🎈🎉 STEVE FORREST TURNS 35 TODAY🎉🎈

 🎈Today we also celebrate the 𝟑𝟓𝒕𝒉 birthday of 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕, also known as "𝑺𝒖𝒏𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒆".☀️

⭐🎉 𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐘 𝐁𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐇𝐃𝐀𝐘, 𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐕𝐄! 🎉⭐

Photo credit: Unknown, Joseph Llanes 2008, Screenshots / Edit by Rita

Musician and singer-songwriter 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 was born on September 25, 1986 in 𝑴𝒐𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒐, 𝑪𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒂. He began his musical career playing drums in bands such as 𝑯𝒂𝒚𝒅𝒖𝒌𝒆, 𝑯𝒊𝒓𝒆 and 𝑬𝒗𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆. The latter band was the opening act for 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒃𝒐 during the 𝑼𝑺 leg of their "𝑴𝒆𝒅𝒔 𝑻𝒐𝒖𝒓" in 2007. Shortly after, 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 decided to leave 𝑬𝒗𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆 and found out that 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝑯𝒆𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒕 had been fired from 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒃𝒐, so he recorded a video of him playing drums and he sent it to 𝑹𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 to be considered when they start to look for a new drummer. After 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒃𝒐 saw this video, 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 traveled to 𝑳𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒐𝒏 to see how they connected with each other and then he joined the band officially in 2008.

🎥 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐃𝐫𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐎𝐟 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐛𝐨
https://youtu.be/muEQZNAZZfo

His first concert with 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒃𝒐 was at the historic 𝑨𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒓 𝑾𝒂𝒕 temple in 𝑪𝒂𝒎𝒃𝒐𝒅𝒊𝒂 on December 7, 2008. With them he recorded the albums "𝑩𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒖𝒏" (2008), "𝑳𝒐𝒖𝒅 𝑳𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝑳𝒐𝒗𝒆" (2013), as well as the "𝑩𝟑 𝑬𝑷" (2012). After nearly eight years in the band, 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 decided to leave 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒃𝒐 in February 2015 to focus on his side band 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒆𝒔. 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒃𝒐's official statement said that ”𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒂𝒎𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆”, and that 𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑴𝒐𝒍𝒌𝒐 and 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒇𝒂𝒏 𝑶𝒍𝒔𝒅𝒂𝒍 wanted to thank 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 for all his work with the band.

🔊 𝐁𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐈 𝐖𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮 - 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐛𝐨 𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐀𝐭 𝐀𝐧𝐠𝐤𝐨𝐫 𝐖𝐚𝐭 𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟖 🎶https://youtu.be/mXmvRwi2EFw

In early 2016, due to difficulties related to his 𝑼𝑲 visa, 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 had to return to the 𝑼𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒔 and the band 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒆𝒔 was unable to continue. Nevertheless, 2020 was a special year for 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 as in August he married 𝑻𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒚 and a few weeks later 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 received the most beautiful birthday present as their first child, 𝑵𝒐𝒂𝒉, was born exactly that day. He also founded his record label "𝑹𝒆𝒅𝒖𝒃 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒔" with which he plans to support emerging bands and artists as well as release his own solo albums. Just a couple of months ago he announced on his social networks that he will release a new album in autumn of this year.

Photo credit: Thomas Geffrier, unknown (3) / Edit by Silke

🎤 “𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦 𝘐 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘢 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘰’𝘴 𝘴𝘭𝘶𝘨𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥 – 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦’𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 – 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦 𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 – 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘰 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘨𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘰 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴…𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘨𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘢𝘱 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦. [...] 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘮𝘦 𝘴𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘫𝘰𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘺 𝘦𝘭𝘴𝘦’𝘴 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘤 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘤𝘵. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘫𝘰𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯.”

🎤 “𝘕𝘰𝘸𝘢𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵…𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘉𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘓𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘥 (𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘣𝘰’𝘴 𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘩𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘳, 𝘣𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘬𝘦𝘺𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳) 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 ‘𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘦 – 𝘐 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘴𝘰 𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵’ 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘸, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦’𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘨𝘨𝘭𝘦𝘴…𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘐’𝘮 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳! [...] 𝘔𝘺 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 ‘𝘧**𝘬 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘩’ 𝘮𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 – 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘦, 𝘐’𝘷𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘢 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦…𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦, 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦, 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴. 𝘖𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘦, 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵.”

