Brianmolko-url

Brian Molko (born 10 December 1972 in Brussels, Belgium) is a songwriter, lead vocalist and guitarist of the band Placebo.

==Early life == Born to an American international banker father of French-Italian heritage and a Scottish mother, Molko's family moved frequently during his childhood including spells in Scotland, Liberia, Lebanon and Luxembourg. Brian Molko has referred to a period spent in his mother's home town of Dundee, Scotland, as "where I grew up". He describes his childhood as a period when he felt very lonely and alienated; his first performing experiences were through acting in a school drama theater.

While Molko was brought up in a strict household that disapproved of artistic expression (his father wanted him to become a banker) he rebelled by affecting an androgynous image, wearing nail polish, lipstick and eyeliner, and listening to punk. Brian initially attended the European School of Luxembourg but had to leave due to excessive bullying; he later attended the American International School of Luxembourg (AISL)  and went on to study drama at Goldsmiths College in London.

Career

Molko and Stefan Olsdal had both attended AISL (though they were never friends); when Brian moved to London, he ran into Olsdal at South Kensington tube station and invited him to one of his gigs in a club, which he played with Steve Hewitt. During a XFM takeover show in December 2009 Molko mentioned that his biggest influence is Sonic Youth and that his band probably wouldn't exist without them. He also mentioned that at the age of seven Kiss was the first band he ever fell in love with. Other musical influences include Depeche Mode, David Bowie, Iggy Pop, dEUS, Dead Kennedys, the Beastie Boys, Serge Gainsbourg, PJ Harvey, The Velvet Underground, Joy Division, The Stooges and The Pixies. More recent musical tastes include electro-clash artist Peaches, Queens of the Stone Age, Mogwai, The Cribs, Sad Gray and many others.

Brian taught himself to play guitar; at the age of 16, he got a Telecaster replica as a present from his parents. Soon after, he bought a real Telecaster. He plays other instruments such as bass, harmonica, keyboard, saxophone, drums and turntables. Fluent in French due to his upbringing in Luxembourg, Molko has written and sung a few of Placebo's songs in French as well as English. He has also occasionally worked as a disc jockey at clubs.

Along with Hewitt and Olsdal, he had a small role in the 1998 film Velvet Goldmine, for which Placebo performed the T.Rex song "20th Century Boy". He played Malcolm, a singer of the fictional glam rock band, "The Flaming Creatures", who resembled the early Alice Cooper band.

==Personal life == In October 2005, Molko's ex partner undefined, Helena Berg, gave birth to his first child, Cody. He currently lives in east London, but frequently travels to Paris.

Brian stated in a recent interview that he still sees his son frequently as a single father.

In the same year, he was voted to 4th of the 50 sexiest rock stars by Kerrang! magazine