๐จ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐, ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐...๐น๐ฆ
Dear friends, I know how eagerly we all expect every mention of the new Placebo album. The child has already been born, and yet it is still mysteriously hidden from us. And to give you a little idea of how such a Placebo album is made, I went back in my memory to the creation of the MEDS album, which was released in 2006.
MEDS is considered the best album in Placebo's entire career.
We know from many interviews that tension and misunderstanding between the band members escalated during the recording of this album. But from the articles I found, you can only feel the joy and enthusiasm for creating this gem.
You can read excerpts from several interviews, and in the end you will enjoy the amazing performance of the song ๐๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ฟ๐ ๐ฅ๐ผ๐น๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ ๐ฆ๐ต๐ผ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ณ, which Brian said about:
(๐๐๐๐๐ , 2006)
“One of the tracks you write for all the ladies out there.”
(๐๐น๐, 2006 )
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| Photo credit: Nadav Kander |
/.../
It is here, behind these walls of faded yellow bricks, that Brian Molko (vocals, guitar), Stefan Olsdal, (bass) and Steve Hewitt (drums) have been working since last June on Placebo’s fifth album. After leaving the cute hostess/receptionist and having been removed of MP3 players or any other electronic object vaguely resembling a recording device, we’re able to enter. In the kitchen, arranged into a work room, you can find an expresso machine, a leather sofa, a Ping-Pong table, a Wurlitzer juke-box, a vintage fridge on which a plate of cookies is balanced, and near the floor, a few gold discs of artists who recorded in this studio (from Kim Wilde to the Libertines, passing by Bryan Ferry, Feeder or Page/Plant.)
“Welcome to the RAK! It’s one of the last independent studios of London,” states Brian Molko, all smiles. “You noticed on arrival. It’s located in the residential district, far from stress, far from show-business, far from everything. When Dimitri suggested this address, we didn’t hesitate one second. This place gives us the atmosphere, the discretion and the comfort we were looking for.”
“Placebo are negociating an important turn-around in their career”, specifies Tikovoi. /.../ I talked with the group at length about what they wanted. To return to the energy and spontaneity of their debut or to go further into sophistication? They opted for the first choice, because the pieces lent themselves to that premise perfectly well. The RAK has three studios. I chose to record in the largest room. Brian, Stefan and Steve played in a triangle, looking at each other. There weren’t any machines. My aim was to get a raw sound out of them. I concentrated on the songs and the unity of the group rather than working the vocals and instruments separately.
/.../
Placebo wanted to be present for this private listening session – a rare enough occurrence.
“We’re really excited by this album. It’s always interesting to see people’s reactions listening to it for the first time. They don’t even need to speak. We can tell if they’re getting into it or not. So far, there’ve been mainly happy faces coming out of here. It’s pretty encouraging,” confides Stefan Olsdal. /.../
(๐๐́๐๐́๐๐๐ข๐ ๐ก๐๐๐ข๐, ๐๐๐ฃ 2005)
⭐
Dimitri explains: “The idea in the beginning was to re-do a fisrt album, including the challenge of making each song really exciting and unique. [To] get rid of the production and make it more direct, not to hide behind layer of nice-sounding things. [I wanted] something that gets to the core of the band and the emotion of the songs.” Dimitri’s approach meant that Placebo were pushed out of their ‘comfort zone’ with Brian in particular encountering writer’s block when it came to lyrics.
“It does get harder as you get older, as you get more successful,” he details. “It gets harder and harder with each record trying not to repeat yourself, trying not to become a clichรฉ. I certainly didn’t want to repeat myself on this record so it was extremely challenging. I did go through periods of blockages. But another thing Dimitri said to me was that when you’re going through a process of change, it’s a very difficult position to be in and you just have to keep pushing because ultimately you’ll be so much more rewarded.”
(๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ข๐๐, ๐น๐๐ 2006)
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| Photo credit: Nadav Kander |
๐ป๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐, ๐๐ ๐ฑ๐๐๐ 2004, ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐’๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ 5๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐. ๐พ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐?
