Nils Frahm says NFTS are “the most disgusting thing on the planet”

Nils Frahm has condemned NFTs in a new interview, saying that the increasingly popular new format is “crap”.

During a conversation with The Independent, the German contemporary composer expressed his thoughts on the NFT (non-fungible token) cryptocurrency craze that has recently been embraced by the likes of Kings Of Leon, Grimes, Lindsay Lohan and Aphex Twin.

Frahm told the publication that he believes NFTs were “the most disgusting thing on the planet right now”, adding: “Even some of my heroes like Aphex Twin are selling, sorry, crap for 130,000 bucks.”

He went on to say that it is “unforgivable to participate in something which is so bleak and wrong”.

Nils Frahm
Nils Frahm. CREDIT: Stefan Hoederath/Redferns

As NME explained in a recent blog, NFTs “act like digital gold bars, rare trading cards or paintings kept in safe storage – they’re kept on the blockchain (basically a Cloud for financial assets, but where everyone with an account keeps a note of what you own) in your name but you can only sell or trade them as collectibles.”

The aforementioned Aphex Twin appears to have hidden something in an NFT that went up for sale earlier this month, as we reported over the weekend. The producer, real name Richard D. James, sold his first non-fungible token for $128,000 (£91,000) on March 14.

Gorillaz, meanwhile, have been accused of being hypocritical due to the format’s effect on climate change. Last week, the Damon Albarn-led band announced that they would be selling an NFT to commemorate the 20th anniversary of their debut album.

As noted in a recent report by Wired, the impact of selling NFTs on climate change and the environment could be hugely negative. The publication claimed that the 10 seconds it took for cryptocurrency website Nifty Gateway used up 8.7 megawatts of energy – which is similar to how much electricity one household uses in a year.

However, NFTs have recently won praise from Calvin Harris. “The fact that smaller artists can have ownership over their music and literally just make what they want and then let the people decide,” he said. “It seemed like such a great, direct way of doing it.”

Lindsay Lohan, who released her new single ‘Lullaby’ as an NFT, said the format is “a great way to bridge the gap between the consumer and artist”.

Nils Frahm’s new album ‘Graz’ arrived on Monday (March 29) to mark Piano Day. The record follows on from his live album and concert film, Tripping with Nils Frahm, which came out last December.