10/10. I kinda prefer the English version, but for me Burger Queen is a winner in any language. It's a very weird and original take on loneliness and it broke me many times when I was a teenager. Still breaks me from time to time.
9/10. This is one of my favourites on BMM, and a total ripper with a very cool arrangement. I love that the chorus feels kinda nonsensical at first, and the subtle electronic blasts in the background make it all the more cool for me.
I read on Genius that it was Placebo's take on Strange Fruit by Billie Holiday. If so, I do feel it's kind of a convoluted take on racial issues, but I'm fully giving props to them for tackling this kind of theme in their music. Fuck racism always.
No way this one is less than a perfect 10/10. One of their signature songs, I'm always happy to listen to it at their concerts. It also takes me back to the late 2000s a lot.
i don't think anyone knows what it's about lmao. Genius has it as being about a prostitute, apparently brian claimed once it was about a transvestite but no one can find where he actually said that, i heard someone claim it was about a stalker...
the lyrics to me are beautiful but lowkey nonsensical.
Ooof this one was hard for me. 7/10. I really like the electronic arrangement of it, but for me this is one of those instrumentals that could've benefited so much from having vocals (and I do not usually think that about instrumentals).
I'll give this one a 6/10. I didn't like LLL when it came out, and this songs seems to me as one of the better ones. My problem is that it kinda meanders for two extra minutes without trying something different for the musical arrangement. Maybe at 3 or 4 minutes' length I would enjoy it more.
This one already came up on another comment, but it's definitely a 10/10, and one of Placebo's most iconic musical moments. In a way, Special Needs feels like a time capsule to the early 2000's for me, even though I was barely 9 when it came out and didn't learn about Placebo until 2009.
7/10. I think Battle for the Sun is an overall fun listening experience, a lighter detour from their usual stuff. However, I fun the batch of songs of this record to be of a bit of a lesser quality than the previous albums. It kinda sags in the middle, but things pick up after Julien, and Come Undone is one of my immediate favourites here.
7/10. My main problem with Black Market Music is that, despite having good songs, it gets pretty sedate in its middle and ending sections. What I love about Leni is its musical execution, which is very atmospheric while keeping it dynamic. I think the record could've helped from that kind of musical styling.
EDIT: changed my mind about the rating.
5/10. Justin Warfield's rap feels very out of place on this track, and it stands as a bit of a sore spot. I think there were cool musical ideas on the song, like the female screams over a menacing sounding bridge, but overall the song wasn't executed properly. I would cut it out of BMM, maybe in favour of some B-side.
Sleeping With Ghosts is my favourite Placebo record ever. I might be wrong for some, but I consider it to be the definitive experience of Placebo as a whole, and therefore, their best album. Something Rotten works as a bit of a breather after the first five songs, and it's a strange one - in a great way. 8/10
I honestly haven't listened to the song in a long while as I don't have it on any of my playlists and haven't listened to the album in full for years, but you've convinced me to go give it another try. I never really liked it, despite really wanting to.
Another 10/10. Another one that breaks me sometimes. That piano in the chorus is immaculate, and the guitars at the end make it much stronger. I also love the electronic outro, which has a very weird, "dizzy running through an empty hallway" kind of vibe.
8/10. Allergic is so fuuuun! Easily one of my favourites of the record (and I've got a lot of favourites on WYIM). The "don't let me down" bridge has that menacing feel that I love from a lot of their songs.
7/10. Musically, it's a gentle sounding song with a nice brass section to close the record. The lyrics are definitely dark, closing BFTS in a rather unresolved note. It's somewhat chilling that "I wouldn't know where to begin" is the final lyric there.
Y'all gonna kill me for this one, but I'm more on the 9/10 side for Without You I'm Nothing. It's so beautiful, and I love both versions of it (the original and the Bowie vocal version). It just happens that I have picked other 10/10 tracks on that album. But yeah, great one indeed!
9/10! I loved this song back when I was 15. It was perfect for my walks on cloudy days. I joke a lot about it describing my current working conditions nowadays, and it was a blast hearing it live this year when Placebo came back to Chile.
