The metric system is an international decimalised system of measurement. France was first to adopt it in 1799 and it is now the official system of measurement used in every country in the world but three. The United States is the only industrialised country yet to adopt the International System of Units as its official system of measurement, although it has been sanctioned for use there since 1866. Myanmar (Burma) and Liberia are the others. Although the United Kingom has officially adopted the metric system for many measurement applications, it is still not in universal use there and the customary Imperial system is still in common and widespread use. Although the originators intended to devise a system that was equally accessible to all, it proved necessary to use prototype units under the custody of government or other approved authorities as standards. Until 1875, control of the prototype units of measure was maintained by the French Government when it passed to an inter-governmental organisation - the Conférence générale des poids et mesures (CGPM). It is now hoped that the last of these prototypes can be retired by 2015.

From its beginning, the main feature of the metric system was the standard set of inter-related base units and a standard set of prefixes in powers of ten. These base units are used to derive larger and smaller units and replaced a huge number of unstandardised units of measure that existed previously. While the system was first developed for commercial use, its coherent set of units made it particularly suitable for scientific and engineering purposes.

The uncoordinated use of the metric system by different scientific and engineering disciplines, particularly in the late nineteenth century, resulted in different choices of fundamental units, even though all were based on the same definitions of the metre and the kilogram. During the twentieth century, efforts were made to rationalise these units and in 1960 the CGPM published the International System of Units ("''Système international d'unités''" in French, hence "SI") which, since then, has been the internationally recognised standard metric system.

Features of the metric system

Although the metric system has changed and developed since its inception, its basic features have remained constant.

A Universal System

The metric system was, in the words of the French philosopher Condorcet to be "for all people for all time". It was designed for ordinary people, for engineers who worked in human-related measurements and for astronomers and physicists who worked with numbers both small and large, hence the huge range of prefixes that have now been defined in SI.

The metric system was designed to be universal, that is, available to all. When the French Government first investigated the idea of overhauling their system of measurement, Talleyrand, in the late 1780s, acting on Concordet's advice, invited Riggs, a British Parliamentarian and Jefferson, the American Secretary of State to George Washington, to work with the French in producing an international standard by promoting legislation in their respective legislative bodies. However, these overtures failed and the custody of the metric system remained in the hands of the French Government until 1875.

To help make it universal, common symbols that are independent of language were developed. Thus the symbol "km" is used in French and in British English for "''kilometre''", in German and in American English for "''kilometer''", in Spanish for "''kilómetro''", in Portuguese for "''quilômetro''", in Italian for "''chilometri''", in Greek for "''χιλιόμετρα''", in Russian for "''Километр''" and so on.

Decimal multiples

The metric system is decimal. All multiples and divisions of the base units are factors of the power of ten, an idea first proposed by Stevin in 1586. Thus all lengths and distances, for example, are measured in metres, millimetres (}} of a metre), or kilometres ( m). There is no profusion of different units with different conversion factors, such as inches, feet, yards, fathoms, rods, chains, furlongs, miles, nautical miles, leagues, etc. The practical benefits of a decimal system have also been used to replace other non-decimal systems such as currencies, with decimal systems.

The simple decimal prefixes encouraged the adoption of the metric system; the use of base 10 arithmetic aids in unit conversion, as compared to 12 inches per foot, 3 feet per yard, et cetera. Differences in expressing units are simply a matter of shifting the decimal point or changing an exponent; for example, the speed of light may be expressed as  km/s or .

Prefixes

All derived units use a common set of prefixes for each multiple. (This idea was first suggested by Mouton in 1670.) Thus the prefix ''kilo'' is used for mass (''kilogram'') or length (''kilometre'') both indicating a thousand times the base unit. This did not prevent the popular use of names for some derived units such as the tonne which is a ''megagram''; derived from old customary units and rounded to metric.

The function of the prefix is to multiply or divide the measure by a factor of ten, one hundred or a positive integer power of one thousand. Initially positive powers of ten had Greek-derived prefixes and negative power of ten Latin-derived prefixes. However later SI extensions to the prefix system did not follow the Greek-greater-than-one/Latin-less-than-one convention.

The most familiar ones from everyday use are the ''kilo~'', which is of Greek origin, and the ''centi~'' and ''milli~'' which are of Latin origin. Most other metric measurements also use prefixes rooted in Latin or Greek: ''deci-'' has a Latin root, while ''nano-'', ''micro-'', ''deca-'', ''hecto-'', ''mega-'', ''giga-'' have Greek roots.

