I want to dedicate my today’s post to wonderful Fiona Brice who was Placebo touring member for almost 10 years. Talented composer and beautiful lady, she keeps moving on with her musical career and treasures lots of memories of her time with Placebo.
▪️In the ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ from 2016, Fiona tells about her solo album "Postcards From", remembers how she met the guys and started working with them, shares her thoughts of how being constantly on tour influenced her private life.
Enjoy reading and be sure to check out the remix of Fiona’s track ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐ฌ by DIGITAL 21 + STEFAB OLSDAL.
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| Photo credit: Emilie Bailey |
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐
๐๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ฌ๐ข๐ฒ๐ ๐๐จ๐ ๐ข๐ง๐จ๐ฏ๐: Fiona, firstly, I want to congratulate you with a release of your debut album 'Postcards from'. I listened to it. The album sounds fantastic! I would like to know: what experience did you get from writing and recording of this album? What was the most difficult for you in this work?
๐ ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐: "Postcards From" is like a travel diary, each track is a snapshot of my mood in each place. I travel so much that finding the inspiration and time to write the music down is like finding shelter in a storm. I did not initially set out to write an album, I was just writing all the time and then I realised that these tracks had a common theme and made sense together. Writing and recording the music was the easy part. Getting signed and getting the record released was more difficult, but I am delighted that it is being released by Bella Union Records, I have worked with several of their artists in the past (John Grant, Midlake, Stephanie Dosen, Roy Harper) and it feels like the perfect label for me.
๐๐: Will your album be out on the cd/vinyl? What do you think about music on CDs or vinyl records nowadays? Do you buy CDs or vinyl of your favourite bands/musicians?
๐ ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐: The album is available on all formats: vinyl, CD and digital. In fact, some of the vinyl copies contain personal messages from me, so people will get a nice surprise when they open the package. I buy music digitally because it is the easiest way to listen to music on tour, but I believe that most music sounds better on vinyl and my Dad just gave me his old record player from the 60s so I can listen to vinyl when I am at home. I do occasionally use streaming sites too but I don't really like to do this because they pay the musicians so badly.
๐๐: Are you going to play gigs with this music? Are you going to present the album?
๐ ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐: Yes! I played my first gig last week in London. I performed solo with violin and effects pedals, and I am supporting The Anchoress on 15th June at the Bush Hall, London. There will be more dates too. Performing solo means the music can have a spontaneous and improvised feel, it is quite hypnotic and relaxing. I do want to do some bigger shows with grand piano, strings and video projection, but I have to find funding or sponsorship to make this happen.
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| Photo credit unknown |
๐ ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐: I met Brian and Stefan in the late 90s when we were all living in London. I was at University and was playing with Dream City Film Club at the time. We have a lot of friends in common, we used to see each other at parties. I first worked with them as orchestral arranger on the Meds album, and I have contributed to all of the albums since then.
๐๐: I suppose that playing in a band like Placebo is a huge responsibility for a musician. What did you feel when it was your first gig with the band? Where did you play this show?
๐ ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐: Yes it is a high pressure gig because in addition to the fact that you are playing live to 1000s of people, it is also being recorded, filmed, maybe broadcast on TV or radio at the same time.. there is no room for error, there are cameras and microphones and faces everywhere you turn. I also feel a responsibility towards the fans. They are paying good money for tickets and you never want to deliver a bad performance. My first Placebo gig was the 'Live at Angkor Wat' performance for MTV Exit. A very significant gig for my 'first time'! I was nervous about it but we rehearsed for two weeks, there was plenty of time to work out what we were doing, and it turned out to be an amazing experience.
๐๐: What's about your impressions of the collaboration with guys? What did you learn from being a touring member of the band? Maybe it has changed you?
๐ ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐: I enjoy collaborating with Brian and Stef because they are talented musicians with clear ideas about what they want. They are supportive of my solo record too. Actually Stefan has remixed a track for me.
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| Photo credit unknown |
๐
๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ - ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐ฌ (๐ซ๐๐ฆ๐ข๐ฑ ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ข๐ ๐ข๐ญ๐๐ฅ ๐๐ + ๐๐ญ๐๐๐๐ง ๐๐ฅ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฅ)
๐ถ https://bit.ly/39zV4xl
Touring has changed me, inevitably. I am less content to just sit at home, I am always ready for the next move. It has been quite disruptive in my personal life (I have been engaged, married and divorced whilst on tour in the last 8 years!) but it has given me a more global view. It has opened my eyes to other people's lives in this world, and reinforces my belief that fundamentally we are all one, all equal, regardless of gender, race, sexuality or nationality.
๐๐: You are the only woman in Placebo band. What do you think at all about women in the music industry, not only like musicians, but also like managers, concert promoters? Some people suppose that this work is so hard and it is only for men, women have no place here. What's your opinion?
๐ ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐: Women make up at least 50% of the population and they should be able to do whatever work they are inspired to do, in any industry. I am just doing what I want to do with my life. Looking back on when I was younger, I realise now the times when men tried to shape me, to tell me what to do, to tell me that they knew best. Sometimes I was too weak to argue my case, and that was my mistake, not theirs. You need to be strong-willed and able to speak up for yourself. Placebo are very supportive of women in the industry. I am the only woman on stage but the band have a female manager, we have female crew members in various jobs (wardrobe, video, catering, tour management, finance, photography). Decide what you want to do, get qualified, get good at it and get on with it, that would be my advice.
๐๐: What do you expect from the world tour '20 years of Placebo'? Russian fans are looking forward to the shows! :)
๐ ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐: I am expecting some excited crowds and a huge celebration of massive hits from a massive career! I haven't seen the proposed setlist yet but I look forward to getting into rehearsals and working on the songs so we can give the fans the best show possible.
(๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ก๐๐๐ฆ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ก, 2016)
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| Photo credit: viplive.tk |
Post by Olga
