Kim Gordon Describes Final Sonic Youth Show in Audiobook Excerpt, Shares New Track "Close Your Eyes"

Kim Gordon‘s memoir, Girl in a Band, is out next week on February 24. In previously released excerpts, we’ve read Gordon’s thoughts on ex-husband Thurston Moore, the split of Sonic Youth, Kurt Cobain, Courtney Love, Lana Del Rey, Billy Corgan, and more. Now, Billboard has premiered the book’s first few pages—in audiobook format—on their alternative music podcast “The Alt in Our Stars”. You can listen to the five-minute excerpt below, starting around the 4:00 mark. 

The book opens at the final Sonic Youth show, which took place November 14, 2011 at a festival in Sao Paulo, Brazil. In the excerpt, Gordon comments on Moore’s demeanor. “Thurston double-slapped our bass guitarist Mark Ibold on the shoulder and looked across the stage, followed by Lee Ranaldo our guitarist and Steve Shelley our drummer. I found that gesture so phoney, so childish, and such a fantasy,” she said. “Thurston has many acquaintances but with the few male friends he had, he never spoke of anything personal. He’s never been the shoulder slapping type. It was a gesture that called out, ‘I’m back. I’m free. I’m solo.’”

She adds, “We had exchanged maybe fifteen words all week. After 27 years of marriage, things had fallen apart between us.” Later in the excerpt, she describes being annoyed by the “rock star showboating” he did on stage during that final show.

Toward the end of the podcast, Gordon also premiered “Close Your Eyes”, a song she wrote last fall for artist Nick Mauss’ staging of a ballet at London’s Frieze Art Fair last fall.

Watch Gordon’s Body/Head noise duo perform on Pitchfork.tv’s “+1″:

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