Replicable prototypes

The initial way to establish a standard was to make prototypes of the base units and distribute copies to approved centres. This made the new standard reliant on the original prototypes, which would be in conflict with the previous goal, since all countries would have to refer to the one holding the prototypes.

Instead, where possible, definitions of the base units were developed so that any laboratory equipped with proper instruments would be able to construct their own copies of the standard. In the original version of the metric system the base units could be derived from a specified length (the metre) and the weight [mass] of a specified volume ( of a cubic metre) of pure water. Initially the Assemblée Constituante considered defining the metre as the length of a pendulum that has a period of one second at 45°N and an altitude equal to sea level. The altitude and latitude were specified to accommodate variations in gravity - the specified latitude was a compromise between the latitude of , and the median parallel of the United States (38°N) to accommodate variations. However Borda persuaded the Assemblée Constituante that a survey having its ends at sea level and based on a meridian that spanned at least 10% of the earth's quadrant would be more appropriate for such a basis.

Realisability

The base units used in the metric system must be realisable, ideally with reference to natural phenomena rather than unique artifacts. Each of the base units in SI is accompanied by a ''mise en pratique'' published by the BIPM that describes in detail at least one way in which the base unit can be measured.

Two of the base units originally depended on artifacts – the metre and the kilogram. The original prototypes of each artifact were adopted in 1799 and replaced in 1889. The 1889 prototypes used the best technology of the day to ensure stability.

In 1889 there was no generally accepted theory regarding the nature of light but by 1960 the wavelength of specific light spectra could give a more accurate and reproducible value than a prototype metre. In that year the prototype metre was replaced by a formal definition which defines the metre in terms of the wavelength of specified light spectra. By 1983 it was accepted that the speed of light was constant and that this provided a more reproducible procedure for measuring length, the metre was redefined in terms of the speed of light. These definitions give a much better reproducibility and also allow anyone, anywhere to make their own "standard" metre (assuming that they have a good enough laboratory).

Similarly, at the 13th convocation of the GCPM in 1968, the definitive second was redefined in terms of measurements taken from atomic clocks rather than from the earth's rotation; in 2008 the solar day was 0.002 s longer than in 1820 but it was only in the 1960s that this could be measured more accurately using clocks rather than relying on astronomy.

Coherence

Each variant of the metric system has a degree of coherence - the various derived units being directly related to the base units without the need of intermediate conversion factors. Whereas the cgs system had two units of energy, the erg that was related to mechanics and the calorie that was related to thermal energy, coherence was a design aim of SI resulting in only one unit of energy - the joule. For example, the units of force, energy and power are chosen so that the equations :''force = mass × acceleration'' :''energy = force × distance'' :''energy = power × time'' hold without the introduction of constant factors. Many relationships in physics, including Einstein's mass-energy equation, ''E'' = ''mc''², do not require extraneous constants when expressed in coherent units.

In SI, which is a coherent system, the unit of power is the "watt" which is defined as "one joule per second". In the foot-pound-second system of measurement, which is non-coherent, the unit of power is the "horsepower" which is defined as "550 foot-pounds per second", the pound in this context being the pound-force.

Other defined units are derived in a similar way building up on the base units.

History

The map on the left shows the adoption of the metric system by various countries.

In 1586, the Flemish mathematician Simon Stevin published a small pamphlet called ''De Thiende'' ("the tenth"). Decimal fractions had been employed for the extraction of square roots some five centuries before his time, but nobody used decimal numbers in daily life. Stevin declared that using decimals was so important that the universal introduction of decimal weights, measures and coinage was only a matter of time.

The idea of a metric system was proposed by John Wilkins, first secretary of the Royal Society of London in 1668. Two years later, in 1670, Gabriel Mouton, a French abbot and scientist, proposed a decimal system of measurement based on the circumference of the Earth. His suggestion was that a unit, the milliare, be defined as a minute of arc along a meridian. He then suggested a system of sub-units, dividing successively by factors of ten into the centuria, decuria, virga, virgula, decima, centesima, and millesima. His ideas attracted interest at the time, and were supported by both Jean Picard and Christiaan Huygens in 1673, and also studied at the Royal Society in London. In the same year, Gottfried Leibniz independently made proposals similar to those of Mouton.

