Kim Gordon will publish her autobiography, Girl In A Band, in February 2015.

The memoir will be published by HarperCollins imprint Dey Street Books and will “chronicle her choice to leave Los Angeles in the early ’80s for the post-punk scene in New York City, where she formed Sonic Youth”.

“Often described as aloof, Kim Gordon truly opens up in Girl In A Band,” a synopsis reads. “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.

“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.”

The book will also take a look at “the examination of what partnership means – and what happens when it dissolves,” a reference Gordon’s 2011 split and from Thurston Moore, her husband and Sonic Youth frontman.

The memoir’s title refers to the lyric “What’s it like to be a girl in a band?/ I don’t quite understand” from 2009 Sonic Youth track “Sacred Trickster”.

Gordon was a member of the iconic group from their foundation in 1981 until 2011, when the band went on hiatus after her separation from Moore. She has since formed a new band, Body/Head, with Vampire Belt member Bill Nace. In April of this year she joined vocalists including St. Vincent, Lorde and Joan Jett in fronting Nirvana during the band’s reformation during their Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction.

Photo: Pieter M Van Hattem