🌛◾ℙ𝕃𝔸ℂ𝔼𝔹𝕆 𝕃𝕌𝕃𝕃𝔸𝔹𝕀𝔼𝕊 - 𝕡𝕒𝕣𝕥 𝕏𝕍𝕀.◾🌜

💦𝐇𝐢 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬,💦
tonight we symbolically end the lullabies from the 𝙈𝙀𝘿𝙎 𝙚𝙧𝙖 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙚, which is an iconic rock hit in its original fast version. But thanks to Placebo's playfulness and Brian's insistence on not being bored with his music, we can listen to this slow musical gem before falling asleep.

Photo credit: Benni Valsson

🔹🎶 𝐌𝐄𝐃𝐒 - 𝐎𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐜 𝐕𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐨
https://bit.ly/3Y9xehQ

🔹🎶 𝐌𝐄𝐃𝐒 - 𝐀𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐒𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧
https://bit.ly/3Hrfesu


⭐𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐎:
Meds is the opening track of the self-titled album released in 2006.

🔹💬 𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐀𝐍 𝐎𝐍 𝐌𝐄𝐃𝐒💊:
"I wrote it during my stay in India, like 'Song to say goodbye'. 'Meds' is about loosing yourself, not recognizing yourself. You feel lost, desperate, and you don't know what you think anymore, what you really feel. It's a very disturbing feeling, for me and for everyone, and I wanted to express it. I'm glad it's the opening song of the album, it's the 1st time a Placebo record opens with an acoustic chord."
(𝚁𝚘𝚌𝚔 𝙼𝚊𝚐, 𝙰𝚙𝚛𝚒𝚕 𝟸00𝟼)

"An addiction is a form of escape: you run away from yourself. It's a way of not facing life, to make things worse. Of course, you can have more or less control over it. It depends on whether the problem is due to your environment or whether it comes from your chromosomes. Sometimes it's hard to face things. To look at yourself with detachment. Living empirically, experimenting, is always easier than "following a path", but at the end of the day, you can't run away forever. At some point, you have to deal with all aspects of your life. Even the most painful ones."
(𝙿𝙻𝙰𝙲𝙴𝙱𝙾 𝙸𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠, 𝙵𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚑 𝚖𝚊𝚐𝚊𝚣𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝙿𝚑𝚘𝚜𝚙𝚑𝚘𝚛𝚎, 𝙼𝚊𝚛𝚌𝚑 𝟸00𝟼)

Photo credit: Chris Crisman

💔𝑊ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑑𝑜𝑒𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑘𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒𝑠 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑒𝑟...🔥
I have a very deep personal connection to this song and will be very open in this post... because I know I'm not the only one whose life has been changed by Placebo music.

💊𝙈𝙀𝘿𝙎 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 is something that gave me chills and nausea at one important stage in my life.

Maybe you know it too. A song you've known for years suddenly turns into a demon. It's in your ears all the time, day and night...

You can't get rid of the notes, the words. They come up in many everyday situations. And you don't want to hear it anymore because because it hurts...
It happened when MEDS was already 10 years old. I don't want to share very painful details, but I was going through a period that I wouldn't wish anyone in the world to experience.

The mental pain from the situation that totally wounded me was reflected psychosomatically in my physical body... and I cried out for help with every cell of my being and I've only encountered a lack of understanding from those closest to me.

I still remember the moment when this slow version first hit me right in the heart. I was listening to music before falling asleep and suddenly I was sitting on my bed crying.

💔𝑰 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏'𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒈𝒏𝒊𝒛𝒆 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆, 𝒎𝒚𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇, 𝒘𝒉𝒚 𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒕'𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒄.🔥

The outline of the shadow lying beside me was insensitive to my emotions and I suddenly realized the depth of my problem. The fact that I try to maintain an image of my perfect happiness in front of the whole world and yet it was such a lie... It's an image of my addiction. Not on drugs, but on a dysfunctional marriage and family paradigm.
🔹'...𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦, 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘥𝘨𝘦... 𝘛𝘳𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵,
...𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘫𝘰𝘺, 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘨𝘭𝘦𝘦... 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘪𝘤 𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘥𝘨𝘦...'

The line about meds was suddenly like a mockery to me... 🔹"𝘉𝘢𝘣𝘺..𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘴?"