In pre-revolutionary Europe, each state had its own system of units of measure. Some countries, such as Spain and Russia saw the advantages of harmonising their units of measure with those of their trading partners. However, vested interests who profited from variations in units of measure opposed this. This was particularly prevalent in France where there was a huge inconsistency in the size of units of measure. During the early years of the French Revolution, the leaders of the French revolutionary Assemblée Constituante decided that rather than standardising the size of the existing units, they would a introduce a completely new system based on the principles of logic and natural phenomena.

Initially France attempted to work with other countries towards the adoption of a common set of units of measure. Among the supporters of such an international system of units was Thomas Jefferson who, in 1790, presented a document ''Plan for Establishing Uniformity in the Coinage, Weights, and Measures of the United States'' to congress in which he advocated a decimal system that used traditional names for units (such as ten inches per foot). The report was considered but not adopted by Congress. There was little support from other countries.

Original system

The law of 18 Germinal, Year III (7 April 1795) defined five units of measure:

The metre for length

The are (100 m²) for area [of land]

The stère (1 m³) for volume of stacked firewood

The litre (1 dm³) for volumes of liquid

The gram for mass.

This system continued the tradition of having separate base units for geometrically related dimensions, e.g., metre for lengths, are (100 m²) for areas, stère (1 m³) for dry capacities, and litre (1 dm³) for liquid capacities. The hectare, equal to a hundred ares, is the area of a square 100 metres on a side (about 2.47 acres), and is still in use. The early metric system included only a few prefixes from milli (one thousandth) to ''myria'' (ten thousand), and they were based on powers of 10 unlike later prefixes added in the SI, which are based on powers of 1,000.

Originally the kilogram, the only base unit with a prefix, was called the "grave"; the "gram" being an alternative name for a thousandth of a grave. However, the word "grave" , being a synonym for the title "count" had aristocratic connotations and was renamed the kilogram.

France officially adopted the metric system on 10 December 1799 with conversion being mandatory first in Paris and then across the provinces.

International adoption

The areas that were annexed by France during the Napoleonic era inherited the metric system. In 1812, Napoleon introduced a system known as ''mesures usuelles'' which used the names of pre-metric units of measure, but defined them in terms of metric units – for example, the ''livre metrique'' (metric pound) was 500 g and the ''toise metrique'' (metric fathom) was 2 metres. After the Congress of Vienna in 1815, France lost the territories that she had annexed; some, such as the Papal States reverted to their pre-revolutionary units of measure, others such as Baden adopted a modified version of the ''mesures usuelles'', but France kept her system of measurement intact.

In 1817, the Netherlands reintroduced the metric system, but used pre-revolutionary names – for example 1 cm became the ''duim'' (thumb), the ''ons'' (ounce) became 100 g and so on. Certain German states adopted similar systems and in 1852 the German Zollverein (customs union) adopted the zollpfund (customs pound) of 500 g for intrastate commerce. In 1872 the newly-formed German Empire adopted the metric system as its official system of weights and measures and the newly-formed Kingdom of Italy likewise, following the lead given by Piedmont, adopted the metric system in 1861.

The ''Exposition Universelle (1867)'' (Paris exhibition) devoted a stand to the metric system and by 1875 two thirds of the European population and close on half the world's population had adopted the metric system. The principal European countries not to have adopted the metric system were Russia and the United Kingdom.

International Standards

In 1861, a committee of the British Association for Advancement of Science (BAAS) including William Thomson (later Lord Kelvin), James Clerk Maxwell and John Prescott Joule introduced the concept of a coherent system of units based on the metre, gram and second which, in 1873, was extended to include electrical units. On 20 May 1875 an international treaty known as the ''Convention du Mètre'' (Metre Convention) was signed by 17 states. This treaty established the following organisations to conduct international activities relating to a uniform system for measurements: :*Conférence générale des poids et mesures (CGPM), an intergovernmental conference of official delegates of member nations and the supreme authority for all actions; :*Comité international des poids et mesures (CIPM), consisting of selected scientists and metrologists, which prepares and executes the decisions of the CGPM and is responsible for the supervision of the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; :*Bureau international des poids et mesures (BIPM), a permanent laboratory and world centre of scientific metrology, the activities of which include the establishment of the basic standards and scales of the principal physical quantities and maintenance of the international prototype standards.