These excerpts are taken from the most recent interview with 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 made by 𝑺𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒔𝒑𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝑴𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒛𝒊𝒏𝒆. You can read the full interview here:
👉 https://bit.ly/39oc8pL

✨𝐅𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭✨

𝐈𝐆: https://bit.ly/3A0uZlr

𝐓𝐖: @forrestofsteve

𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐲: https://spoti.fi/38RSSQe

𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐓𝐮𝐛𝐞: https://bit.ly/2YJtpGT

Post by Rita

I think Placebo are a marmite band - Stacey Taylor about the Placebo UK/Irish tour & 20th Anniversary

Placebo tour 2015 & Placebo20 soulmate never dies interview

Interview by Susie Bosco, Diana E.T.Foghing, Mary Scott , Xenia Gerasimova and Zaryinta Molko – The Placebo Anyway Team  in colaboration with Stacey Taylor from  Aberdeen, Scotland  about the Placebo show in Aberdeen  (03/03/2015), all latetes news, the 20th anniversary and much more…
Layout: Susie Bosco 

Photo credits: by Stan bestmafia.com, Kevin Wells Life is better still @bigwhopperkevin / www.kevinwellsphoto.com

Our favourite band is on tour again. These days we are enjoying the biggest UK & Irish tour Placebo ever had.  Recently we could read what can the fans  expect from the gigs? The answer was: something more in touch with the band's roots. "We're playing in smaller venues than those we normally play in," says Brian, "to create a kind of intimate ambience. We recently played in small clubs around the United States, and while the tour wasn't financially successful, it boosted our confidence. It showed we could still pull off gigs like that!

Photo credits: Placebo World, connorwaiklezs, Liisavalo 

Placebo Anyway:  Hello Stacey!! . Lets start with our first question is.  How was the gig in Aberdeen? Did you get more in touch with the band’s roots in the smaller venues like Aberdeen’s Music Hall?

Stacey Taylor:  Hello!!!!  The gig was AMAZING!!!!!!!!  I have seen Placebo 3 times, and i think this was my most favourite time seeing them.  Seeing them in a smaller venue felt more intimate, and made you feel lucky to be so close to them.

Photos credits: aberdeengardening.co.uk & e-architect.co.uk

Placebo Anyway: Compared to the gigs in 2014 do you see any difference, for example the lighting?

Stacey Taylor:  I sadly didn’t see them in 2014, the last time I saw them was on their “Battle for the Sun” tour back in 2011.  Looking back at that gig and comparing the 2, this tour was much better visually.  The lighting seemed to be automated by the songs played, and the general layout and placement on stage worked better.

Photo credits: Stuttarter Zeitung 2011, 2014 - , Stacey Auld 2015

Pacebo Anyway: What about the boys energy?

Stacey Taylor:  As always, they gave it their all.  Brian comes across as being quite subdude and restrained but you can see that he is loving every minute of the performance by the way he performs each song from the first to the last.

Placebo Anyway:  Band's members are usually very restrain, non-talkative and laconic on the stage. We read some reviews about their concerts and people often are so unsatisfied with this "Placebo's bad behavior". What is your opinion?

Stacey Taylor: I would like to hear more from the band, but I can see where they are coming from – you pay to see a band play music, and not to have a Q&A session!! 

Placebo Anyway: About Molko little speeches before the songs. What’s your opinion?

Credits photo: Sinead Grainger - Indulge - Sound.com

Stacey Taylor: His speeches captivate the crowd and he is mesmerising to watch.  His voice is liquid gold and makes everything he says have a double meaning.  I love this as much as watching the band perform!!!!

Placebo Anyway: Regarding the new set list this time they added two classics Special Needs and I know, but One Of A Kind was eliminated from the set list . What are your thoughts about this?

