The seminal Sonic Youth member will release a new memoir Girl in a Band in February 2015. Here’s what you can expect to see in the book.
She is one of the most iconic, influential people in the alternative rock music scene, and she’s about to tell-all with a publishing deal. Kim Gordon has announced an official release date for her latest work, a memoir on her time in one of the most popular indie rock groups of all time.
Gordon cut her teeth as Sonic Youth’s bassist and vocalist. She helped coin the term “no wave,” which was hell-bent on destroying everything rock stood for in the 1980s. Sonic Youth, with Kim Gordon in command of the wheel, rejected the big hair and tight spandex of hair metal. They embraced a new kind of rock; one that was low-key, dissonant and made an artistic statement.
In her new memoir, Gordon will tackle two of the biggest changes in her life: leaving Sonic Youth and her husband Thurston Moore.
Moore was Sonic Youth’s longtime singer. He and Gordon were married in 1984 and had a daughter ten years later. After being together for nearly 30 years, Gordan and Moore got divorced. That same year, Sonic Youth split up for good.
While Gordon has discussed both breakups, this will be the first time she addresses that pivotal year in writing. According to Pitchfork, the memoir will focus on “what partnership means, and what happens when it dissolves.”
The memoir won’t only be about breakups and heartache. Kim Gordon will cover a wide range of moments in her life, including her move to New York and what it was like being a woman in a primarily male-dominated industry.
Girl in a Band will be one of the first new releases we’ve seen from Gordon since her 2013 tour with her noise guitar project Body/Head. The memoir will be out in stores on February 24, 2015.
The description of the upcoming memoir says:
Often described as aloof, Kim Gordon truly opens up in Girl in a Band. Telling the story of her childhood, her life in art, her move to New York City, her love affairs, her marriage, her relationship with her daughter, and her band, this is a rich and beautifully written memoir. At the heart of the book is the examination of what partnership means—and what happens when it dissolves. An atmospheric look at the New York of the 80s and 90s that gave rise to Sonic Youth, as well as the Alternative revolution in popular music that Sonic Youth helped usher in, paving the way for Nirvana, Hole, Smashing Pumpkins and many other acts. One of the most revered people in modern rock and roll, Kim Gordon is also a highly regarded fashion icon, visual artist, and the source of much fascination.
While she was busy writing her memoir, she found time to help out her longtime friends in Nirvana. In April this year, she helped welcome Nirvana into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Gordon performed alongside Lorde, St.Vincent and Joan Jett, along with the surviving Nirvana members. She performed her version of the band’s song “Aneurysm” at the induction ceremony.
Keep an eye out for her upcoming memoir Girl in a Band this February.
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