In 1881, first International Electrical Congress adopted the BAAS recommendations on electrical units, followed by a series of congresses in which further units of measure were defined.

Variants of the metric system

A number of variants of the metric system evolved, all using the ''Mètre des Archives'' and ''Kilogramme des Archives'' as their base units, but differing in the definitions of the various derived units.

Centimetre-gram-second systems

The centimetre gram second system of units (CGS) was the first coherent metric system, having been developed in the 1860s and promoted by Maxwell and Thomson. In 1874 this system was formally promoted by the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BAAS). The system's characteristics are that density is expressed in , force expressed in dynes and mechanical energy in ergs. Thermal energy was defined in calories, one calorie being the energy required to raise the temperature of one gram of water from 15.5 °C to 16.5 °C. The meeting also proposed two sets of units for electrical and magnetic properties - the electrostatic set of units and the electromagnetic set of units.

Metre-kilogram-second systems

The cgs units of electricity were cumbersome to work with. This was remedied at the 1893 International Electrical Congress held in Chicago by defining the "international" ampere and ohm using definitions based on the metre, kilogram and second. In 1901, Giorgi showed that by adding an electrical unit as a fourth base unit, the various anomalies in electromagnetic systems could be resolved. The metre-kilogram-second-coulomb (MKSC) and metre-kilogram-second-ampere (MKSA) systems are examples of such systems.

The International System of Units (''System international units'' or SI) is the current international standard metric system and the system most widely used around the world. It is an extension of Giorgi's MKSA system; its base units are the metre, kilogram, second, ampere, kelvin, candela and mole. Proposals have been made to change the definitions of four of the base units at the 24th meeting of the CGPM in October 2011. These changes should not affect the average person.

Metre-tonne-second systems

The metre-tonne-second system of units (MTS) was based on the metre, tonne and second - the unit of force is the sthène and the unit of pressure is the pièze. It was invented in France in industry and was mostly used in the Soviet Union from 1933 to 1955.

Gravitational systems

Gravitational metric systems use the kilogram-force (kilopond) as a base unit of force, with mass measured in a unit known as the hyl, TME, mug or metric slug. Note these are not part of the International System of Units (SI).

International System of Units (SI)

The 9th CGPM met in 1948, fifteen years after the 8th CGPM. In response to formal requests made by the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics and by the French Government to establish a practical system of units of measure, the CGPM requested the CIPM to prepare recommendations for a single practical system of units of measurement, suitable for adoption by all countries adhering to the Metre Convention. At the same time the CGPM formally adopted a recommendation for the writing and printing of unit symbols and of numbers. The recommendation also catalogued the recommended symbols for the most important MKS and CGS units of measure and for the first time the CGPM made recommendations concerning derived units.

The CIPM's draft proposal, which was an extensive revision and simplification of the metric unit definitions, symbols and terminology based on the MKS system of units, was put to the 10th CGPM in 1954. In accordance with Giorgi's proposals of 1901, the CIPM also recommended that the ampere be the base unit from which electromechanical would be derived. The definitions for the ohm and volt that had previously been in use were discarded and these units became derived units based on the metre, ampere, second and kilogram. After negotiations with the CIS and IUPAP, two further base units, the degree kelvin and the candela were also proposed as base units. The full system and name "Système International d'Unités" were adopted at the 11th CGPM. During the years that followed the definitions of the base units and particularly the ''mise en pratique'' to realise these definitions have been refined.

The formal definition of SI along with the associated resolutions passed by the CGPM and the CIPM are published by the BIPM on the Internet and in brochure form at regular intervals. The eighth edition of the brochure ''Le Système International d'Unités - The International System of Units'' was published in 2006.

The "New SI"

When the metre was redefined in 1960, the kilogram was the only SI base unit that relied on a specific artifact. Moreover, after the 1996-1998 recalibration a clear divergence between the various prototype kilograms was observed.