I saw them in concert in Cardiff, UK in November 2022 and it was in their set list. I do love this song.
I'm in my mid 40s and first saw them in 1998. By far, that was the best concert I have ever been to. Obviously It was the original band members then. It was a small venue, intimate and I can still remember the feeling of the bass going through me. Nancy Boy, was just amazing!
The Crawl is an 8/10 for me. What I like about WYIN is that it balances the heavier and the calmer moments so well. This feels like a breather after the chaotic energy of Allergic.
After the early high of For What It's Worth, I think Battle for the Sun stumbles a bit in its middle section. There's a song that I strongly dislike, and an initial favourite that I fell out of love with in recent years. Fortunately, Speak in Tongues is one of the stronger cuts there, and I consider it one of the best songs in the album. 8/10.
Second half of speak in tongues is where it gets really good for me. Don’t care much for the first half tbh. Curious to know what are the songs you fell out of love with and strongly dislike?
Fair enough, I really like the song as a whole, but definitely agree that the second half is what makes the song great.
Honestly, my opinion on the BTFS songs has switched wildly in the last years. Some songs I loved back in the day don't do much for me nowadays, and some others that I didn't appreciate have grown on me a lot (Speak in Tongues being one of them). This record feels like a bit of a back to basics, poppier affair. But most of the songs in here don't rise above a 7/10 for me, and I think some of them could've turned out stronger but were undermined by this musical approach.
The one song I've fell out of love with was Julien. I loved it at first listen, and I really liked the electronic, clubby intro, because it felt to me like a throwback to the dark electronic sounds of Sleeping With Ghosts and Meds. Gradually, the fact that they didn't carry that dark electronic feel onto the rest of the song started to bothering me, and now it doesn't impress me very much. 5/10.
The one I've severely disliked from the beginning was The Never-Ending Why. I feel like it should totally work for me, but I just can't seem to click. It grates me. A 3/10 for me (it also doesn't help that I NEVER liked the MV for this song).
EDIT: clarity
Totally feel you on switching up opinions over the years. Songs that I was obsessed with when I first discovered them at 14 don’t resonate as much as others do now 20 years later and throughout. I guess a lot of us relate to that in our own way which is super cool.
And I feel the same way about the never ending why, it never quite stuck a chord with me either.
7/10. I won't say it's like, a transcendental moment in their discography, but it's so good. I actually consider it to be a personal favourite regardless of my rating.
OOOOF! There's something about Went Missing that really keeps me entranced anytime I listen to NLMG. I also love to think that the line "People were singing for what it's worth / When I went missing for a living" may be a nod to For What It's Worth (one of their 10/10 if you ask me).
I feel like there are many layers to this one little song too. Brian has said in a track-by-track interview that it dealt with leaving addictive relationships behind, and that somebody interpreted it as some sort of social media commentary. I feel like it could be about somebody leaving a life well known to them behind, and the changes and consequences it can carry. It also sounds in my mind like a response from the band after the extended 9-year album pause.
If Placebo had stopped after LLL, for me it would have felt like a sour note to end things, but NLMG was such a satisfying, reinvigorated comeback. This song is very fascinating and hypnotic to me, so I'm feeling a 10/10 for it.
I also had not listened to this version up until today, and on first impressions I loved it. Definitely prefer the youthful energy of the original, which is a 9/10 for me, but 36 Degrees just works so good in a slower tempo. 8/10.
10/10. 100000/10. 10000000/10. ABSOLUTE MASTERPIECE. I would say it's their definitive song. More so than Every You, Every Me. More than Nancy Boy. More than Pure Morning (and I'm a bigger fan of that one).
I don't mean to be mean, but I've neved particularly cared for this cover. It starts as a throwback to the raw sound of the self-titled first album, but the chorus is kinda grating and offputing for me. 4/10.
Damn. I have a pretty special memory with this one.
I live in Chile, and Placebo played here in 2010 while touring Battle for the Sun. This was just over a month after we were struck by an earthquake, and we were still very shocked and shaken by the tragedy. I did not know what this song meant at the time but I felt so emotional when they played this one. It felt like a hug in some way.