No one cared how I really felt.
🔹'...𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘣𝘦, 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘴,
...𝘗𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘣𝘺, 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘦, 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘵...'

𝐀𝐭 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐦𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭, a very deep cleansing process started in my inner world. The process where I got out of the phase of blaming others for my situation and started blaming myself.
🔹'...𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦, 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦, 𝘵𝘳𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵,..
...𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘶𝘴, 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘦, 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘪 𝘭𝘦𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘱...'

I think that even in psychology these individual phases are described in detail.
This unwanted and unwelcome anthem was ringing in my ears every day and I couldn't escape it.
If you fight something in anger and hatred, it keeps coming back, even stronger, to finally bring you down.

💔Thoughts of suicide appeared... after all, I'm just a burden to everyone and myself.

Photo credit:  Benni Valsson

🙏I didn't give up. During this cleansing process, two more very important phases followed -
𝐀𝐂𝐂𝐄𝐏𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐆𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐒.

But Meds for me will always be the song that on a subconscious level broke down the totally barricaded door to my wounded ego that wanted to stay hidden and feel sorry for itself until the very end.

Today, the slow version of Meds is a favorite lullaby for me. I love these Placebo acoustic songs and I will be happy if you enjoy this perfection with me tonight.

In these videos that I have selected for you, you can see how time went with this song.

🔹🎶𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐬 - 𝐀𝐥𝐞𝐣𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐨 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐨 𝐒𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬 𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟕
https://bit.ly/3jilJ9h

🔹🎶𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐬 - 𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐊𝐎𝐑 𝐖𝐀𝐓 𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟖
http://bit.ly/3XT6jad

🔹🎶𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐬 - 𝐒𝐅𝐑 𝐒𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐬 𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟗
https://bit.ly/3YbRkYQ


🔹🎶And of course - I took 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐨 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐛𝐨'𝐬 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐌𝐓𝐕 𝐔𝐍𝐏𝐋𝐔𝐆𝐆𝐄𝐃 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟓, which for me personally is absolutely the best performance (although it is basically on the first position with the video from ANGKOR WAT).

The way the song culminates in a string arrangement by Fiona Brice and the full orchestra, along with the visual sensation of a very beautiful laser curtain, always fills me with awe.

Post by Marti

⭐𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐀𝐑𝐘: 𝐌𝐓𝐕 𝐔𝐧𝐩𝐥𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐝⭐

Today we celebrate the ⭐𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐀𝐑𝐘⭐ of the breathtaking 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐛𝐨'𝐬 𝐌𝐓𝐕 𝐔𝐧𝐩𝐥𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐝 which was released six years ago on November 27, 2015 on CD, DVD, Blu-Ray, double vinyl, digital download and a limited edition super deluxe box set.

Photo credit: Unknown (3), Screenshots from the concert / edit by Rita

📍On November 26, 1989, 𝐌𝐓𝐕 premiered the "𝑼𝒏𝒑𝒍𝒖𝒈𝒈𝒆𝒅" format with 13 episodes featuring 𝑺𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒆𝒛𝒆, 𝑺𝒚𝒅 𝑺𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒘, 𝑬𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒐𝒕 𝑬𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒏, 𝑨𝒆𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒉, 𝑺𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝑶'𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒐𝒓, 𝑬𝒍𝒕𝒐𝒏 𝑱𝒐𝒉𝒏 among others. Over the years, this concept has gained so much popularity that more than 120 artists have performed to date.

On the way to the celebration of their 20 years of career, 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒃𝒐 was invited to be part of this 𝐌𝐓𝐕's famous series, being August 19, 2015, the big day of the recording of this concert at 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒐𝒏 𝑺𝒕𝒖𝒅𝒊𝒐𝒔 in 𝑾𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒍𝒐𝒐, 𝑪𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒍 𝑳𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒐𝒏. The fans who attended this special night were chosen at random after receiving more than 10,000 requests via the band's official website.


✨💫 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐛𝐨'𝐬 𝐌𝐓𝐕 𝐔𝐧𝐩𝐥𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐝 𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐎𝐟 💫✨

🎤𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑴𝒐𝒍𝒌𝒐: "We wanted to do something extraordinary, something that would challenge us. The process has been interesting, because we were creating something while we were performing it. That was something we had never done before. The simultaneity of the performance and the creation process was completely new for us. It wasn't going to be enough to just sit at the piano and strip the songs down to their bare bones."