At its 23rd meeting (2007), the CGPM mandated the CIPM to investigate the use of natural constants as the basis for all units of measure rather than the artifacts that were then in use. At a meeting of the CCU held in Reading, United Kingdom in September 2010, a resolution and draft changes to the SI brochure that were to be presented to the next meeting of the CIPM in October 2010 were agreed to in principle. The proposals that the CCU put forward were: :*In addition to the speed of light, four constants of nature - Planck's constant, an elementary charge, Boltzmann constant and Avogadro's number be defined to have exact values. :*The international prototype kilogram be retired :*The current definitions of the kilogram, ampere, kelvin and mole be revised. :*The wording of the definitions of all the base units be tightened up

The CIPM meeting of October 2010 found that "the conditions set by the General Conference at its 23rd meeting have not yet been fully met. For this reason the CIPM does not propose a revision of the SI at the present time"; however the CIPM will notify the 24th CGPM of the intention to revise the definitions.

Usage in English-speaking countries

English-speaking countries vary in their use of the metric system. Australia, Canada and New Zealand are almost totally metric, other countries are partly metric while the United States still uses domestic customary units in everyday life.

Degree of usage

According to the American Central Intelligence Agency's ''Factbook'', the International System of Units is the official system of measurement for all nations in the world except for Myanmar (Burma), Liberia and the United States. Some sources, though, identify Liberia as metric. while reports from Myanmar suggest that that country is planning to adopt the metric system. However, a number of other jurisdictions have laws mandating or permitting other systems of measurement in some or all contexts, such as the United Kingdom – where for example the traffic sign regulations (TSRGD) only allow distance signs displaying imperial units (miles or yards) – or Hong Kong. In the United States, metric units are widely used in science, military, and partially in industry, but customary units predominate in household use. At retail stores, the litre is a commonly used unit for volume, especially on bottles of beverages, and milligrams are used to denominate the amounts of medications, rather than grains. Also, other standardised measuring systems other than metric are still in universal international use, such as nautical miles and knots in international aviation.

Variations in spelling

Although the symbol for the kilometre throughout the world is "km", there is no consistency in the spelling of the name "kilometre". Variants include ''chilometro'' (Italian), ''Kilometer'' (German, Malay), ''kilomètre'' (French), ''χιλιόμετρο'' (Greek), ''quilómetro'' (Portuguese) and ''Километър'' (Bulgarian). Similar variations are found with the spelling of other units of measure in various countries including differences in American English and British spelling. For example ''meter'' and ''liter'' are used in the United States whereas ''metre'' and ''litre'' are used in other English-speaking countries. In addition, the official US spelling for the rarely used SI prefix for ten is ''deka''. In American English the term ''metric ton'' is the normal usage whereas in other varieties of English ''tonne'' is common. ''Gram'' is also sometimes spelled ''gramme'' in English-speaking countries other than the United States, though this older usage is declining.

The US government has approved this terminology for official use. In scientific contexts, only the symbols are used; since these are universally the same, the differences do not arise in practice in scientific use.

Conversion and calculation errors

The dual usage of metric and non metric units has resulted in serious errors. These include: :* According to the US National Transportation Safety Board, the confusion between pounds and kilograms has meant that aircraft have sometimes been overloaded. :* The Institute for Safe Medication Practices has reported that confusion between grains and grams has sometimes been the reason for medical errors. One example was when a patient received phenobarbital 0.5 grams instead of 0.5 grains (0.03 grams) after the practitioner misread the prescription. :* The Canadian "Gimli Glider" accident in 1983, when a Boeing 767 jet ran out of fuel in mid-flight because of two mistakes in calculating the fuel supply of Air Canada's first aircraft to use metric measurements. :* The root cause of NASA's 1999 loss of the $125 million Mars Climate Orbiter which crashed into Mars was a mismatch of units - the spacecraft engineers calculated the thrust forces required for velocity changes using US customary units (lbf·s) whereas the team who built the thrusters were expecting a value in metric units (N·s) as per the agreed specification.

Conversion between SI and legacy units

During its evolution, the metric system has adopted many units of measure. The introduction of SI rationalised both the way in which units of measure were defined and also the list of units in use. These are now catalogued in the official SI Brochure. The table below lists the units of measure in this catalogue and shows the conversion factors connecting them with the equivalent units that were in use on the eve of the adoption of SI.