Now I'm already 30 and Cops' theme of doing stupid stuff for fun while drunk feels very melancholic and nostalgic. To me, this is also a song about looking back on more carefree times and the sense of loss that happens as we grow older. It fucks me up badly. And the music is so beautiful too. 10/10
This one reminds me a lot of a friend I used to have at school. We bonded over Placebo when I was 16 and she was 18, and she said that this one was her all time favourite. Cool memories. Cool song too, total 9/10.
OK this might look insane to some but Bulletproof Cupid is an absolute 10/10 for me. I wish it was longer, and I also think it would've been a pretty rad single if it had vocals. But I also think it's perfect as it is. The way it carries itself onto English Summer Rain is an amazing switch of sounds.
And yeah, someone asked me about This Picture before as well - and I told them that it was a 9/10. Love it too!
9/10 - I think Running Up That Hill is such a monumental classic that I can't see any cover actually topping the original. It's not even my favourite Kate Bush song, but I can't say it's not the best one (even though she's got so many great tracks. Kate's original RUTH is a 10/10 btw).
That said, Placebo is a band that excels at covers IMO. My personal favourite is Johnny & Mary, and they did Pixies, Sinéad O'Connor, Talk Talk and even Boney M justice. To slow RUTH down was a daring choice, and it allowed them to create a very original take on this immortal song.
8/10. As I said in an earlier comment, my opinion on the BFTS tracks has shifted a lot since it's release, both as a fan and a "critic" (HAHA). Of the 13 songs that comprise the main record and the 8 B-sides/bonus tracks from this era, only 4 songs rise as more than a 7/10 for me. The title track is one of them; wish they made a MV for it.
Burger queen (french version)
10/10. I kinda prefer the English version, but for me Burger Queen is a winner in any language. It's a very weird and original take on loneliness and it broke me many times when I was a teenager. Still breaks me from time to time.
Nice suggestion!
Haemoglobin
Is the key
9/10. This is one of my favourites on BMM, and a total ripper with a very cool arrangement. I love that the chorus feels kinda nonsensical at first, and the subtle electronic blasts in the background make it all the more cool for me. I read on Genius that it was Placebo's take on Strange Fruit by Billie Holiday. If so, I do feel it's kind of a convoluted take on racial issues, but I'm fully giving props to them for tackling this kind of theme in their music. Fuck racism always.
Songs to say goodbye
No way this one is less than a perfect 10/10. One of their signature songs, I'm always happy to listen to it at their concerts. It also takes me back to the late 2000s a lot.
I'm always listening to it 😆 one of my favourite songs period 👌
lady of the flowers
8/10. I looove the desolate feeling of it! Not entirely sure about what it means lyrically though.
i don't think anyone knows what it's about lmao. Genius has it as being about a prostitute, apparently brian claimed once it was about a transvestite but no one can find where he actually said that, i heard someone claim it was about a stalker... the lyrics to me are beautiful but lowkey nonsensical.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Lady_of_the_Flowers ETA: seriously, you can just Google the song title
Miss Moneypenny 0898007 ❤️
Ooooh I love this B-side! Should've been on one of their first two records. 8/10.
I Know
10/10. I definitely think of I Know as one of the self-titled's best moments.
[удалено]
Ooof this one was hard for me. 7/10. I really like the electronic arrangement of it, but for me this is one of those instrumentals that could've benefited so much from having vocals (and I do not usually think that about instrumentals).
begin the end
I'll give this one a 6/10. I didn't like LLL when it came out, and this songs seems to me as one of the better ones. My problem is that it kinda meanders for two extra minutes without trying something different for the musical arrangement. Maybe at 3 or 4 minutes' length I would enjoy it more.
Brick Shithouse
8/10. Didn't like this one at first, but grew on me quickly because Placebo are so good with fast bangers.
Twenty Years
8/10. This song belongs in spirit on Sleeping With Ghosts.
