end of the year, and it starts properly. We did one gig in Spain about 10 days ago, but it starts properly on the 11th of June in Austria, and then we got like 65 gigs through to the end of the year, so we’re going to be busy boys.”
Matlock also reflected on the band’s international reception and how the dynamic has changed compared to the John Lydon era.
“But last year, we were all around Europe. We went to Japan, we went to Australia, New Zealand, and they all want us back because it’s good,” he said. “Yeah, we’re not complaining. And you know what? It’s also fun. And maybe before it was all a bit gritted teeth with John Lydon.”
He then recalled a telling moment after an early show with Carter that summed up the new mood within the band.
“So we initially did this little show for a local venue in London called Bush Hall, which was kind of struggling a little bit,” Matlock explained. “So we did the show to kind of help them out financially, but also to see if it would work with Frankie, and it went down really well. And when we walked off stage, Paul’s wife said, ‘You know what, Glen, I’ve seen you with John and I’ve seen you with this, now seen you with this guy. And it’s the first time you guys have walked off stage with a smile on your faces.'”
“So, you know, there you go,” he added. “And at this point in your life… I’m not getting on with anybody, but we’re all getting on a bit now. We run around a few, but I’ll rock out and have a laugh, and that’s what we’re doing. And you know, when you’re going to see in the band and they’re all post-facing, you must buy our record because we’re the next thing since, I don’t know, that, you know, they’re all uptight. It rubs off on the audience. When you have fun on stage, it rubs off on the audience too, and they dig it more, you know, and it’s more kind of honest.”
The Sex Pistols are set to kick off their European tour on June 11th in Austria, with 65 dates scheduled through the end of the year.
The shift in the band’s energy is not entirely surprising when considering who Frank Carter is and the circumstances that led to his involvement. Carter brings a well-established punk pedigree to the role. The absence of John Lydon from the lineup has been a defining factor in shaping the band’s current direction.
Frank Carter is best known as the frontman of Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes, a band widely recognized for their ferocious live performances, as well as his earlier work with punk outfits Gallows and Pure Love. That background makes him a natural fit for the Sex Pistols’ aggressive live sound. His reputation as an electrifying stage presence has clearly translated well to the new lineup.
Carter first joined the Sex Pistols for a 2024 reunion tour alongside the band’s surviving classic members — Paul Cook, Steve Jones, and Glen Matlock. The shows marked the Pistols’ first major touring activity with a new singer in place of John Lydon. By all accounts, the reception has been overwhelmingly positive, with the band continuing to draw strong crowds across multiple continents.
John Lydon, meanwhile, has remained absent from the current lineup and has publicly criticized the reunion, making clear that he has no desire to be involved. His stance has effectively closed the door on any possibility of a classic lineup return, leaving Carter as the band’s frontman going forward.
With 65 European dates ahead and a run of American shows still to come, the Sex Pistols appear to be operating with a momentum and cohesion that, according to Matlock, was not always present in the Lydon years. For a band that has spent decades defined by tension and turbulence, the sight of its members walking offstage with smiles may be the most punk rock development of all.