!Quantity	!Dimension	!SI unit and symbol	!Legacy unit and symbol	{{nowrap>factor}}
Time		second (s)	second (s)
Length		metre (m)	centimetre (cm)ångstrom (Å)
Mass		kilogram (kg)	gram (g)
Acceleration		(ms−2)	gal (gal)
Electric current		ampere (A)	ampere
[[Temperature
Luminous intensity		candela (cd)
Amount of substance			No legacy unit
Frequency		hertz (Hz)	cycles per second
Energy		joule (J)	erg (erg)
		watt (W)	(erg/s)Horsepower (HP)Pferdestärke (PS)
Force			dyne (dyn)
Pressure			barye (Ba)
Electric charge		coulomb (C)	abcoulombstatcoulomb or Franklin
		volt (V)
Capacitance		farad (F)	abfaradstatfarad
Inductance			abhenrystathenry
		ohm (Ω)
			mhoabmhostatmho
Magnetic flux			maxwell (Mx)
		(A/m2)	oersted (Oe)
		(Pa·s)	poise (P)
		(m2s−1)	stokes (St)
Luminous flux			Stilb (unit) (sb)
Illuminance		lux (lx)	phot (ph)
		bequerel (Bq)	curie (Ci)
		sievert	Roentgen equivalent man (rem)
Catalytic activity		katal (kat)	No legacy unit

The SI brouchure also catalogues certain non-SI units that are widely used with the SI in matters of everyday life or units that are exactly defined values in terms of SI units and are used in particular circumstances to satisfy the needs of commercial, legal, or specialised scientific interests. These units include:

!Quantity	!Dimension	!Unit and symbol	!Equivalence
Mass		tonne (t)
Area		hectare (ha)
Volume		litre (L or l)
Time		minute (min)hour (h)day (d)
Pressure			100 kPa
Plane angle		degree (angle)

See also

[[Conversion of units

French units of measurement

History of measurement

International system of units

ISO/IEC 80000, style manual for measurements metric and non metric, superseding ISO 31

Mesures usuelles (French: ''customary measurements''), a compromise between metric and traditional units employed until 1839

Metric time

Metrication, the process of introducing the SI metric system as the worldwide standard for physical measurements (a long-term series of independent and systematic conversions from the various separate local systems of weights and measures) :*Metrication opposition :*Metrication Board :*Metric Martyrs

Metrology

SI prefix

IEC Binary Prefixes, used in computer science

Units of measurement

Notes and references

[Alder] [SI Brochure]

External links

CBC Radio Archives For Good Measure: Canada Converts to Metric

Category:Systems of units

ast:Sistema Métricu Decimal be-x-old:Мэтрычная сыстэма мер bs:Metrični sistem ca:Sistema mètric decimal cs:Metrická soustava de:Metrisches Einheitensystem es:Sistema métrico decimal fa:دستگاه متریک fy:Metrysk stelsel ga:Córas méadrach gl:Sistema métrico gan:公制 ko:미터법 id:Sistem metrik is:Metrakerfið he:השיטה המטרית la:Mensura metrica ml:മെട്രിക് അളവുകൾ mr:मेट्रिक पद्धती ms:Sistem Metrik nl:Metriek stelsel ja:メートル法 nds:Metrisch Eenheitensystem pt:Sistema métrico ru:Метрическая система мер sl:Metrični sistem enot sh:Metrični sistem fi:Metrijärjestelmä sv:Metersystemet uk:Метрична система yi:מעטרישע סיסטעם yo:Sístẹ̀mù ìwọ̀n mítà

Coordinates	47°41′34″N116°46′48″N
name	Brian Molko
landscape	yes
background	solo_singer
born	December 10, 1972Brussels, Belgium
origin	Luxembourg
instrument	Vocals, guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, piano, harmonica, saxophone, drums
genre	Alternative rock
occupation	Musician, singer, songwriter, actor
years active	1994–present
label	EMI, Virgin Records, PIAS (current), Hut Records, Caroline Records
associated acts	Placebo
website	www.placeboworld.co.uk/
notable instruments	Fender JaguarGibson SGFender Telecaster ThinlineGretsch Duo JetFender Cyclone }}

Brian Molko (born 10 December 1972 in Brussels, Belgium) is a songwriter, lead vocalist and guitarist of the band Placebo. He is known in particular for his high pitched vocals, androgynous appearance and unique, Sonic Youth-influenced guitar style and tuning.

Early life

Born to an American father of French-Italian heritage and a Scottish mother, Molko's family moved frequently during his childhood including 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 music. Molko 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 Molko 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. for which Placebo performed the T. Rex song "20th Century Boy". He played Malcolms, a singer of the fictional glam rock band, The Flaming Creatures, who resembled the early Alice Cooper band.

