NYT BESTSELLER Updated and expanded with new material from the author Kim Gordon, bassist, songwriter and singer for Sonic Youth, fashion icon, and role model for a generation of women, now tells her story--a memoir of life as an artist, of music, marriage, motherhood, independence, and as one of the first women of rock and roll, written with the lyricism and haunting beauty of Patti Smith''s Just Kids. Often described as aloof, Kim Gordon opens up as never before in Girl in a Band . Telling the story of her family, her life in visual art, her move to New York City, the men in her life, her marriage, her relationship with her daughter, her music, and her band, Girl in a Band is a rich and beautifully written memoir. Gordon takes us back to the lost New York of the 1980s and ''90s that gave rise to Sonic Youth, and the Alternative revolution in popular music the band helped paving the way for Nirvana, Hole, Smashing Pumpkins and many other acts. But at its core, Girl in a Band examines what partnership means?and what happens when it dissolves. Evocative and edgy, filled with the sights and sounds of a changing world and a transformative life, Girl in a Band is the fascinating chronicle of a remarkable journey and an extraordinary artist. The 10th anniversary edition includes a new foreword, plus a new chapter from the author on the death of a loved one and going solo as a musician.

Autorentext

Kim Gordon is an artist, musician, producer, writer, and actress. She is a founding member of the experimental post-punk band Sonic Youth. Following the breakup of Sonic Youth, Gordon formed the group Body/Head with Bill Nace. She now performs as a solo artist and her 2024 album The Collective was nominated for two Grammys, the first in her four-decade career.

Klappentext

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Updated and expanded with new material from the author and new foreword from Rachel Kushner

For many, Kim Gordon is the epitome of cool: vocalist, bassist/guitarist and founding member of Sonic Youth—one of the most successful bands to emerge from the post-punk New York scene—despite being famously reserved.

Ten years ago, Gordon distilled that coolness into her groundbreaking memoir, Girl in a Band, speaking openly about her life. From her childhood in the sunbaked suburbs of Southern California, growing up with a schizophrenic sibling, to New York’s downtown art and music scene in the halcyon days of the 80s and 90s and creating Sonic Youth—a band that would go on to pave the way for acts like Nirvana and inspire the Riot Grrrl generation. Girl in a Band is an edgy and evocative portrait of a life in art.

A decade on, Gordon’s exploration of the artists, musicians, and writers who influenced her, and of the relationship that defined her life for so long, remains a deeply intimate self-portrait of a woman who became an icon, and whose stature continues to evolve in and grow. With a new foreword by Rachel Kushner and new chapter from Kim herself ruminating on her career as a solo artist and her two 2025 Grammy nominations, her connection to touring after nearly forty years, and the death of her brother Keller.