🎤𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒇𝒂𝒏 𝑶𝒍𝒔𝒅𝒂𝒍 adds: "With acoustic versions it can be easy to become very self-indulgent and just play all the slow tracks. So it was challenging to do a setlist that flowed well. Once we found out that we were going to play this show we were on a mission to make our contribution to the 'MTV Unplugged' story equally exciting for us and the audience."

🎤𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑴𝒐𝒍𝒌𝒐: "The biggest challenge was to recreate these songs in a new and appealing way. Because at the end of the day, we, too, wanted to be surprised. We spent months preparing this. We were constantly working on those songs and tweaking them, because this was completely unknown territory for us – totally outside of our comfort zone.

'MTV Unplugged' gave us the opportunity to explore the acoustic and more experimental side of our music, and to play a few songs we had not performed like this before."

▪️𝑢𝐷𝑖𝑠𝑐𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑀𝑢𝑠𝑖𝑐, 𝑁𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 25𝑡𝒉, 2015.

Photo credit: Screenshot

⭐ 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐛𝐨 - 𝐌𝐓𝐕 𝐔𝐧𝐩𝐥𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐝 (𝐁𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐬) ✨
https://bit.ly/3kXsx9Z


After performing several acoustic sets in their career, "𝐌𝐓𝐕 𝑼𝒏𝒑𝒍𝒖𝒈𝒈𝒆𝒅" stands out because 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒃𝒐 managed to reinvent once again their songs making elegant and delicate versions of them, where 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒇𝒂𝒏 𝑶𝒍𝒔𝒅𝒂𝒍 shows off his talent as a multi-instrumentalist playing the bass, guitar, piano, qanun, shruti box and doing backing vocals, while 𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑴𝒐𝒍𝒌𝒐 along with his beloved guitar from 1956 called "𝑴𝒚 𝑩𝒂𝒃𝒚" and with his unmistakable voice performs each song in an endearing way. He even dusted off his harmonica after several years of not playing it.

They were also accompanied by a dozen guest musicians and featured two great female voices; Danish singer 𝑴𝒂𝒋𝒌𝒆 𝑽𝒐𝒔𝒔 𝑹𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆 𝒂.𝒌.𝒂 𝑩𝒓𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒏 𝑻𝒘𝒊𝒏 who sang with 𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒏 "𝑬𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝑬𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝑴𝒆" and then singer/songwriter 𝑱𝒐𝒂𝒏 𝑾𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒓 a.k.a 𝑱𝒐𝒂𝒏 𝑨𝒔 𝑷𝒐𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝑾𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏 came on stage to sing with him "𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝑴𝒆 𝑭𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝑾𝒂𝒏𝒕".

It is worth mentioning that among the 17 songs they played that night there were songs that they had not played for several years and there were even a couple of songs that they had never played live before, like "𝑯𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝑶𝒏 𝑻𝒐 𝑴𝒆" and "𝑩𝒐𝒔𝒄𝒐", particularly the latter is a song that the band has a special fondness for. They had been waiting to have the proper instrumentation to play it live and this was the perfect occasion to do so. So perhaps "𝑩𝒐𝒔𝒄𝒐" is the highlight - or one of the many highlights - of this concert.

The setting of the stage deserves a special mention. The band was surrounded by thin transparent curtains where the lights were projecting different animations throughout the show, creating an ethereal atmosphere just like floating in outer space or being in a beautiful dream with the most amazing music in the background. Giving a magical and complete experience to the audience.

⭐ 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐛𝐨 - 𝐌𝐓𝐕 𝐔𝐧𝐩𝐥𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐝 (𝑨𝒍𝒃𝒖𝒎) ✨
💿 https://spoti.fi/3Dff2cP 🎶

Photo credit: Screenshot

In October 2016, the online magazine 𝐍𝐨𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐲 asked 𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑴𝒐𝒍𝒌𝒐 to rank 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒃𝒐 albums according to his personal preference. 𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒏 placed "𝐌𝐓𝐕 𝑼𝒏𝒑𝒍𝒖𝒈𝒈𝒆𝒅" at the top of his list, here are his reasons:

💫 𝑺𝒐 𝒘𝒉𝒚 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆?
🎤 For me, this is one of the most important moments in our career. It's one of the things we've done that I am most proud of. It was an amazing experience for me because it was something we'd never done before. We were rehearsing but we were also rewriting material, which finally gave us a chance to add a string section for a whole project. I've wanted to do that for a long time. It was terrifying at the time of the performance, because it was so fucking intimate. We put a tremendous amount of work into reworking the songs to fit the MTV Unplugged guidelines. I put it at number one because I am actually over the moon about this record. These songs from our past could be reinterpreted and stripped down to fit another medium, and to me that's an indicator of a good song.

