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 Public Access - reviews sent to the Raft by You. |
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PLACEBO'S DC CONCERT
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Who has the strength and the smarts to steal America's heart? It's a three-part (three-person) answer for the hopeful crowd of young girls in silver-sequined tops, tight black flared slacks, platform shoes, and the occasional stole; teenage boys in baggy jeans with long loops of chains hanging out of their jeans pockets; twentysomething couples plainly dressed in jeans and flannel shirts; and the occasional thirtysomething men and women in suits or silk shirts and velvet slacks. The different groups eye each other in curiosity, friendly in a guarded way; they seem to accept each other. In a dark, downtown club in a semi-dangerous neighborhood, that's more than might be expected. Most of us have been here all night, chattering our teeth and stamping our feet in the freezing cold outdoors for an hour before finally being let in to the 9:30 Club. Upon admittance, we surge to the front of the club floor edging the raised platform of the concert stage. Two of the teenage boys in baggy jeans and chains, WHFS radio contest winners, dash to the front row immediately. They turn to face the crowd, leaning against the raised platform and scanning the club floor constantly. It seems almost as if they're unsure of themselves in these surroundings. Misplaced Korn fans, maybe? In any case, they sure seem intent on getting a good view of the band. We, the ones who were first in line, plant our feet defiantly as others behind us try to nudge through the front-row line and overtake the choice spots. As the night progresses, the club becomes even more crowded and darker as we all wait patiently through the good yet undistinguished music of Splitsville, the opening act. When the lead singer of the band yells out, "So, WHO ARE YOU HERE FOR?" most of the crowd, slightly confused at theobviousness of the question, stands in polite silence. (From overheard conversations, it seems that most have never heard of Splitsville.) Finally, the stage is cleared and is then set for the main act. The loud murmurs of ongoing conversations among audience members lower to a hush as technicians carefully place two standing microphones on either end of the raised platform. I nearly shriek in surprise when the much shorter of the two standing microphones is placed at my end of the stage - the left side of the stage - directly in front of me. Woo-HOO! I'd be standing a little below - but right in front of - beautiful Brian Molko all night long! Talk about lucky. A group of six or seven girls looking to be about high-school age, with their faces and their long streaming hair decorated with glitter, had been standing in front of me in line outside. When we were all let in, they had rushed up to the right edge of the stage and had planted themselves there in utter determination: they never moved for what seemed like hours. Now the group of girls glanced over disappointedly at the short microphone and then flicked their eyes back to glance up - way up - at the much taller microphone in front of them. Now they knew it: they'd be standing in front of the Swedish giant, Stefan Olsdal...good-looking, stylish, and all that...but he wouldn't be paying them any mind: he likes boys, not girls! The pushing and near-shoving around me increased as everyone scrambled to get near the front of the short microphone. As the jostling continued, we all craned our heads forward to stare at the darkened entrance to the left side of the stage. Shouts and screams erupted from the audience as three shadowy figures finally strode out from the hazy darkness of the back stage. Brian, Stefan, and Steve quickly set up their instruments and launched into their first song, "Scared of Girls." The audience moved in time to the music as much as they could in the packed club. Brian looked quite sexy, as usual. Of course, all three of the band members did; Brian with his eyeliner and pretty face just happens to attract the most attention. "Isn't he beautiful," one young girl sighed as she pointed to Brian's picture in a band poster I was carrying. Though plainly dressed (unlike the sensation he caused with his feathered hat, makeup, and fancy clothes in the new glam-rock movie "Velvet Goldmine"), Brian still wore his usual dark blue eyeliner. He certainly still exuded sex appeal, feathers or no. For one thing, the makeup he wears accentuates his dark, expressive eyes well-framed by his chin-length black hair. the audience responded enthusiastically to Placebo's newest songs, such as "You Don't Care About Us," "Without You I'm Nothing," "My Sweet Prince," "Every You Every Me," "The Crawl," and "Pure Morning" (of course). These songs are all included on Placebo's newest CD, "Without You I'm Nothing." During a short break, as Brian M. was catching his breath, a guy in the audience yelled out, "Hey, Molko - LIMP BIZKIT SUCKS!" Brian smiled grimly at this show of solidarity. "Somewhere out there is a gun with Limp Bizkit's name on it," he deadpanned. As it