🌟 𝐎𝐅 𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐂𝐄𝐁𝐎 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐂𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐒 🌟

"I can't be the only one who just wants them to go 'f*** it' and get in the studio with just their guitars, with someone like Brad Wood, and make debut mkII"
(𝘈 𝘧𝘢𝘯'𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘙𝘦𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘵 - 2021)

Photo credit at the end of the text

🔸Dear Soulmates, today's post will deal with a topic close to my heart.

As a long-time French fan, I have read many reviews about 𝑃𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑏𝑜 in the French press. I can't deny that after the success of 𝑆𝑙𝑒𝑒𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑊𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝐺ℎ𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑠, an album that was praised worldwide, the press has changed its attitude towards the band, often focusing on the fact that 𝑃𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑏𝑜 has changed or lost something since the release of 𝑀𝑒𝑑𝑠. These critics are sometimes voiced and shared by fans as well.

I'd like to share one of these reviews with you so that you understand what I mean. It was written before the band go on stage at the 𝐹𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑎𝑙 𝐷𝑢 𝑃𝑜𝑢𝑝𝑒𝑡 𝑖𝑛 𝐽𝑢𝑙𝑦 2014, in Saint-Malô-du-Bois,

I've chosen a soft critic. Some are harsh.🔸


📍 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑹𝑬𝑽𝑰𝑬𝑾 📍

After a first week full of sweetness, the Vendée festival is really starting the second one and welcomes this very electric trio this Monday. Rock'n'roll !

The time is long gone when Placebo could be considered as old-fashioned irreverent rock. Twenty years have passed, the band has matured (not to say aged) and in 2013 released its seventh album: Loud like love. Those who wanted to hate it hated it, the die-hard fans said it was better before, the others loved it, especially the single Too Many Friends, with its heady melody and wry humour. In short, it left no one indifferent.

But what was the spirit of Placebo? A punk-rock, rough and tumble. A real cry of rebellion. It was also a look, an attitude, that of Brian Molko, a charismatic singer with a nasal voice, anxious to free himself from conventions. This is evidenced by the many concerts in which he displayed his androgynous appearance, wearing make-up to sing lyrics heavy with sensuality.

Photo credit: Pat Pope

A turning point

When did Placebo start to change ? You might think it was with the release of Sleeping with Ghosts, their fourth album, the time when the media started to put the band in the public eye. It could also be their monumental concert at the O2 Arena in 2009, where they definitely broke with their artistic will to never perform in commercial music temples.

As a famous spectacle maker would say: yes, but that was before. The most symbolic turning point came that same year with the release of Death of Nancy Boy, in which the band explained their desire to do away with the character of Nancy Boy, the main title of their first album and a true summary of the Brian Molko character. The explanation: "𝑊𝑒'𝑟𝑒 𝑓𝑒𝑑 𝑢𝑝 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑏𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑎𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑔𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑝 𝑜𝑓 𝑑𝑟𝑢𝑛𝑘𝑒𝑛 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑣𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑒'𝑑 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑔𝑛𝑖𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑚𝑢𝑠𝑖𝑐", explained Molko, during an appearance on Taratata (2009).


Their strength: the concerts

But then what ? By trying to be consensual, Placebo may have lost what made its identity. Meds and Battle for the Sun are albums that are far from having been recognised by the critics. Loud Like Love, the latest one, has followed the same path, with the excellent (Exit Wounds) rubbing shoulders with the not so good (Loud like Love).

However, no worries ! The band's strength is only fully revealed in concert. Their incredible performances are as energetic as you could wish. The three musicians give their all to make each of their appearances a unique moment for the audience. As the trio's only date in the west, the audience at the Théâtre de Verdure should get their money's worth.
(𝘙𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘦𝘪𝘹 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵-𝘧𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦.𝘧𝘳 - 2014)

Photo credit: Nadav Kander

🔸Why this topic is important to me ? Well, not because I am a fan refusing negative comments on Placebo.

My views on Placebo are the same as on people. That is, the people in the band, 𝐵𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑛 and 𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑓𝑎𝑛 (and all the other members who were in the band before) evolve over the years, like everyone on this planet. Opinions change, situations evolve, life paths change, and the way you see the world changes. Just life !

What I notice most of all is that the press or some fans would like Placebo to never change and produce the same music over and over again, dealing with the same topics over and over again, in the same way. 𝑊𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑𝑛'𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑏𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 ? 🤔

Being a fan, in my mind, is not about regretting what our favourite band used to do and hoping fervently that they'll come to their senses, but it is about welcoming the new things they offer us, be it musically or in terms of thinking. We don't have to love everything blindly but we have to try and accept evolution, which is what we do every day with the people around us in trying to understand and accompany them. 💚

Also, being a fan is not about praising only one band member or being very critical of the artists' appearance or being interested in their private life. In a way, it's like refusing to see that behind the music, there are human beings, with all the complexity that characterises them. It's only ignoring the Art itself, the message transmitted through the songs.

In a way, it's like refusing to see that behind the music, there are human beings, with all the complexity that characterises them.✨

I personally prefer a band with a varied musicality rather than having the impression of listening to the same album even when I change the record. I'm grateful for 𝑃𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑏𝑜 to be a band which sticks to who they are without trying to please (despite their name 😉) critics or some unsatisfied fans.

𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑑𝑜𝑛'𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑎𝑟𝑒 ! 💝 😄 🔸

🎥 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒂𝒕 𝑴𝒂𝒏 𝑹𝒂𝒚 (2003) https://bit.ly/3mb6tcL 🎵

Photo credit pic 1:
Joseph Llanes (top left and top center pictures)
Corinne Mariaud (bottom left picture)
Mary Scanlon (bottom right picture)
Morena Brengola (center right picture)
Robin François (top right picture, bottom center picture)
Edit by Laetitia 

Post by Laetitia