No Certainty Attached: Steve Kilbey and The Church

For almost thirty years, Australian band The Church have crafted music that blends a rich variety of styles in a beautiful, multi-layered sound. They've encompassed pop, psychedelic, progressive, and straight-ahead rock, yet always remain distinctive, thanks to the original vocals and lyrics of front man Steve Kilbey.  Based on extensive interviews and featuring over 80 rare photographs, No Certainty Attached is the first comprehensive biography of Kilbey and his band. It charts their personal and musical ups and downs: the commercial heights of The Unguarded Moment and Under the Milky Way, - the creative breakthroughs of the Priest = Aura album and Kilbey's under appreciated solo work, followed by the band's struggle to survive in the wake of bad business decisions and their singer's drug indulgences. One obsessive American fan attempts to get to the heart of the story, abetted by Kilbey himself, his family, band members, and friends and foes alike. What emerges is a compelling portrait of an artist and a band clinging steadfastly to their muse in the face of external and internal obstacles and the transformative power of the music they've created.

About the Author :
Robert Dean Lurie is a writer and musician. He received a Master of fine arts degree in creative writing from the University of North Carolina and currently lives in Phoenix. No Certainty Attached is his first book.

Review :
Lurie's interviews capture quite a bit of Kilbey's daily life, past and present, and in so doing, open doors to readers who might otherwise not have an interest in a musician with whose music they may only feign familiarity. The nice assemblage of personal photographs printed throughout the text adds an authenticity and completeness to the book. -- Publishers Weekly "July 2009" Publishers Weekly, July 2009 Although a self-professed die-hard fan, Lurie remains stridently impartial in this skillfully balanced assessment of his musical idol, Steve Kilbey, the esoterically minded front man for the Australian rock band the Church. Into his noisy myriad of interviews with Kilbey and his circle, Lurie mixes his own personal journey as a fan, musician and first-time author, offering something to both Church devotees and the uninitiated. The result is a quietly and thoughtfully structured narrative that entertains as well as informs. Lurie provides sound musical analysis of the Church's touchstone albums as well as key Kilbey solo projects. Yet Lurie can also be too much the music critic, as his musical observations occasionally drag the narrative into pedantry. Rather than focusing exclusively on those elements of the biography that are fantastic or controversial, Lurie's interviews capture quite a bit of Kilbey's daily life, past and present, and in so doing, open doors to readers who might otherwise not have an interest in a musician with whose music they may only feign familiarity. The nice assemblage of personal photographs printed throughout the text adds an authenticity and completeness to the book.