Musical Influences: Sonic Youth, PJ Harvey, Nick Drake
Additional Info:
Brian was born to a Scottish mother and American father. His dad was an international banker and the family travelled a great deal. Brian spends his childhood in countries as far as Lebanon and Liberia.Later his parents send him to and American private school in Luxembourg. It's here where Brian first gets into drama and starts experimenting with wearing make-up. Trough out his school years he felt like an outcast and unlike Stefan, who also attended this school, he wasn't very popular with the other kids. Brian and Stefan hardly spoke to each other here, but that would change later. At the age of 17 Brian moved to London to study Drama at the Goldsmith's College, much to the regret of his father, who also wanted him to become a banker. But Brian went his own way and decided that a career in Drama or music, where he's free to wear make-up and nail varnish, would make him feel much more comfortable than working in the financial branch. When Brian bumps into Stefan, who he knew from the school in Luxembourg, they form the first incarnation of Placebo. Brian knows he's chosen the right path by following his heart when he chose for the Drama course. Although Drama is not the same as a Music course, they do have a lot in common and especially in Placebo's case it has paid off. The band has performed in the Velvet Goldmine and the best videos for Placebo are the ones where the band came up with their own ideas. Brian said he would like to get more involved in directing their own videos in the future. Brian is very dramatic and outspoken and because of his bisexuality the press is often more interested in who he's sleeping with than the musical aspect of Placebo. But it has to be said that Brian Molko is (like David Bowie before him) one of the most interesting personalities in the music scene these days.
Quotes about Brian from Stefan and Steve:
His Admirable Traits:
Stefan: "He's definitely the emotional fire of the band. He has more of a vision than I have of where we are heading. He's more in touch emotionally and he's also quite tender." Steve: "I admire him as an artist, he has a talent for pushing ideas forward. He doesn't like the band being manipulated, and stands by what he believes in."
His Not So Admirable Traits:
Stefan: "He can be a bit of a rock star, sometimes. It's not like that when we're together, but his image gets in the way of him, but in fact that's just part of him as well. You can't like everything about everyone." Steve: "Hedonism, really, that's it. You've got to pull him back when his big mouth gets going sometimes."