Stacey Taylor:  I was delighted that they added some classic so the set list, and feel there was a very good mix of old and new tracks.  Some of the older songs I had never heard before, and the crowd was bouncing when they played “Special K”. 

Special K- not from Aberdeen but from the same tour! 

Placebo Anyway: Have you noticed a difference regarding the version of the songs they are playing?  (For example in Edinburgh STSG was a bit faster than it usually is)

Photo credits by Olly Stabler 

Stacey Taylor:  I like how they mix the song tempos up – especially when they performed “Meds”.  To me, it proves they are singing live and they are trying to improve the overall experience by changing the versions. 

Placebo Anyway:  Which live song is the best for you in a emontional way and why?

Special Needs- not from Aberdeen but from the same tour! 

Stacey Taylor:  I can't pick just one song!!!!  I think hearing “Special Needs” was emotional for me because it was one of the first songs of theres that I realised it wasn’t just words and there was an actual meaning behind it.  Also “Too Many Friends” was quite powerful because having the no photo policy at the gig it was re-emphasising the line “When all the people do all day
Is stare into a phone”

Photo credits: Ohrreckless - Aberdeen 

Placebo Anyway: What would be your dream setlist incorporating songs from every album?

Stacey Taylor:  Each time I have seen Placebo their set list changes.  I would LOVE to hear them sing “Nancy Boy”.  Dream setlist hmmmm probably a mix of songs from all albums.  Some upbeat, some more melodic. 

Placebo Anyway: When you get to the point where you realize that this particular gig is really kind of magic...Or every placebo concert is unforgettable and unique experience for you anyway?

Stacey Taylor:  As soon as Brian comes on stage!!!!  The atmosphere changes, like I said before he is mesmerising to watch and his gestures are so little but powerful.  He always makes me turn into a giggly little girl. 

Photography by Stan http://www.backseatmafia.com

Placebo Anyway:   What do you think about behavior of Brian Molko connected with using of camera's and smartphones during concerts?

Stacey Taylor:  I can see where he is coming from.  I don’t like watching a gig through the screen of someone else’s smart phone, so can imagine he doesn’t like performing to hundreds of smart phones.  I admit, I did take a few photos of him purely because he is amazingly stunning and I like to look at him. 

Placebo Anyway:   What do you think about official live pictures published on the Inet and illegal usage of them? Should they keep their taken pictures on PC only? Or it doesn't make sense if they are published or not allowed to be used...?

Stacey Taylor:  I havent seen any official live pictures from the Aberdeen gig, but have seen some on your page from other venues. I like looking through them, and re-living when I saw that particular light sequence at the aberdeen gig. 

Placebo Anyway:  A new tour, a new tour drummer. How was for you the moment you read on the social networks about Steve Forrest leaving Placebo?

Stacey Taylor:  I did feel slightly sad, because Steve hadn't been with Placebo for that long a time.  It seems to be a particularly difficult position in the band to keep full for long!! 

Photo credits: Planes / @Stefan Olsdal 

Placebo Anyway:  We wish Steve and his band Planes  good luck. There will go on tour soon too. Will you go to one of their shows?

Stacey Taylor:  Probably not.

Placebo Anyway:  Do you see any difference between Steve Forrest and Matt Lunn (old Placebo friend and drummer of Colour of Fire)? How do you think do the band members feel convenient touring with him?

Photo credits: Steven Lynn Photography

Stacey Taylor:  Having seen both Steve and Matt I can’t see a difference in them – they both play like their lives depended on it!!  They seemed more “into” playing the drums than Steve Hewitt did when I saw him perform with Placebo. 

Placebo Anyway:  Would you like to see Matt Lunn (old Placebo friend and drummer of Colour of Fire)  as an official drummer? Or do you prefer the idea of Brian & Stefan being the only official members now of Placebo?

Stacey Taylor:  I will always see Brian and Stefan as the original line-up and the drummer position being the one which will change.  As long as the drummer can play the songs well and give as much in his – or her!! – performance as Brian and Stefan then I don’t care who is in that position.

