Thursday, January 21, 2021

𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐑𝐓 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐀 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘: 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐛𝐨 𝐚𝐭 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐮𝐦 𝐝𝐢 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐠𝐨, 𝐌𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐧, 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟔 (1)

𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟏: 𝐀 𝐆𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐁𝐀𝐓𝐇
On November 15, 2016, Placebo played one of the shows of the 20 𝒀𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒃𝒐 𝑻𝒐𝒖𝒓 at Forum di Assago in Milan. Though, not everything went smoothly on that day.
A support band had got their bus broken on the road far away from Milan, so they couldn’t make to the city in time. Probably it was an option to play without any opening act but… Placebo got to find another, very unusual solution for the problem. They invited 𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒁𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒂, a friend of Brian and a founder of the project Alma Matters which deals with Tibetan healing practice and meditation, to open for them and perform a gong bath in front of Placebo audience.

Photo credits: Brian Molko (2016) - credit unknown; @placeboworld IG, edit by Olga.

🔎A 𝐆𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐁𝐀𝐓𝐇 is a form of sound healing meditation that involves using therapeutic gong sounds and vibrations to bring about healing. The treatments are based on the understanding that our body’s cells vibrate at different frequencies. Factors such as stress, depression and disease cause cells and organs to vibrate at non-optimal frequencies. The gong sounds are supposed to influence on brainwaves and help reduce stress and liberate emotional blockages.

As Brian is very much interested in this kind of topics, the idea most likely belonged to him. Mr. Molko personally explained the situation with the opening band and presented Walter Zanca to the fans.
🙌You can watch a whole 𝐕𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐎 of a 𝒈𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒂𝒕𝒉 started with a very inspiring 𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒏’𝒔 𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒆𝒄𝒉😍
https://bit.ly/3m6dtFf

Also, I want to share an 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐖 with Walter Zanca where he told about Alma Matters' concept, Tibetan bowls he gave to Brian as a present and his opinion on the relationships between Placebo members.

Brian Molko in Milano 2016. Photo credit: Die Presse Archivbild  

✨𝐖𝐀𝐋𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐙𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐀: "𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐘 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐀 𝐁𝐈𝐆 𝐅𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐘"✨
𝐀𝐧𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐲𝐚 𝐋𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐚: Walter, firstly, I would like to know about your occupation and Alma Matters. When did you decide to start up Alma Matters? What was the concept?

𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐙𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐚: I decided to start my Alma Matters project as I've always been interested in trying to help people to get in touch more with their intimate part, their spiritual part.

I started many years ago as an Ayurvedic masseur and from the very beginning I was surprised to see the effect the massages had on people. Many described themselves as being capable or really looking inside themselves for the first time and most of the time they said it was like going to a psychologist session.

So I started to study more and more (and still doing my researches) because I always thought that we are our own guru and we can learn to understand and see more by using and developing our own consciousness.

So the concept of Alma Matters was to create a place where through holistic disciplines people could get in touch with their intimate person.

I started Alma Matters 2 years ago after many years of giving massages and as you can see for the very start Alma is growing and growing and by saying this I want to say that people got my message and it works.

𝐀𝐋: I know that you gave Brian Molko special bowls for meditation (he posted them on Instagram). Could you, please, tell me a bit more about the bowls? How can you use them?

𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐙𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐚: Tibetan bowls are originally for the Himalayan areas and they were actually used to put food in it. During the centuries people found out that by using them by rotating or hitting a small stick on them they produce sounds and vibrations able to deeply relax peoples' mind. What happens during a Tibetan bowls massage (where the bowls are placed on the body in contact with specific points) or concerts is a spread of vibrations that, being physical have the power to dissolve muscular tensions. Furthermore, our brain which is always used to be very connected to our job and never be able to relax, do not recognize that kind of sound and vibrations and the results is a "turn off" of our nervous system meaning that we disconnect from the outer world and enter into a sort of meditation.

𝐀𝐋: There're some photos on your Instagram when you were on tour with Placebo. I work with a musician and I can understand that being on tour is a quite stressful situation. What can you recommend to do for reducing stress when you on road or in other difficult situation?

𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐙𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐚: The best treatments to practice when you're on the road or before a very important job that requires a full presence of body and mind are the most relaxing ones.

What always happens that after the treatments (I would say all those treatments that bring the person into meditation or a very relaxed mind) a great power and will of life follows and that's where on stage for example you give your best and the energy that is created is quite clear to everybody.

Photo credit unknown

𝐀𝐋: I saw your performance before a Placebo show in Milan on YouTube. It was amazing and so unusual. Who gave a suggestion of the performance? What were your impressions after it? It's your first experience like giving a performance on stage or you have done it earlier?

𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐙𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐚: As Brian Molko said on stage he visited me the day of the concert and had a gong bath. What happened to him and what happens to everyone after the sounds and vibrations of the gongs is that you're so relaxed and calm that you want to do it more and more.

In that very occasion, with the coincidence (do they really exist?) of the support band having their tour bus broken away from Milan I was asked to open for Placebo.

That was my biggest experience with a gong bath as the venue in Milan was sold out with 12 thousand people but I usually give gong baths every week in Alma Matters and more are yet to come in forests, castles etc.

𝐀𝐋: I asked this question to some people who have known Brian and Stefan for several years and worked with them, and I want to ask this question to you. Now Placebo is twenty years, they have 20 Years tour. What can you say about the changes in the band, maybe, you have noticed something through your collaboration or connection with them?

𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐙𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐚: Life is an incredible path to follow if you're able look inside you and evolve with it. We don't know where we come from and where we're going but it's the walk that counts. Brian, Stefan and all the rest of the band are incredible human beings and they're all a big family and human relationship to them is very important. Some may have come and gone but the 99% of that family is still there, including roadies. They're aware of how important is being human and not lose the sense of reality and importance of feelings and I guess you can see that in their lyrics and on stage.

Brian Molko in-Milano 2016. Photo credit: Die Presse Archivbild  

Here you can see 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐧’𝐬 𝐈𝐆 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐬 from that day about Tibetan bowl massage and a gong bath mentioned in the interview.

“...𝐓𝐈𝐁𝐄𝐓𝐀𝐍 𝐁𝐎𝐖𝐋 𝐌𝐀𝐒𝐒𝐀𝐆𝐄 𝐓𝐎𝐃𝐀𝐘. 𝐅𝐄𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐔𝐒 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐓𝐔𝐃𝐄. 𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐔𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐌𝐎𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓!”
⭐️ https://bit.ly/39g7Uk7

“...𝐏𝐑𝐄-𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐆𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐁𝐀𝐓𝐇. 𝐅𝐄𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐘 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐎 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐔𝐍𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐄 𝐓𝐎𝐃𝐀𝐘.”
⭐️ https://bit.ly/2JgTDsE

And of course, my post wouldn’t be complete without some music, so let’s watch Placebo performing 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐬 that incredible day in Milan.
🎶 https://bit.ly/367AEK2

Post by Olga