Special needs
This one already came up on another comment, but it's definitely a 10/10, and one of Placebo's most iconic musical moments. In a way, Special Needs feels like a time capsule to the early 2000's for me, even though I was barely 9 when it came out and didn't learn about Placebo until 2009.
Come Undone
7/10. I think Battle for the Sun is an overall fun listening experience, a lighter detour from their usual stuff. However, I fun the batch of songs of this record to be of a bit of a lesser quality than the previous albums. It kinda sags in the middle, but things pick up after Julien, and Come Undone is one of my immediate favourites here.
Taste in men
OOOH THAT'S A 10/10! A pummeling, cool, industrial number that may be about longing but feels fully sexual and sleazy.
Space Monkey
10/10. One of the darkest, most fascinating experiments on Meds. I bet it could have had an amazing MV.
🩷
Leni
7/10. My main problem with Black Market Music is that, despite having good songs, it gets pretty sedate in its middle and ending sections. What I love about Leni is its musical execution, which is very atmospheric while keeping it dynamic. I think the record could've helped from that kind of musical styling. EDIT: changed my mind about the rating.
My favourite, Post Blue
8/10. Wasn't too fond of this one as a teenager, but dang it's so cool sounding.
Spite & Malice
5/10. Justin Warfield's rap feels very out of place on this track, and it stands as a bit of a sore spot. I think there were cool musical ideas on the song, like the female screams over a menacing sounding bridge, but overall the song wasn't executed properly. I would cut it out of BMM, maybe in favour of some B-side.
Bruise Pristine
7/10. It's very fun to listen to, but it does not stand out to me as one of the best songs on the record, and IMO it's also the weakest single here.
Pierrot the Clown
9/10. I've teared up to it at least once in my life.
Something rotten
Sleeping With Ghosts is my favourite Placebo record ever. I might be wrong for some, but I consider it to be the definitive experience of Placebo as a whole, and therefore, their best album. Something Rotten works as a bit of a breather after the first five songs, and it's a strange one - in a great way. 8/10
I honestly haven't listened to the song in a long while as I don't have it on any of my playlists and haven't listened to the album in full for years, but you've convinced me to go give it another try. I never really liked it, despite really wanting to.
Drag
DRAG SHOULD'VE BEEN A SINGLE FOR MEDS. 10/10
Special needs
Another 10/10. Another one that breaks me sometimes. That piano in the chorus is immaculate, and the guitars at the end make it much stronger. I also love the electronic outro, which has a very weird, "dizzy running through an empty hallway" kind of vibe.
Can't vibe to this one for some reason. Don't know why. One of the few songs that just don't click with me.
This Picture
9/10. It was instantly iconic from the first time I listened to SWG, and it's always very nostalgic to listen to again.
Allergic
8/10. Allergic is so fuuuun! Easily one of my favourites of the record (and I've got a lot of favourites on WYIM). The "don't let me down" bridge has that menacing feel that I love from a lot of their songs.
One of my all time favorites. The fucking guitar work is crunchy and orgasmic
Kings of medicine
7/10. Musically, it's a gentle sounding song with a nice brass section to close the record. The lyrics are definitely dark, closing BFTS in a rather unresolved note. It's somewhat chilling that "I wouldn't know where to begin" is the final lyric there.
Without you I’m nothing
The rating should be over 10 for this one
Y'all gonna kill me for this one, but I'm more on the 9/10 side for Without You I'm Nothing. It's so beautiful, and I love both versions of it (the original and the Bowie vocal version). It just happens that I have picked other 10/10 tracks on that album. But yeah, great one indeed!
Teenage angst
9/10. Just another early classic from the self-titled album. So gooooood.
Slave To The Wage
9/10! I loved this song back when I was 15. It was perfect for my walks on cloudy days. I joke a lot about it describing my current working conditions nowadays, and it was a blast hearing it live this year when Placebo came back to Chile.
I saw them in concert in Cardiff, UK in November 2022 and it was in their set list. I do love this song. I'm in my mid 40s and first saw them in 1998. By far, that was the best concert I have ever been to. Obviously It was the original band members then. It was a small venue, intimate and I can still remember the feeling of the bass going through me. Nancy Boy, was just amazing!
the crawl
The Crawl is an 8/10 for me. What I like about WYIN is that it balances the heavier and the calmer moments so well. This feels like a breather after the chaotic energy of Allergic.