Placebo Anyway: One thing that we have noticed about this tour is how sometimes people are going alone and ask in the fan pages for company. In fact, the official twitter account once twitted a request for a fan. This is certainly not common behavior in other fan bases . Why do you think this is?

Stacey Taylor:  I think Placebo are a marmite band, and to find a fellow soulmate is rare!!  I have received some stick for being a fan of Placebo in the past, but I don’t care.  I would easy go and see Placebo myself, but don’t think I could go and see any other band that I like alone.  Perhaps because the crowd is mixed in age and gender anyway, and because they are a band who have meaning in their lyrics and not just anything to make a hit the audience is more open minded. 

Placebo Anyway:  What do you think, does Placebo music sound better live or recorded?

Stacey Taylor:  I think they sound similar.  I like hearing them live but when listening to a recorded album and closing your eyes it sounds the same. 

Placebo Anyway:   How do you think can all Placebo concerts be special, as for you and them as well?

Stacey Taylor:  Hmmmm I don’t know how to explain this one.  They do the same thing each concert – play their songs to a crowd – but the concept seems different everytime.  It feels like seeing them for the first time and I get the same butterflies before their gig as I did the first time I heard them on TV. 

Placebo Anyway: Let’s talk about Placebo members and their proyects. Did you get Brian’s book “Selected”? What kind of version did you order and how do you feel with this book, what does it give to you?

Stacey Taylor:  Yes!!!!  Of course I got the book!!!!!  I had the personalised signed copy in my basket but the website crashed, so my fiance was trying all day at home to get it for me.  I got a signed copy and it is one of my most prized posessions now and everyone gets shown the book and his signature. 

Placebo Anyway: What do you think about the introduction of the Brian Molko book “Selected”?

Stacey Taylor:  It is very simple, and honest.  Wouldn’t expect anything more from him. 

Placebo Anyway: Did you find any surprises in the lyrics in this book?  Different words than you thought?

Stacey Taylor:  Not really, but it was lovely having all the lyrics in one place. 

Placebo Anyway: Were you expecting something different?

FanArt by Marie Molko - Mini Placebo 

Stacey Taylor:  I expected it to be a bit bigger, but it is small just like Brian J

Placebo Anyway: Let us speak about more projects.  Some days before the touring started Stefan presented on the famous Spanish radio Channel ‘Radio3’  a song in colaboration with Digital 21. We could listen to the song “war” at the ‘Siglo21’  programme and we would like to ask you, what do you think about this project and  also the other social activities of Mr. Olsdal. More information here.

Stacey Taylor:  I don’t really pay attention to the other projects by other band members.  Brian is my favourite member so if he were to embark on a different project I would probably be more inclined in his venture.  Sorry Stefan!!

Stefan Olsdal by Olly Stadler 

Placebo Anyway:  On the Placebo Facebook page we could see the last weeks a comment about “a new album”. If you could choose a theme for this new album, what would it be? A live album, an accoustic album, more like the old days or similiar to LLL or something completly new?

Stacey Taylor:  I like their older albums (Placebo / WYIM / BMM) but like the growth and exploration of their newer ones.  Some of my favourite Placebo songs have the happy/punky/pop/anthem feel to them so an album like that would be ideal for me. 

Placebo Anyway:  We are celebrating  Placebo's 20 years. The first special thing Placebo prepared for their fans was the posibilty to listen to all their albums remastered online .  We enjoyed them a lot with this amazing sound. Did you like this idea? What about the upcoming vinyls? Do you want to get them even if you don’t have a vinyl record player?

Stacey Taylor:  I am debating this, if they re-released their albums re-mastered I would definetly purchase these. 

Placebo Anyway: Imagine you could prepare a special Placebo20th party in a small venue, band included. Choose a place which do you think it would be perfect and what would you prepare for this party?

Stacey Taylor:  Probably the place they played their first gig – to show where they started.  Preparation for the party ………… Wow, probably have their album covers on the walls around the venue and some infamous images of the band in all stages and all line ups. 