💫 𝑫𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒆𝒍𝒕 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒐𝒍𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒔?
🎤 Well, we're constantly doing that. We're constantly covering our own material and breathing new life into it so we can play it live. Because we need an emotional connection to the song in order to play it live, otherwise it feels like a mechanical act and untruth. We don't want any of that in our performances. Sometimes you have to completely tear a song apart and give it a whole new life. Doing Unplugged and doing it well is quite a feat, I think. I am particularly proud of "Meds," which is completely rebuilt with the strings. Same goes for "Without You I'm Nothing."

▪️𝐵𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑛 𝑀𝑜𝑙𝑘𝑜, 𝑉𝑖𝑐𝑒, 𝑂𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑏𝑒𝑟 13𝑡𝒉, 2016.

Photo credit: Screenshot

⭐ 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐛𝐨 - 𝐌𝐓𝐕 𝐔𝐧𝐩𝐥𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐝 (𝑭𝒖𝒍𝒍 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒓𝒕) ✨
🎥 https://bit.ly/3qAx31t 🎶

Post by Rita

ANNIVERSARY: The MTV Unplugged Show

Today we celebrate the ANNIVERSARY of the “MTV Unplugged” album. It was released as CD and DVD five years ago on November 27^th 2015. The concert was recorded on 19^th of August that year at The London Studios in Waterloo, Central London. Placebo manager Alex Weston and Angus Blue of the band's management Riverman were both executive producers of the show.

♫ The bitter end – MTV Unplugged ♫

The “Unplugged” concert consisted of 17 songs. Two guest vocalists had an appearance on stage: singer-songwriter Majke Voss Romme of Broken Twin sang “Every you Every me” with the band and Joan Wasser aka Joan As Police Woman “Protect me from what I want”.

♫ Bosco – MTV Unplugged ♫

According to Stefan it was very hard and took a long time to work out the right setlist, because “with acoustic versions it can be easy to become very self-indulgent and just play all the slow tracks. So it was challenging to do a setlist that flowed well” (uDiscoverMusic, November 25th 2015). But the band had lots of opportunities to rework rock versions of their tracks into acoustic ones in the past and so everything sounded just perfect. 

♫ Meds – MTV Unplugged ♫

CONCERT REVIEW BY A FAN

The event started later than scheduled and we were kept waiting outside in the cold wind, but, hey, who cares about temperature when you are about to see such a band?!

People invited by the band, Helena Berg and Cody Molko included, got inside first, of course, plus a number of people, mainly from Russia I guessed: maybe the latter belong to a Fan Club or run some specific blog on Placebo.

After about an hour we got in and were ordered for the hundredth time to turn off all our devices. Once inside, temperature wasn’t any higher: in fact the studio was a freezer. But, again, who cares?!
The audience was asked to sit down behind a group of seats right in front of the stage: these were already taken by the band’s guests. Seats sold by Crowdsurge were on the sides and behind other reserved seats in the central stalls area.

The stage was surrounded by a transparent veil that formed a sort of giant cube. Right before the show started, we were told to shut down phones, tablets and cameras. 

All of a sudden, an enchanting music played by a string orchestra (6 elements, I think) invaded the silent hall and the audience experienced a sort of trance. Then, the band came up on stage and they started with Jackie. Can you believe it? Jackie! True fans had tears in their eyes and I personally had to put a hand on my mouth, as it was trying to sing it automatically even if nobody was supposed to. It was so intense. I had the feeling that all members of the audience were tense for the band, a tad more nervous than them: everybody wanted it to be a special once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Brian wore a light make-up: foundation, black eye-pencil and a some grey eye-shadow (at least this was what I could sea from where I was sitting). His clothes were elegant and minimal: black trousers and black shirt. He had his hair trimmed, so it was a bit shorter than the last gig and he looked younger and sweeter: let’s say that the Severus Snape’s look was much less perceivable!
Stefan was impeccable as usual: his dark grey suit made his height and his slim silhouette really charming. He could have been a model! We already know his haircut (a sort of male pixiecut) seen in the previous gigs.

