What is a "Battle for the Sun," and why would anyone imagine that it would make for a particularly great musical concept? Placebo, a UK band formed in 1994, took their name not from the placeholder that pretends to be a drug but rather from the root Latin, meaning "to please." Which should be a red flag to anyone that this band possesses very little in the way of concrete opinions. The notion behind artistry is to realize one's unique vision in a world of sameness; Placebo, unfortunately, fail to deliver.
The title track of the album betrays this lack of vision with the rather unfortunate lyric, "I have nothing left to say." To which any alert listener feels compelled to respond with, "I just wasted my money." Placebo offers no particular musical innovation; the bass and drums chug along in a military-like fashion, executing their purpose without particularly illuminating anything new or of value.
On the positive side, "Bright Lights" offers the listener a comforting blend of late 80's/early 90's Echo and the Bunnymen frenetic guitar wash blended with punkish, upbeat backing vocals that remind one of what Billy Corgan would have sounded like if he had been well-adjusted. Which is and is not a good thing for the listener.
"For What It's Worth" is probably the second best song on the album. In keeping with Placebo's apparent lack of concern in disguising their absence of enthusiasm or creativity, the song lays out in post-grungy malaise the sorry end of a love affair. With the music industry predicting the fall of the CD as a music format, "For What It's Worth" is, in all of its insipid glory, an ode to these transitory times.
Perhaps Placebo is just in a rut, but one hopes the band will regain some of the passion and joy that should inform their musical choices, even if their work isn't neccessarily upbeat in tone. A positive outlook should never be confused with artistic merit; but Placebo fails to provide satisfaction on either count.
The title track of the album betrays this lack of vision with the rather unfortunate lyric, "I have nothing left to say." To which any alert listener feels compelled to respond with, "I just wasted my money." Placebo offers no particular musical innovation; the bass and drums chug along in a military-like fashion, executing their purpose without particularly illuminating anything new or of value.
On the positive side, "Bright Lights" offers the listener a comforting blend of late 80's/early 90's Echo and the Bunnymen frenetic guitar wash blended with punkish, upbeat backing vocals that remind one of what Billy Corgan would have sounded like if he had been well-adjusted. Which is and is not a good thing for the listener.
"For What It's Worth" is probably the second best song on the album. In keeping with Placebo's apparent lack of concern in disguising their absence of enthusiasm or creativity, the song lays out in post-grungy malaise the sorry end of a love affair. With the music industry predicting the fall of the CD as a music format, "For What It's Worth" is, in all of its insipid glory, an ode to these transitory times.
Perhaps Placebo is just in a rut, but one hopes the band will regain some of the passion and joy that should inform their musical choices, even if their work isn't neccessarily upbeat in tone. A positive outlook should never be confused with artistic merit; but Placebo fails to provide satisfaction on either count.
About the Author:
New Placebo CD "Battle for the Sun" is, at its title promises, an abstract and somewhat unrelated collection of music, sung with the disaffected nasal whine so common in so-called alternative 'indie' guitar bands that it should be referred to by number, as in, disaffected nasal whine #1.
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