Placebo Anyway: Now let us go online. Imagine you have to organize something really special for the band on a virtual way. What would you do, including every soulmate all over the world?

Stacey Taylor:  It would be good to have an album of classic Placebo songs, with soulmates singing different lines to the songs.  I don’t know how to convey how much they mean to all their soulmates!!

Placebo Anyway: It is a known fact that it's impossible not to be hooked on Brain Molko...What do you find so attractive in him and how do you consider him? As a close friend (a soulmate), you could relay on, or just a handsome man with a great vocal skills and beautiful songs? What traits of character do you appreciate in him most?

Stacey Taylor:  Wow he is STUNNING!!!!!  His mannerisms, his gestures, oh and his facial expresions….he has more sex appeal than any other lead singer of any band that I can think of.  He is very much so someone I would like to chat to if we were in a bar.  I cant get anough of him and his gorgeous face. 

Placebo Anyway: What would you ask Brian Molko from 1996?

Stacey Taylor:  What would you like to achieve with Placebo in 5yrs / 10yrs / 20yrs time? 

Placebo Anyway: What would you ask Brian Molko in 2015?

Stacey Taylor:  Can you perform at my wedding please? *flutters eyelashes* hahaha in all seriousness; you said you would like to achieve XYZ in 1996 when Placebo just started out, do you think you have achieved all you would like to and what else do you think as a band and solo artist you could do?

Placebo Anyway: What would influence your questions?

Stacey Taylor:  What mood he was in.  He is a notoriously guarded and private person so I wouldnt like him to feel I was intruding on his personal life. 

Placebo Anyway: Many bands from the 90's are turning 15 , 20 years what do you think makes Placebo so different?

Stacey Taylor:  They havent had an hiatus, the main line up hasn’t changed and they keep diversifying their sound to suit the current musical climate.  Oh and their fans are very loyal!!!!

Placebo Anyway: Coming to the end of the interview, please define the Aberdeen concert with 3 words.

Stacey Taylor: Loud.  Passionate. Brilliant. 

Placebo Anyway: Now imagen you could give Brian and Stef a Thank You gift for the wonderful last 20 years with the band. Which gift would you choose?

Stacey Taylor:  My eternal thanks for being such an amazing band, and my continuing loyalty.  Cant put a price on that J

Placebo Anyway: Thank you very much for the interview Stacey!

Stacey Taylor:  Thanks for letting me be included in this JJ

Photo by Kevin Wells Life is better still www.kevinwellsphoto.com

Interview by The Placebo Anyway Team & Stacey Taylor, Aberdeen, Scotland 

Review - Placebo UK & Irish Tour and Placebo20 interview with Amazia Shining

Placebo tour 2015 & Placebo20 soulmate never dies interview

by The Placebo Anyway Team & Amazina Shining
Layout by Susie Bosco 

Photos by Kieran Frost & Sweet Hope by sglhae - Kaleidoscope Kustoms on Flickr 

Interview with  Amazia Shining from Germany  about the sold out Placebo show in Dublin  (25/02/2015), all latetes news and much more…

Placebo live photographs by Stacy Auld

Our favourite band is on tour again. These days we are enjoying the biggest UK & Irish tour Placebo ever had.  Recently we could read what can the fans  expect from the gigs? The answer was: something more in touch with the band's roots. "We're playing in smaller venues than those we normally play in," says Brian, "to create a kind of intimate ambience. We recently played in small clubs around the United States, and while the tour wasn't financially successful, it boosted our confidence. It showed we could still pull off gigs like that!

Placebo Anyway:  So, our first question is. How was the gig and did you get more in touch with the band’s roots in the smaller venues?

