[making the drama scene]

I tried to translate it, maybe now it's easier to read....don't mind my spelling

Interview with Kim Gordon

"Women are communication talents"

She's regarded as a pugnacious intelectual, as an active feminist and mother of grunge: Kim Gordon, bassist and vocalist of Sonic Youth. In the stern.de-interview she talks about persistence, underground music and the slogan: "Sex Sells".

M(r)s. Gordon, Sonic Youth uses different guitars for every song. How many guitars do you have with you at the current "Daydream Nation"-tour?
I think, they're around 25.

And how many do you have at home?
(laughs) I can't count them any more. But somebody told me, the Rolling Stones would allways take 70 guitars with them and don't even use them.

Since the beginning of Sonic Youth you and the other band members have released a record every year as Sonic Youth or as solo artists. Will this go on or are you gradually getting tired of it?
Not at all! In September the new solo album from Thurston "Trees Outside The Academy", which we've just produced will be released.

You write, you draw, you produce other bands and you have designed dresses for your own label "X-Girl". You seem to be exploding from creativity...
I have sold "X-Girl", but I'm already thinking about founding a new label. I am writing a little at the time, but what I'm temted to most is graphic art: drawings and installations. In April I had a performance in New York together with the german artist Jutta Koether, a friend of mine. It was called "Dead Already" and it was about dance, movies and music.

How do you as a band manage to get along together for such a long time? Other bands break up and celebrate their comeback 10 years later...
We work very democratically and w we don't take that much drugs. Everybody of us has his own side-projects. That brings new energy into the band. You cannot expect a band, a relationship to be fulfilling all your needs.

Publications often talk about three rules you manifested during the founding of Sonic Youth...
Three rules? What are they?

No member should be in the role of a frontman, the music should stand out from mainstream-rock and every band member should throw of her/his musical chains.
I don't know...I'm not familiar with these. But you know how journalists are. One writes something and all the others copy it. It's like "silent mail" ("Stille Post", the game, I don't know what it's called in english)

How are the rolls allocated in the band? Is there an optimist, a pessimist, a mediator?
It's more like zodiacal signs. Thurston is a lion - he often is the initiator for something new. Steve is the realist...

And how would you describe yourself?
Women are communication talents. We try to keep the whole in mind and try to mediate.

On your current tour you play all songs from "Daydream Nation" in the same order like they are on the record. Songs you wrote nearly 20 years ago. How does that feel?
It's exciting. It takes you back in a mental attitude, you had forgotten that it existed some day. And it's a really conceptional approachfor us to play through the album from start to end. We've never done this before. At the same time it is irritating.

Did you release the record again to close a circle? Or did this have a financial background?
There is a section from Universal which is busy with our previous publications. They think different - these people find our old stuff exciting. Three years ago they asked us if we want to re-release a few albums: "Goo", "Dirty" and now "Daydream Nation". We thought about it for a while and decided to do it.

And what about the Starbucks-Compilation?
About one year ago, when our latest album "Rather Ripped" was released, we we're kind of frustrated about the bad marketing.

A problem which was already existent at the marketing of "Daydream Nation".
Honestly, at all of our records. Thurston recognised those Starbucks-Compilations, where popular people select songs they like. He thought it would be a good idea, if people, who were much more popular than we are, would select songs from us, which woul be put together on one album. For example Lou Reed. Or actors/actresses like Michelle Williams. We wanted people who weren't so obvious. People we don't know, but who like us. The compilation will probably be out in december. We still need to record one song for it.

Will this CD be internationally available?
I don't think so. It's probably only be available in certain branches. In sorroundings where people live who listen to Sonic Youth. The have to play the CD in the shop which is only possible if the guests like it.

Sonic Youth to go?
I know, this is gonna activate the big "Sonic Youth is going to be commerce"-discussion. But i think that's ridiculous We've been under conract at major-labels since 1990. Can Starbucks be worse than this? It's naive to think like that. You have to see the irony in this. But to be honest: It also was an act of desperation.

You and Thurston Moore have a teenage daughter. How did the birth of Coco haley influence your life as a musician?
I had to learn to set priorities. To think exacly about for which project I want to spend my time. And it was difficult for me to keep the free space in my head which i need for my creativity. On the otheer hand Coco gave me a perspective. And her drawings really inspired me.

After your daughter was born in 1994, you released an album entitled "Washing Machine". Did you think about the title when you were changing diapers?
Not really. We were in Memphis, when we recorded the album and thought about renaming the band into "Washing Machine". As Sonic Youth we had loaded up so much spiritual luggage with us and we thought nobody would ever buy our record. That's why we thought about a typical Indie-Rock-Name and came to Washing Machine. We seriously thought about it! But our management was against it.

Allthough Sonic Youth has allways been regarded as a very serious Avantgarde-Rockband, you seem not to take yourself so serious. After all you had a guest appearance at the Simpsons...
That was fun! We know Matt Groening pritty good, he's coming out of the rock scene himself. The crazy thing about it was, that we had to record the theme song - Danny Elfmann, who wrote the melody, is a high-school-love of mine.

And in the series Gilmore Girls you appeared as well.
Yes. Thusrton, Coco and I.

How did that go?
Oh, we are big fans of the series! We've been watching it regularly at home and at some point we recognised that the protagonists keep talking about Sonic Youth. So i asked the authors, the couple Palladino, if they wanted a song. Before they both splitted with the producer Warner Bros. they wrote one last episode in which we three appeared.

Did you like the series because of the strong women roles?
The women are great. And I like the pop-culture quotes. Referencees to Vincent Gallo and his movie "Brown Bunny" for instance. Very smart.

How do you think about a strong woman at the top of the USA?
Hillary Clinton has a good chance. She has much political experience. I personally prefer Barack Obama, but I think he does not have her power, even if he has obviously won assertiveness. On the other hand Hillary has chose a Celine-Dion-Song as election-campaign-song - I believe I have to think about it once again. Bill Clinton at least chose Fleetwood Mac back then.

In 1992 you together with other female celebrities made an advertisement for the right for legal abortion in the USA. Are you still an active feminist?
I just try to be a good person. But the female image in music industry is what makes me worry. At the moment I just see retrograde steps. It's naive to believe that things will ever change. That's clear for me. In the mainstream-section the slogan has allways been "Sex Sells". But right now for me the whole seems to be reaching a climax. Hollywood, the music industry in L.A., the porn-industry - that's all hanging together.

How would you react when your daughter woul listen to Britney Spears or Christina Aguilera?
Oh, I explained her already a few years ago that this music is written by fat, old men. With this the subject was closed.

A few years ago you're said to have prevented the band Modest Mouse to play at Lolopalooza, because their vocalist Isaac Brock had to fight with a charge because of rape, which was layed down later. Is that true?
No! I like Modest Mouse. By the way their tour-manager is married to a friend of mine. That's a rumour.

And what about your statement, Kurt Cobain had commercialized grunge to death?
Grunge had to be killed! (laughs loud) Honestly I do'nt get Nirvana in connection with Grunge. There will allways be bands who imitate a successfull genre of music, to be part of a movement. But with that the movement also comes closer to its end.

How did Sonic Youth manage to allways be seen as underground-band despite Top-40-ratings?
Because we've allways made underground-music! No, it's because our label hardly had do spend money for us. We're allowed to do what we want and they don't invest in us. But that's stale news. We fullfilled the contract with them. No idea what future brings.

Interview: Jessica Braun