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4.34 AVERAGE
4.34 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
never listened to much of lush but i enjoy listening to an audiobook of an autobiography- glad i picked this. it seems we have the same approach to dealing with mental illness and promiscuity but i’m not in a famous 90’s band x
informative
medium-paced
challenging
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault, Suicide
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
i had no idea who the author was nor what this was about but decided to pick it up based off the cool cover and good reviews on the first page
this was pretty split between her upbringing and her time in the band. i personally was more drawn to the former as i’m not very familiar with the rock band life but it was still interesting. i wish it circled back to how her family was now
i wasn’t expecting that the author was much older than me as the cover photo looked very recent.
despite it all, i was drawn in by the writing and storytelling and didn’t have a problem maintaining interest
this was pretty split between her upbringing and her time in the band. i personally was more drawn to the former as i’m not very familiar with the rock band life but it was still interesting. i wish it circled back to how her family was now
i wasn’t expecting that the author was much older than me as the cover photo looked very recent.
despite it all, i was drawn in by the writing and storytelling and didn’t have a problem maintaining interest
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Self harm, Toxic relationship
Minor: Suicide
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
emotional
informative
medium-paced
I was born at the right time to experience the height of Britpop as my musical awakening, for better or worse, and it's for that reason that the "shoegaze" band that preceded it have remained somewhat of a blind spot excepting My Bloody Valentine.
Berenyi's memoir was voted the no.1 music book for 2022 by Rough Trade, which planted it firmly on my radar as I have found myself dipping into the pleasant and familiar waters of the rock bio especially as it has slipped into moments I lived through.
This one starts out fascinatingly and never lets up from there. Berenyi details the meeting of her parents, which in 99% of biographies would be a rather slow and rote start to things based around dance halls and teas, but here we have Hungarian Ivan, decamped to Britain following the Second World War meeting Japanese, Yasuko, as he reports on the Olympic Games in Tokyo with lots more information to enliven things from there.
Berenyi deals with the things that have happened to her in a straightforward manner, not allowing the pages to be wreathed in trauma and coming out in front of it and stating how wrong it was or how it fucked her up in ways she couldn't fathom when she was younger. Her father promiscuity led her to being cared for by her Grandma, Nora, who clung tightly and inappropriately to her son's progeny illiciting rebellious reactions from the young Miki.
Into Lush and Berenyi is as frank as ever depicting the attitudes prevalent within the music industry and the irritation and frustration borne of being in a rock band. For all the doe-eyed dreams of rock immortality there is a never ending parade of hurdles to jump over.
I felt this book succinctly described the real difficulty of touring and trying to crack the U.S. as Berenyi details the fact that every City has their own TV and radio stations, colleges and record stores that require some form of appearance wearing and weighing the band down before they can get on with the business of playing. There are plenty of fun stories too, but they are laced with the misogyny of the male-dominated scene.
The not knowing made this almost like a novel at times where seemingly minor characters became more and main characters met fates I was less than prepared for. This rock bio has a bit of everything and shows off Berenyi as a no-nonsense, hard charging frontwoman in a time where there weren't many of them countered by the music industry height of treating bands as commodities for bringing in profit margins, who are sliced away as they become benign.
Definitely one of the best I've read in the genre as Berenyi understands for everything done to her, she has behaved similarly. The breakdown in the relationship between her and Emma is tough to read given how they shared this amazing thing together, but that amount of time in close quarters undoubtedly brings with it tensions and resentments, real or imagined.
Highly recommend this one for lovers of any kind of music for a female perspective on the 90s rock scene.
Berenyi's memoir was voted the no.1 music book for 2022 by Rough Trade, which planted it firmly on my radar as I have found myself dipping into the pleasant and familiar waters of the rock bio especially as it has slipped into moments I lived through.
This one starts out fascinatingly and never lets up from there. Berenyi details the meeting of her parents, which in 99% of biographies would be a rather slow and rote start to things based around dance halls and teas, but here we have Hungarian Ivan, decamped to Britain following the Second World War meeting Japanese, Yasuko, as he reports on the Olympic Games in Tokyo with lots more information to enliven things from there.