Matt was lightheartedly casual in his white t-shirt, while Fiona-the-busy-bee had a vintage updo that really suited her. Her half-ponytail was a bit backcombed. Very elegant.

Brian looked really relaxed, but I think he had a hurricane in his mind: he had to play, sing, entertain, do all the talking, as Stefan wouldn’t say a single word apart from “Thank you”, and get synchronised with the process of filming, which had been clearly organised before, but had to be rearranged. Nevertheless, he was cheerful and made us laugh more than a couple of times. Post Blue was played with an instrument called the Qanun, but the very moment Stefan pulled two strings Brian went “Ha! It seems the qanun is out of tune!” He sounded so funny!!! You won’t see that in the dvd!

The coolest thing you’ll see on the dvd are the effects. I told you the band played on a stage that looked like a cage of veil. On that veil projectors created images with white lights: squares, stripes, rain drops… It was beautiful to see, but I guess it will be even more enjoyable on the DVD!

Cover moment: Where is my mind. What can I say? They have played it before and every time the emotion is almost overwhelming, but you’ll see: this time the voice is so perfect, so in tune, full, it doesn’t get lost in the open space of festival stage. It’s like it should be. They repeated it twice and they did the same for Jackie, Loud Like Love and the two songs sung with the guest artists. Brian was pretty open about having forgotten a couple of lines in LLL and Where is my mind. I think he was surprised to see how we wouldn’t mind listening to same song as many times as he wanted us to! Before playing “Where is my mind” for the second time he said “You must like the song!”. No! We like the BAND!!!!

Sweetest moments: Brian smiling at his song as he stepped on stage; Cody almost jumping on his chair during Loud like love.
(Review by Laura Meneghetti)

Photo credits: Screenshots from the DVD, cover of the album, edit by me

Post by Silke

Brian Molko - Interview - “It felt like going completely naked into a supermarket"

“It felt like going completely naked into a supermarket"

Translated into English by Stef Lidell - Placebo Anyway

Interview in German: Link  / jetzt.de Süddeutsche Zeitung 

"How do you remember the MTV Unplugged evening in London?" Brian Molko: The show was better than we expected. We had real jitters before this challenge, because it's not the kind of show you just do normally. We’ve also been on tour for two and a half years with some intermissions and were totally exhausted physically.

Sometimes it’s good when you’re so tired to feel awake again. Absolutely. We felt dazed in an interesting way, and even after the show we couldn't properly relax because we had to work on the edit for weeks. So all this time we were really focused intellectually, and it is surprising that our bodies didn't collapse.

How was the concert? We were so nervous! We knew that it would be different, much softer, more delicate and emotional. Our sensitivity was required (laughs). Normally, we have a wall of sound in the background that kind of acts as a safety net. So we were preparing for a terrifying show, where we would be completely without security, dangling over an abyss with lots of space between notes.

What would you compare the feeling to? Maybe with going completely naked into a supermarket. It was one of the most nerve-wracking concerts I've ever played in the 20 years of Placebo. What we didn’t want was to over-rehearse before the concert. We wanted to leave as much spontaneity and magic for this unique performance as possible.

Do you enjoy being naked in public? No! No! (laughs) I was really relieved when it was over. Our record company heard horror stories from other bands that took nine hours or three days to make finish their unplugged concerts for MTV. I thought it was great that we made it in two and a half hours.

Does this motivate you? In a way. We’ve secretly been dreaming about maybe making a show of this type with a full orchestra. But making it under the MTV banner is a different story because of strict broadcasting rules. The most important one is that you can only play acoustic instruments. We argued that if something is battery operated is technically passes as “unplugged”, that, for example, keyboards and laptops should be allowed to be used. But MTV would not let us (laughs).

Did you get to look at your songs, some of which you’ve been playing for 10-20 years, in a different light? Yes, very much so. In a way, they’re like old school friends that you have not seen for many years and you’re surprised at how they’d evolved. When we look at our old songs under the microscope, we often wonder how some of them became hits.

