Let us talk
about books around Brian Molko.
Books we
can find written about the band and Brian and also the books he loves.
To have an
idea about all the books we can find, we have here two links.
A french page, about all the Placebo books that are being sold and some that are
not anymore, and the Placebo Russia, page. Here we can find an
encyclopedia with books about the band and their history and also technical
books.
On these
lists we can find “Missunderstood- The Brian Molko Story”, which is quite
interesting. Written by Chloe Govan, who followed the band over many years and
visited an uncountable number of
concerts all over the world.A good book, not so gossipy . Have a look!
With the
help of Bénédicte Convert we could
figured out a lot of interesting details about this book: “Des Cadences Et Des
Maux” by Sébastien Michaud, 2005 (French)
Let's talk
a bit about that French review where we can find 9 Placebo books and as
Bénécite translated,
“there is
apparently (according to this article) no French one good enough to tell us
something new about the band, except the one of 2005, which is not on sale
anymore. Because of a pic Brian disliked, and he had the book removed from
stores, by legal means!
Placebo
Des Cadences et des maux
SébastienMichaud
Bénédicte
translated the post of Sébastien Michaud
found at a Bulletproof Cupi Forum where they had a big discussion
about this polemic book.
Hi !
I’ve just read your comments about the rumor
saying my biography of Placebo was the subject of legal proceedings…
It’s unfortunately not a rumor…
What I know is: Brian Molkodidn't appreciate to discover in this book a picture
of the band, shot by their photographer [Carole Epinette] as a private one (And
yes, this picture is a really trashy one… lol)
Apparently dissatisfied for not having been
consulted about the publishing of the other pictures (however, this biography
was meant to be private, and the
photographer was free to use her own pictures since she’s the author and
owner!) Molko has requested EMI France
to appoint a lawyer on this case so as to destroy the books that the editor has
on stock and to stop the selling in shops…
We didn't think fast enough, Molko (Or the
lawyer? Or the record company?)decided to sue us for damages.
According to me, I must say that Molko is not
attacking the book for its content but, indeed, for this picture… I asked him
if he wanted to collaborate with this
project: still no answer from him… I have also decided to publish an unofficial
biography, a totally authorized by the law thing, which includes good things
and bad things.
I would have understood Molko’s reaction if I
had dragged him through mud by an unfair portrait of himself or if some pictures wouldn’t have respected
his private life… But this was never the case… According to me, his behavior is
more of a spoiled rockstar, furious not to control this project.
Brian Molko can’t stand seeing a book dedicated
to his own band, music, history being published… We can wonder about the
legitimacy of such behavior when we know how voluble he had been in the past,
speaking freely of his own stories of drugs and sex of all kinds… Whatever,
where’s the logic in all that?
I wrote that book as a Placebo music lover…
Rock I thought… No, Rock made up in
business, made by a character as talented and as rotten as his rockstar status.
Music is not only about famous producers , journalists who happen to be friends
of the band, tv shows or magazines covers… There are also more personal things , some books, some fanzines [Magazines
owned by fans…] radio shows talking about the artists, not only those things
that are synonymous of royalties or big media coverage... It seems that Molko
has chosen to ignore that.
I still respect Placebo for their albums, their
gigs, their videos… But I don’t respect anymore the character capable of
forbidding a book that it was written as a tribute to his music (something that
He would only have dreamt of when he was slugging around in his London suburb
squat…) under the pretense that the picture didn't portray his good angle and his right armpit is not
well shaved…
Here are my feelings right now, even if I won’t
discard the idea of updating this book and publish it one day, I'll be
careful of not letting any temptation of
revenge appear… Because I want to speak about an artistic career and a public
character…Not about what is hidden behind it.
Anyway, you
can still buy the book on Internet but it is pricey… Have a look here If you want to get it ;-)
So, those
were some of the books about Placebo on the other hand we want to speak about the books Brian loves.
The ones that Brian has read and recommended. He also says,
books are a way to tap into new ways of expressing ideas and aid songwriting by
learning new words and turns of phrase.
1. The Net
Delusion EvgenyMorozov
2. The Power
of Now byEckhart Tolle
3. Million
Little Pieces by James Frey
4. The return of the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
5. Lady Sings
the Blues by Billie Holiday
6. Chang and Eng by Darin Strauss
7. Please Kill
Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk by Legs McNeil
8. Of Mice And
Men by John Steinbeck
9. Our Lady Of The Flowers by Jean Genette
10.The
Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera
11.The Rules
Of Attraction by Brett Easton Ellis
12.The Four
Agreements by Donn Miguel Ruiz
13. Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
14. Affluenza by Oliver James
15. Perfume - The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Süskind
16. Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk
17. Exquisite Corpse by Poppy Z. Brite
18. Absinthe: The History in a Bottle by Barnaby Concrad
19. Under The Skin: by Michael Faber
And finally the inspiration for a song on Placebo’s latest album, Loud Like Love, comes
from an unlikely place: James Frey’s controversial account of drug addiction
that drew headlines for its falsified passages. For Brian, the
book tapped into something he wanted to pursue musically. And it’s not the
first timhe has used his interest in reading to inspire a song.....
Brian spoke with Hive about his experience with books, what
sort of literature he prefers and just why he’s so compelled by James Frey.
What book
brings you back to your childhood?
The first
book that I remember sort of becoming obsessed with and carrying everywhere
with me when I was at school was a book by Milan Kundera, a Czech author,
called “The Unbearable Lightness of Being.” I carried that book everywhere and
in a year read it three or four times, I think.
I was quite
a romantic youth, I suppose. I still am, but not really in terms of romantic
like a candlelit dinner for two. More, I suppose, in a literary tradition kind
of thing. I was quite blown away by its scope really. There are so many stories
happening at the same time in this book. I also was quite fascinated with the
idea of revolution and the politics in the book. It was a real eye-opener for
me. I have very fond memories of that....
What book
would you recommend to someone who is a fan of your band?
Read “A
Million Little Pieces.” It will give you a very, very realistic view of what
it’s like to be an addict. To suffer from the disease of addiction. And what
one has to go through in order to recover. And continue to live. If one is
fortunate enough to achieve a state of recovery in one’s life, because a lot of
people don’t...