"Many things. We started writing near Cannes in France, then, we wrote the major part of the album in 6 weeks, but it was last year and of course, it has evolved. Ideas go on! We met in London, almost 3 months ago, with Dimitri Tikovoi whom we worked on «Runninig up that Hill» and «The Ballad of Melody Nelson» , which were on the cover album. We wanted to work with him for a long time. For some reasons: we were born the same day, the same year…"
๐๐๐’๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐’๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ป๐๐๐๐ ๐ท๐๐๐๐๐…
"Yes. And we wanted to work with someone of our generation, we didn’t want to work with someone that could have been our father, like many famous producers with whom our label tried to make us work with. We thought that it would be more interesting to work with someone of our age. When we began this album, no one was more than 35! The atmosphere was different and i think it’s one of the reasons that made things move. The recording took 8 weeks, ans that’s very quick for us."
๐ป๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐๐๐๐, ๐๐๐’๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐?
"Yes, it is! We had an argument the first week, the kind of «Why do you treat me this way? I’m your friend!» But after the first week, it became very easy. Since the clash was ended, we take the roles established between producer and atrists, then it become really easy becuse no one is afraid of hurt the ego of the other. We know each other rather well and finally, we didn’t stop making jokes with each other. It creates an atmosphere of camaraderie… Very democratic! And i think it has also contribuated to the speed of this recording." /.../
๐ถ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐, ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐. ๐ฏ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐?
"I think that i’m in a period of changes, of transformations with lyrics, i didn’t want to repeat the same things and maybe i was in a position of comfort. It’s with Dimitri that i manages to break this situation, rediscover something, a danger or an anger, but something fresh, something that is not a clichรฉ, that is not an inferior version of the angst and the frustration that existed on our firsts albums. When you grow old, it becomes harder, i think, to write lyrics… I still speak about addiction and confusion, but differently, i hope."
๐ฏ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐? ๐พ๐๐๐ ๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐?
"There’re no rules in fact. We try to stay very open. When it’s me that make the song, I can begin with a voice melody, when it’s Stefan, it more with a guitar, and when it’s Steve, it’s with drums. We can also begin with a piano line that Stef or me find accidentally, It’s often accidental."
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| Photo credit: Nadav Kander |
After Brian Molko last month and before Steve Hewitt next month, Stefan Olsdal speaks to us live from the mixing studio on Placebo’s future release, due 14th March 2006.
๐ป๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐.
"We begin around 2 or 3 pm, and work until 3 in the morning. This week, for example, we re-recorded the first track on the album because we weren’t satisfied with the sound of the mikes or with the studio it was recorded in. Between two takes we went down to studio 3 to see how the mixing was going, then we went back up the record, then we went back down to see Flood, etc."
๐บ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐!
"Yeah, we need the exercise! [laughs]. This week has been hard, intense, because we’re trying to go fast so the album’s out for the start of 2006. Everyone’s exhausted, but we’re still smiling, and we’re all going out tonight."
๐พ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐?
"We wait a bit before going out. Brian records some more vocals. Then, if the mixing goes well, we all go out together. Flood, the band, Dimitri and the technicians. We’re probably going to eat out together. There’s such a team spirit, everything’s going great. We wind each other up from time to time but it’s all fun. Afterwards we’ve got to go to east London for one of our mates’ private party. We’re going to relax, get release from the pressure. The session’s been long – we’ve been locked up since May, and since we’ve been mixing and recording at the same time, it’s been worse. We hardly ever go out. That’s why tonight, we plan on going wild."
⭐⭐⭐
๐ธ๐๐ก๐๐ฃ๐๐ ๐ป๐๐ค๐๐ก๐ก ๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ง๐๐๐ ๐ฝ๐๐ 2006๐ธ
๐ฏ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐?
"It’s been the best recording session of my life. Everyone was the same age and we were just a bunch of young adults making an album. We had loads of fun, we all really connected. We’re all really confident in this album, and especially very proud. It’s a big step forward. The album’s very different to the last – our sound has evolved thanks to Dimitri and Flood. You know, we wanted to work with Flood for all our past albums, but he never had the time. It was finally possible for this one, and he did a damn good job on it. He’s thrown the group forward, made us sound how we’ve wanted to for four albums. The fans will be happy, they’ll feel as if they’re inside the music. We really tried to put tension and excitement into the pieces. It’s a very ‘rock’ album, much more so than ‘Sleeping with Ghosts’ and I think the tracks will work really well onstage."๐
๐ธ⭐๐ธ
Post by Marti