AM Photo Star & Kieran Frost (Placebo live pictures)

Amazia Shining: Well, that’s a tough one for me, as I’ve never really seen their roots. But I did definitely get more in touch with the band than before. The only two Placebo Gigs I had attended before was Mönchengladbach Hockeypark with an approximately 9500 people audience and iTunes-festival London, which was a lot smaller already. Actually the difference in the venues capacities wasn’t that big. I think 1300 people in Dublin, 1700 in London. But it was a totally different experience anyway. Maybe it was because of the Dublin Olympia itself, which is beautiful beyond words, the fact that huge parts of the audience were on the balconies instead of the ground floor, or the combination of both. Let’s just say if making it as intimate and cosy as possible, they totally nailed it with the Dublin venue, which is an old (built in 1879), very romantic theatre. The Gig was great, everyone was in such a good mood and Brian's voice was stunning (even more stunning than usual )

 Placebo Anyway: What about the set-list? I have to wait for the first set list to be able to ask something… I would like to ask you about Nancy Boy and My Sweet Prince…

Amazia Shining: You know I’m not exactly the best person to be asked for a setlist, right? XD I’m just too absorbed by the music and all the emotions to keep track. No 'Nancy Boy' (although Mr. Molkos 'Nancy-Boy-voice' is back :P) and unfortunately no 'My Sweet Prince'. I’d die just to hear them live only once. But they played 'Special Needs', which gave me goosebumps from head to toe because it’s one of my personal favourites and I didn’t expect to hear it live, ever. 'I know' was the only other song that was new to the setlist (at least for me). The rest was pretty much the usual 'Loud Like Love' setlist I think.

Placebo Anyway: Many fans go to more than one concert, and you? Will we see you at one of the next gigs or at one of the Summer festivals?

Amazia Shining: I’d love to! But I’m really not into festivals (I pretty much hate them, tbh.. too many ppl, too many bands I don’t like at all just to be able to watch the one or two acts I love, who are probably playing on different stages at the same time.. no thanks). And right now it’s impossible for me to travel again just for a show. I was lucky I could make it to Dublin and I’ll forever be thankful for that!

Placebo Anyway:  A new tour, a new tour drummer. How was for you the moment you read on the social networks about Steve Forrest leaving Placebo?

Amazia Shining: It was one of those ‘what the fuck…’ moments (I hope you don’t mind me swearing, otherwise just use other words). I was for sure sad and concerned. But as I always just loved the music but never really followed the band, for me coming to the point where I think of Placebo as Brian and Stefan wasn’t that hard. But I love Steve and I wish all the best for him and his future.

Photo by Planes

Placebo Anyway:  We wish Steve and his band Planes good luck. There will go on tour soon too. Will you go to one of their shows?

Amazia Shining: If there will be dates in Germany, I will, no matter what.

Placebo Anyway: What do you think about the new tour drummer Matt Lunn? Did you find any difference now with him on stage?

Amazia Shining: I must admit I didn’t watch him that closely, I was too distracted by Brian joking around about whatever was smeared on his mic and by him being just too cute to handle. But he certainly did a great job. At least I couldn’t find a difference in what they sounded like.

Matt Lunn Dublin Placebo show ! Photo by AM Photo Star 

Placebo Anyway: Do you like the idea of Brian & Stefan being the only official members now of Placebo or do you wish for them to have an official drummer in the future? Maybe Matt Lunn?

Amazia Shining: Honestly if it was my decision, I’d keep it with Brian and Stefan alone, but I’m happy with whatever they decide, as long as they keep on making great music.

Placebo Anyway: On the Placebo Facebook page we could see the last weeks a comment about “a new album”. If you could choose a theme for this new album, what would it be? A live album, an accoustic album, more like the old days or similiar to LLL or something completly new?

Photos: Placebo Instagram

Amazia Shining: I’m always in for something completely new J I love every single Album they ever made and I’m sure I’ll immediately fall in love with anything they could come up with. I love seeing bands evolving. There’s nothing worse than a band just playing it safe for me. I need change.

Photo by Brian Molko Instagram

Placebo Anyway: Let us speak about more projects. Did you get Brian’s book “Selected”? What kind of version did you order and how do you feel with this book, what does it give to you?