Drugs

Molko has been open about his use of recreational drugs; in a 1997 interview with ''New York Doll'', he admitted at one point that heroin was "probably the only drug on this planet I haven’t tried." However, he later admitted to experimenting with heroin as well. The band holds that the drug references within their music reflect the nature of current times, and the removal of such references would deteriorate the meaningfulness of their work.

Personal life

In October 2005, Molko's then-partner Helena Berg gave birth to his first child, Cody. As of June 2009, (as stated in an interview) he and Helena are no longer together. Molko stated in a recent interview that he still sees his son frequently.

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

Molko is openly bisexual.

Collaborations

He has performed, as a guest vocalist and with other artists on Placebo's CDs, on tracks by:

The Cure - "If Only Tonight We Could Sleep"

Justin Warfield - "Spite & Malice"

Losers - "Summertime Rolls"

Asia Argento - "Je T'aime, Moi Non Plus"

Alison Mosshart from The Kills - "Meds"

Michael Stipe of R.E.M. - "Broken Promise"

Faultline & Françoise Hardy - "Requiem For A Jerk"

Timo Maas – "Pictures", "Like Siamese", "First Day"

Kristeen Young – "No Other God"

Dream City Film Club – "Some", "Billy Chic"

Jane Birkin – "Smile"

AC Acoustics – "Crush"

Alpinestars – "Carbon Kid"

Trash Palace – "The Metric System"

Hotel Persona - "Modern Kids"

Indochine - "Pink Water 3"

He also wrote the English lyrics to "Pink Water 3", a song by Indochine from the album ''Alice & June'', released in 2005. Molko is friends with David Bowie, with whom he sang Placebo's Without You I'm Nothing and the "20th Century Boy" cover live.

Equipment

Molko uses a variety of guitars. In the ''Sleeping With Ghosts'' era, he used Gibson SGs ("The Bitter End", "Every You Every Me", "Plasticine", "Black-Eyed", "Without You I'm Nothing", "Special K", "Bulletproof Cupid", "Soulmates", "Special Needs", "This Picture"), Fender Jaguars ("Allergic", "Nancy Boy", "Bionic", "Centrefolds"), a Fender Thinline Telecaster ("Taste in Men"), a Fender Jazzmaster ("Pure Morning"), and a Fender Bass VI ("Slave to the Wage"). For amplification he used a Fender Twin Reverb.

Through the ''Meds'' tour, he used Gretsch Duo Jets ("Infra-Red", "Because I Want You", "Song to Say Goodbye", "One of a Kind", "The Bitter End", "Running Up that Hill", "Special K"), Gibson SGs ("Special Needs", "Every You Every Me", "Black-Eyed", "Without You I'm Nothing"), a Fender Jaguar ("Drag", "Nancy Boy", "I Know"), a Fender Thinline Telecaster ("Twenty Years", "Taste in Men"), and a Gibson Chet Atkins SST ("Meds"). Once again his amplifier was a Fender Twin Reverb.

In the ''Battle for the Sun'' tour, he still used Gretsch Duo Jets ("Devil In The Details", "Come Undone", "Follow The Cops Back Home"), a Gibson SG ("Bright Lights"), Fender Jaguars ("Ashtray Heart", "The Never-Ending Why", "Happy You're Gone", "Breathe Underwater", "Bionic"), a Gibson Les Paul ("For What It's Worth", "Speak In Tongues", "Julien", "Meds"), a Fender Telecaster Thinline ("Kitty Litter"), and a Fender Telecaster Deluxe ("Battle for the Sun"). His pedalboard consisted of a Boss TU-2 chromatic tuner, Electro Harmonix Holy Grail reverb, MXR Phase 90 phaser, two Electro Harmonix Hot Tubes distortion units, Boss DD-3 delay, MXR Distortion + booster, MG Monovibe chorus/vibrato, Electro Harmonix #1 Echo delay and a Radial Loopbone effect chain switcher.

In 2010, he signed an endorsement contract to use Orange amps.

During a 2003 interview with Graham Norton, Molko revealed he collects guitars, and gives them all names – amongst them are his favourites, "Bitch" (Fender Jaguar), and a pink guitar (which he claims is gay) called "Bertie".