And? I think the naivety of these songs is a positive thing. Successful songs often follow a simple, almost childlike, scheme. It is no different with us.

Will you be playing a complete acoustic tour next year? No, we want to do a greatest hits tour, when we will play our most commercially successful singles that we’ve distanced ourselves from. We want to make our fans happy. Some of them always complain that we do not play their favorite songs. So I can only emphasized: beloved Placebo fans, if you want to hear songs like Pure Morning or Nancy Boy live again, this is the time. Next time we will play them again only in 2036!

Which song is both a single and a fan favorite? The song that we have played most often is Every You Every Me. Paradoxically, it is the one song which I always seem to forget the words to, which makes me appear slightly lost.

You’ve been the singer of Placebo for half your life. Have you ever doubted that the band would last so long as your life purpose? Our main motivation behind starting Placebo was to do everything possible so as not to wind up with what people call a “real job”. Stefan and I never worked in an office. We would have been perfectly happy, however, if we could earn enough with Placebo so as to afford a roof over our heads and food on the table. So this meteoric rise, if we can call it that, was not expected.

And now a political question. You practically personify the European Union. You were born in Brussels, your father is half French, half Italian, and your mother is Scottish. What do you think about all of the crises that Europe is currently having to deal with? I’ve always had a very positive attitude towards the EU. But the older I get, the more skeptical I become, and now I wish the EU would not exist.

Why is that? I am a leftist. My heart goes out to the refugees. In an ideal world, there would be no refugee crisis, as there would be no borders. As for all these politicians, who are those people in Brussels to say anything? I do not trust them. I’m sorry. They haven’t even been elected by the people. But they still set rules for countries that are massively different. This can’t work. And yes, I myself am a mongrel from many countries, which I still find kind of cool. I also stand for immigration, for Palestine and for the tearing down of all fences and walls around the world.

Pretty radical. I’m really awake now! (laughs)

Brian Molko about the Placebo MTV Unplugged concert in London 19.08.15

"We wanted to do something extraordinary, something that would challenge us. The process has been interesting, because we were creating something while we were performing it. That was something we had never done before. The simultaneity of the performance and the creation process was completely new for us.” 

Brian Molko

http://mtvunplugged.placeboworld.co.uk/

PLACEBO - MTV UNPLUGGED - 19.08.15

PRE-ORDER LIVE 

http://mtvunplugged.placeboworld.co.uk

Sources: Placebo

Placebo - MTV Unplugged - Preorder - Relased

PLACEBO - MTV UNPLUGGED.

Pre-order 23.10.15 

Released 27.11.15

JACKIE

FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH

36 DEGREES

BECAUSE I WANT YOU

EVERY YOU EVERY ME (FEAT. MAJKE VOSS ROMME AKA BROKEN TWIN)

SONG TO SAY GOODBYE

MEDS

PROTECT ME FROM WHAT I WANT (FEAT. JOAN AS POLICE WOMAN)

LOUD LIKE LOVE

TOO MANY FRIENDS

POST BLUE

SLAVE TO THE WAGE

WITHOUT YOU I'M NOTHING

HOLD ON TO ME

BOSCO

WHERE IS MY MIND?

THE BITTER END

Placebo MTV Unplugged- Publication on CD and DVD

Placebo MTV Unplugged- Publication on CD and DVD

Placebo have been honoured with an MTV unplugged just in time for their 20 vears band anniversary! 

It took place in London where also their first concert in 1995 was played. 

The Unplugged will be broadcasted this year and be published in different versions on CD,DVD and Digital. 

According to that we can look forward to songs from each record,arranged new and with special guests. 

The concept for the Placebo MTV unplugged is extraordinary and beautiful. 

A perfect synergy of the brands Placebo and MTV Unplugged. It gives the band the opportunity to interpret their songs in a new way and to play never before heard acoustic versions oft hem. 

The goal oft he band is to produce a show that stands fort the soul of the classic MTV Unplugged but combined with modern elements.

Sources and complete article (in German): Sonic Seducer.de 

Translated into English by Stef Lidell in colaboration with Placebo Anyway 

Check also out the offical Placebo page on Facebook. 

Photo credits: Placebo