Amazia Shining: Unfortunately the Book is another thing that would have to wait until I have the money. I would be totally happy with a simple version. But I saw the foreword and it is extremely touching for me. Although I don’t write for a living and I write novels and short stories and no lyrics I couldn’t have make the point better than he did. I could totally have written his foreword because I feel pretty much the same about my own texts. I can’t read loudly for example and I always think I could have done better, too. I don’t know if it’s a writers issue or we are just quite similar in some points. Anyway, although I couldn’t buy it so far it’s still very emotional and touching for me.

Photo by Digital 21 

Placebo Anyway: Some days before the touring started Stefan presented on the famous Spanish radio Channel ‘Radio3’  a song in colaboration with Digital 21. We could listen to the song “War” at the ‘Siglo21’  programme and we would like to ask you, what do you think about this project and  also the other social activities of Mr. Olsdal. More information here.

Amazia Shining: I fell in love immediately!!!!

Placebo Anyway:  We are celebrating  Placebo's 20 years. The first special thing Placebo prepared for their fans was the posibilty to listen to all their albums remastered online .  We enjoyed them a lot with this amazing sound. Did you like this idea? What about the upcoming vinyls? Do you want to get them even if you don’t have a vinyl record player?

Amazia Shining: I would buy them in no time if I had the money because I strongly believe in supporting the artists I love. I know creative work is still work – and maybe one of the hardest kinds because it can easily suck you dry completely and exhaust you on an emotional level. I liked the streaming idea, too, because I think whether you like it or not, streaming is the future. I hardly know anyone who still buys music, even on the digital market. Either they download illegally, or they use streaming platforms. And even Placebo will not be capable of avoiding piracy. The streaming at least gives the opportunity to make a bit of money out of it. I’ve read an article recently in which they pretty much explained how much the artist actually makes from every streaming on Spotify. It’s not as much as if someone buys the CD or the download of course, but they get paid for every single play. So, I guess they won’t be in danger of starving XD. But I personally still prefer buying my music, especially physical copies and not just digital. Oh and of course streaming gets bonus points for giving opportunity to introduce people to their music without having to share the actual mp3. And introduction victims can’t play the: ‘I don’t have the money – card’ :P

Placebo Anyway: Imagine you could prepare a special Placebo20th party in a small venue, band included. Choose a place which do you think it would be perfect and what would you prepare for this party?

Amazia Shining: Oh wow……. You wanna see me crying, right? What place would I chose… That’s a tough decision to make as I know so many places that would make a great location. But I’ll just go for the first thought that crossed my mind: There’s a small museum  (Leopold Hoesch Museum) for modern art in a small city called Düren (I don’t expect anyone to know it *lol*). I’ve worked there during an internship for a year and the moment I first entered the building I knew I wanted to work there. It just welcomed me home somehow. It’s an old Art Nouveau building with beautiful free stairs and it’s filled with modern art. 

Photos credits: Hpschaefer, Hollerung GmbH, Claus Richter, Phototaxis, 2010, Pappe, Elektrik, teilweise Motor
Courtesy Galerie Marietta Clages und Galerie Eva Winkeler, Foto: Peter Hinschläger & FACADE, 2007, Styrodur, Elektrik, Acryl, Holz, Sammlung Michael Neff, Foto: Peter Hinschläger

Plus the acoustic is great (I know it for sure because we had lots of exhibition openings with live music there). There are several rooms to stroll around in and well… lets say it’s just a very warm, beautiful place to be. I don’t know how many hours I’ve spent there just sitting in front of one painting or drawing just finding peace, which is a hard thing for me to do. I don’t know what kind of food I’d order, maybe something from the Mexican restaurant around the corner, because they are very good at what they are doing, although I don’t know if anyone of the guys actually likes Mexican food.

 I’d have to ask them :P There wouldn’t be a dresscode. Or if there would be one it would just say be who you are. No one there ever cared if you attend a party in a formal dress or a tux, or in jeans and t-shirt. I’d like the idea of a small acoustic set, maybe one or two songs from each album max. And a DJ set – hopefully something kind of sophisticated… And some stupid fun stuff to loosen up everything. Kind of Childs Birthday party like (How about karaoke or even better… we’d ‘lock up’ Brian somewhere and Stef would have to free him by winning keys… that’s something we made at school to celebrate graduation.