Filmography

(1998) ''Velvet Goldmine'' as Malcolm of The Flaming Creatures

(2001) ''Sue's Last Ride'' (Executive Producer)

Appearances

''Never Mind the Buzzcocks''

*Episode #2.06 (1997)

*Episode #8.01 (2001)

*Episode #9.06 (2001)

Rockwave Festival (Greece, Athens) (July 13, 1999)

Glastonbury Festival (1997)

BRIT Awards (1999)

''Late Night with Conan O'Brien''

*Episode dated March 27, 1999

''rage''

*Placebo Guest Programme ''rage'' (1999)

Terremoto Festival (Hamburg) (2000)

''Paskvil''

Rockwave Festival (Greece, Athens) (July 3, 2001)

*Episode #5.11 (2001)

The Kerrang! Awards (2002)

''Rive droite - rive gauche''

*Episode dated March 21, 2003

''V Graham Norton''

*Episode #4.21 (2003)

''Tout le monde en parle''

*Episode dated May 3, 2003

*Episode dated February 14, 2004

''Double je''

*Episode dated June 26, 2003

''Placebo: Soulmates Never Die - Live in Paris 2003''

''Le grand journal de Canal+''

Rockwave Festival (Greece, Athens) (June 22, 2004)

*Episode dated September 13, 2004

*Episode dated October 13, 2004

''Placebo: Androgyny'' (2005)

Live 8 (2005)

Terra Vibe Festival (Greece, Athens) (September 5, 2006)

''4Music'' (2006)

Rock am Ring (2006)

Rock im Park (2006)

Isle of Wight Festival (2006)

Greenfield Festival (2006)

''The Friday Night Project'' (2006)

''Soccer A.M.'' (2006)

Nova Rock Festival (June 15, 2006)

Roskilde Festival (July 2, 2006)

Open'er Festival (July 6, 2006)

T in the Park (July 8, 2006)

Oxegen (July 9, 2006)

Vieilles Charrues Festival (July 21, 2006)

Festival Internacional de Benicàssim (July 23, 2006)

Rock-A-Field (July 25, 2006)

Leeds Festival (August 25, 2006)

Rock'n Coke (September 3, 2006)

Moni Lazariston Festival (Greece, Thessaloniki) (June 13, 2007)

Lyccabetus (Greece, Athens) (June 14, 2007)

Siesta Festival (May 29, 2009)

Rock Am Ring (2009)

Rock Im Park (2009)

Rockwave Festival (Greece, Athens) (June 27, 2009)

Open'er Festival (July 5, 2009)

Rock for People (July 8, 2009)

Sziget (August 15, 2009)

Reading Festival (August 28, 2009)

Leeds Festival (August 30, 2009)

Soundwave Festival (20, 21, 26, 27 February and 1 March 2010)

Exit Festival (July 9, 2010)

Sonisphere Festival (July 31, 2010)

Pukkelpop Festival (August 19, 2010)

Two Days A Week Festival (September 4, 2010)

Earth Theatre w/ Aviv Geffen (Greece, Thessaloniki) (September 10, 2010)

Rockwave Festival (Greece, Athens) (September 11, 2010)

Huxleys Neue Welt (Germany, Berlin) (August 9, 2011)

Mercedes-Benz (Germany, Stuttgart) (August 11, 2011)

References

External links

Brian Molko's (Placebo) guitar rig

Category:1972 births Category:Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London Category:Androgyny Category:Bisexual musicians Category:American male singers Category:Scottish male singers Category:American tenors Category:Scottish tenors Category:American people of French descent Category:Scottish people of French descent Category:American people of Italian descent Category:Scottish people of Italian descent Category:American musicians of Italian descent Category:Living people Category:People associated with Dundee Category:Placebo members Category:American people of Scottish descent Category:LGBT musicians from the United Kingdom Category:LGBT parents

cs:Brian Molko da:Brian Molko de:Brian Molko es:Brian Molko fr:Brian Molko gl:Brian Molko ko:브라이언 몰코 is:Brian Molko it:Brian Molko he:בריאן מולקו ka:ბრაიან მოლკო lv:Braiens Molko lt:Brian Molko hu:Brian Molko nl:Brian Molko ja:ブライアン・モルコ no:Brian Molko pl:Brian Molko pt:Brian Molko ro:Brian Molko ru:Молко, Брайан simple:Brian Molko sk:Brian Molko sr:Брајан Молко fi:Brian Molko sv:Brian Molko tr:Brian Molko zh:布萊恩·莫爾可