Berenyi deals with the things that have happened to her in a straightforward manner, not allowing the pages to be wreathed in trauma and coming out in front of it and stating how wrong it was or how it fucked her up in ways she couldn't fathom when she was younger. Her father promiscuity led her to being cared for by her Grandma, Nora, who clung tightly and inappropriately to her son's progeny illiciting rebellious reactions from the young Miki.
Into Lush and Berenyi is as frank as ever depicting the attitudes prevalent within the music industry and the irritation and frustration borne of being in a rock band. For all the doe-eyed dreams of rock immortality there is a never ending parade of hurdles to jump over.
I felt this book succinctly described the real difficulty of touring and trying to crack the U.S. as Berenyi details the fact that every City has their own TV and radio stations, colleges and record stores that require some form of appearance wearing and weighing the band down before they can get on with the business of playing. There are plenty of fun stories too, but they are laced with the misogyny of the male-dominated scene.
The not knowing made this almost like a novel at times where seemingly minor characters became more and main characters met fates I was less than prepared for. This rock bio has a bit of everything and shows off Berenyi as a no-nonsense, hard charging frontwoman in a time where there weren't many of them countered by the music industry height of treating bands as commodities for bringing in profit margins, who are sliced away as they become benign.
Definitely one of the best I've read in the genre as Berenyi understands for everything done to her, she has behaved similarly. The breakdown in the relationship between her and Emma is tough to read given how they shared this amazing thing together, but that amount of time in close quarters undoubtedly brings with it tensions and resentments, real or imagined.
Highly recommend this one for lovers of any kind of music for a female perspective on the 90s rock scene.
adventurous
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
A brilliant memoir of Miki Berenyi’s time in the band Lush. Some really interesting and informative opinions, and expertly told (largely from her personal diaries). I was very interested in her study of Ladette culture being the absolute opposite of feminism. I read this book in two days, absolutely brilliant.
I don't normally read biographies but found this one quite interesting.
Mike Berenyi was the lead singer of 90's group, Lush.
The book is divided into two parts. The first part deals with Miki's upbringing by a Hungarian (womanising) father and a glamorous Japanese mother. Her childhood was far from ordinary and it is a testament to Miki's character and resourcefulness that she survived to adulthood.
The second section deals with her time in the music industry with glimpses into how it works and the hoops you have to jump through to get where you want to go, especially if you are female. Really interesting hearing about other groups which were famous at the same time.
Miki has certainly had a colourful and varied life to date and, while I wouldn't swap with her, I applaud her survival instincts and her loyalty to a Mother and Father, who weren't always there when needed.
#ThePigeonhole
Mike Berenyi was the lead singer of 90's group, Lush.
The book is divided into two parts. The first part deals with Miki's upbringing by a Hungarian (womanising) father and a glamorous Japanese mother. Her childhood was far from ordinary and it is a testament to Miki's character and resourcefulness that she survived to adulthood.
The second section deals with her time in the music industry with glimpses into how it works and the hoops you have to jump through to get where you want to go, especially if you are female. Really interesting hearing about other groups which were famous at the same time.
Miki has certainly had a colourful and varied life to date and, while I wouldn't swap with her, I applaud her survival instincts and her loyalty to a Mother and Father, who weren't always there when needed.
#ThePigeonhole
Before reading this book, I only knew of Lush's music and remember thinking Berenyi was so cool I wanted to look like her back in the day.
It was a very candid and well-written book. Berenyi shares a lot about her life pre-Lush and does not pull many punches about bad things that happened. She also shows a lot of strength and self-awareness in the telling of her life story.
Definitely a good read.
It was a very candid and well-written book. Berenyi shares a lot about her life pre-Lush and does not pull many punches about bad things that happened. She also shows a lot of strength and self-awareness in the telling of her life story.
Definitely a good read.