turned out, the guy in the audience was responding to an incident that had occurred just before a New York-area concert only a day or two earlier. Backstage, Brian had gotten into a conflict with Kid Rock, a new-and-upcoming rock singer. In retaliation, another group on the same tour, Limp Bizkit, had incited the audience there to chant repeatedly, "PLACEBO SUCKS!" Because local (Washington-area) radio had never mentioned the incident, the audience member at the 9:30 Club concert had apparently found out about it via the Internet. The incident was described on the Net in a WHFS RockNews column for the local Washington area. So thanks to the Internet, at least one of us was able to show that we notice and we care what happens to Placebo. "Here's one I'm sure that many of you can relate to," Brian Molko then announced, and began singing a slow, soft song called "Teenage Angst." When he sadly sang, "And nothing ever, ever goes my way..." the beauty and honesty of the song slowly became apparent. The crowd stood still, looking intently at Brian as they absorbed the lyrics so new to them. However, the response was somewhat subdued. About a third of the songs played during the concert seemed unfamiliar to us: we stood in the same kind of polite, slightly confused silence that had been the response to Splitsville's earlier question to us. In fact, Placebo's older songs tended to sound a bit "muddy" But it must be known that some of those earlier songs are just as interesting and well-written as Placebo's new standby "Pure Morning!" For example, "Teenage Angst" is worth playing at least 80 times in a row when heard on Placebo's debut CD. The CD's lighter, far quicker version of "Angst" is much more captivating than any slow version. Perhaps for a slow age-related song about angst, Placebo could develop a song similar to Pulp's humorous "Help The Aged." But since all three Placebo members are nearly as young as its audience (with an apparent average age of 20), maybe the band is waiting a few years or decades before developing a musical plea for its younger fans to "take older lovers." Placebo might not even have to work up any later pleas, since the fans will have been keeping in touch with them all through the years. As acknowledged by many (supportive) music critics, Brian has a slightly odd, helium-inflected voice. So what. It's distinctive and can probably never be replicated. It has a beauty all its own. Stefan is thin as a toothpick and about ten feet tall; Steve seems a bit standoffish, rarely saying much in interviews. So what. According to Brian, they're his two best friends, virtually like "husbands" to him (in his words). That means that the group has a lot of staying power, more so than many other bands whose members just can't get along. Probably because the three men in Placebo are able to count on each other so reliably, they can be more genuine and open than other bands about their individual pasts, the emotional conflicts they occasionally face, their sexual preferences, and so forth. Some could say that all this is no one's business but Placebo's. While this is true, it's also a relief to finally find a band with a *constructive*, rather than destructive, in-your-face attitude about who they are and what they want. Placebo is not going to annoy people by playing guessing games with their fans regarding their sexuality. They've always been open about their preferences. While this issue more than any other can definitely be seen as a private matter, it's a tremendous relief to see artists who are so open about who they are (in this regard, as well as others). It's interesting, it's different, and I'm sure it must provide some comfort and solidarity with the audience members of theirs who do happen to be gay or bisexual. Placebo is not going to
do the foolish rock cliche of smashing guitars onstage, even when it
looks like they're about to (as at the end of the 9:30 Club show, after
the last song, "Dildo," when Brian Molko spent several minutes waving
his guitar around in the air and nearly banging it down again and again
on one of the speakers, only to lay the guitar down gently on the floor,
against the speaker, at the end). Placebo may not always have a positive view of their fans, as they've indicated in some music magazines such as New Musical Express. (Note: Which bands could always have a positive view, after a period of time? I think that you must often see the most tiring aspects of human nature when you're a celebrity). However, maintaining contact with their fans via their Website is important to Placebo. This is good to keep in mind, because most bands, even up-and-coming ones needing more exposure via whatever medium available, even now do not have Websites or chat groups to reach members. Even when bands do haveWebsites or chat groups, these sites often do not look very appealing and the software often doesn't work right (even for sites belonging to very well-known rock groups!). It seems that musicians' Websites still mean more work than profit. Especially in such an environment, Placebo's efforts to reach out should be appreciated.
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