 But we locked up the principal in his office and the teachers played against the pupils in order to free him. The price was one day off for us, if the pupils win and something else I can’t remember if the teachers did). Like those treasure seeking games probably all of us played on our birthday parties. And if Brian isn’t a treasure worth winning (and the acoustic set) I don’t know. :P I know I’m a lunatic, you shouldn’t really give me an opportunity like that. Someone should warn the guys what might happen if they ever bump into me :P let alone let me plan anything for them .

Amazia Shining with friends - Placebo 20th Anniversary party !!

Placebo Anyway: Now let us go online. Imagine you have to organize somethiing really special for the band on a virtual way. What would you do, including every soulmate all over the world?

Amazia Shining: hmmmmmmmmmmm *thinking* The thing is, I would want to do something no one ever did before and I’m originated in a fanbase which is extremely passionate and so into making special events for the band, we pretty much did everything possible *lol* But I’ll try to come up with something. Just let me think about what could be done if literally every single Soulmate in the world would participate and we were sure the guys would see it.

As there are so many of us out there and I would want EVERYONE to be seen, a short video wouldn’t be enough. I also would prefer doing something band related but with an impact on the world and especially the society we live in. As I know they are involved in rising awareness for mental illness and stuff, I’d probably do something related. I just suume the sky is the limit at least in my fantasy, so I’d try building some kind of global network where every single one of us can contribute in some way, offering help for those in need. 

Photo credits: Erika Fustero Flickr, theskinographies.com, limelightpr.co.uk, Placebo, 

Especially for the ones who usually remain unseen and unheard because the world thinks there are bigger problems to solve than ‘just’ being lonely, misunderstood, left alone, misplaced, sad and angry. I would probably start by collecting experiences… I would want everyone to write down some issues they had, no matter what kind of issues and how the band, their music and especially the feeling of not being alone with the pain helped us to keep fighting. I guess it would be a pretty tome haha. But there should be lots of time for reading if you’re traveling a lot. 


Then I would like to spread this feeling beyond the fanbase. I mean there are so many of us all around the world, it would surely be possible to set up message boards in every country where people can go and find some kind of emotional shelter. In the end of the day that’s what we already do a lot, right? Staying in contact via Facebook or twitter or whatever, being there for each other and helping each other out. Why not spreading it further? Of course we would need a lot of help by people who are experts in programming, we’d need money to pay for servers and stuff and of course people who would just spread the word and participate. We would need to school people how to deal with certain situations. What to do if someone is about to self harm or even wants to commit suizide. We’d need contacts to other organisations who would be able to help in case someone is in serious trouble and needs a place to stay and assistance. 

Photo credits: blog.ticketbud.com, Placebo & hourrevolution.co

For me personally it’s kind of an issue turning to officials for help. It’s so much easier talking to people who are just troubled souls like I am or maybe just friends (kind of). I think it’s because I always feel judged by real professionals, it’s always so examination-like and that’s something that scares me to death. I would like to set up a network of ‘professional’ friends and a place to stay if everything else fails. I would like to show the world it’s okay to feel weak, it’s okay to fall and that there are people who will always catch you without judging you for who you are.  Why not dream of a little virtual utopia!Maybe I’d even name it like that  "The virtual utopia", powered by Placebo’s Soulmates  :P

Placebo Anyway: This sounds really nice!! Thank you Amazia for this wonderful idea!! Coming to the end of the interview, please define the Dublin concert with 3 words.

Amazia Shining: Special, loving, funny

Placebo Anyway: Now imagine you could give Brian and Stef a Thank You gift for the wonderful last 20 years with the band. Which gift would you choose?

Amazia Shining:  I couldn’t come up with a personal gift. My gift would be the network I wrote about before and it wouldn’t be my gift but our gift.. to them, but also to the world in a way.

Credits:

Interview by Susie Bosco & Diana E.T.Foghing in colaboration with Amazia Shining from Germany.

Facebook: Placebo Anyway