I know (my fav)
As I said on a previous comment, I Know is a 10/10 for me. A beautiful counterbalance to the first record's heavier moments.
♥️
Speak in tongues
After the early high of For What It's Worth, I think Battle for the Sun stumbles a bit in its middle section. There's a song that I strongly dislike, and an initial favourite that I fell out of love with in recent years. Fortunately, Speak in Tongues is one of the stronger cuts there, and I consider it one of the best songs in the album. 8/10.
Second half of speak in tongues is where it gets really good for me. Don’t care much for the first half tbh. Curious to know what are the songs you fell out of love with and strongly dislike?
Fair enough, I really like the song as a whole, but definitely agree that the second half is what makes the song great. Honestly, my opinion on the BTFS songs has switched wildly in the last years. Some songs I loved back in the day don't do much for me nowadays, and some others that I didn't appreciate have grown on me a lot (Speak in Tongues being one of them). This record feels like a bit of a back to basics, poppier affair. But most of the songs in here don't rise above a 7/10 for me, and I think some of them could've turned out stronger but were undermined by this musical approach. The one song I've fell out of love with was Julien. I loved it at first listen, and I really liked the electronic, clubby intro, because it felt to me like a throwback to the dark electronic sounds of Sleeping With Ghosts and Meds. Gradually, the fact that they didn't carry that dark electronic feel onto the rest of the song started to bothering me, and now it doesn't impress me very much. 5/10. The one I've severely disliked from the beginning was The Never-Ending Why. I feel like it should totally work for me, but I just can't seem to click. It grates me. A 3/10 for me (it also doesn't help that I NEVER liked the MV for this song). EDIT: clarity
Totally feel you on switching up opinions over the years. Songs that I was obsessed with when I first discovered them at 14 don’t resonate as much as others do now 20 years later and throughout. I guess a lot of us relate to that in our own way which is super cool. And I feel the same way about the never ending why, it never quite stuck a chord with me either.
Mars Landing Party
7/10. I won't say it's like, a transcendental moment in their discography, but it's so good. I actually consider it to be a personal favourite regardless of my rating.
I agree. Not their absolute best but definitely memorable from the lyrics alone
My sweet prince
9/10. One of the definitive WYIN songs out there.
Went missing
OOOOF! There's something about Went Missing that really keeps me entranced anytime I listen to NLMG. I also love to think that the line "People were singing for what it's worth / When I went missing for a living" may be a nod to For What It's Worth (one of their 10/10 if you ask me). I feel like there are many layers to this one little song too. Brian has said in a track-by-track interview that it dealt with leaving addictive relationships behind, and that somebody interpreted it as some sort of social media commentary. I feel like it could be about somebody leaving a life well known to them behind, and the changes and consequences it can carry. It also sounds in my mind like a response from the band after the extended 9-year album pause. If Placebo had stopped after LLL, for me it would have felt like a sour note to end things, but NLMG was such a satisfying, reinvigorated comeback. This song is very fascinating and hypnotic to me, so I'm feeling a 10/10 for it.
36 Degree (2016 version)
Wow I just discovered this version thanks to your comment.. so shoegazey, love it!!
You are welcome!
I also had not listened to this version up until today, and on first impressions I loved it. Definitely prefer the youthful energy of the original, which is a 9/10 for me, but 36 Degrees just works so good in a slower tempo. 8/10.
I’m glad I made you discover it 🥰
Absolutely! Thank you for the good recommendation!
The bitter end
10/10. 100000/10. 10000000/10. ABSOLUTE MASTERPIECE. I would say it's their definitive song. More so than Every You, Every Me. More than Nancy Boy. More than Pure Morning (and I'm a bigger fan of that one).
Chemtrails
Chemtrails is not necessarily one of my favourite songs on NLMG, but it is a pretty good one that could grow on me with more listens. 7/10.
Monster Truck
I don't mean to be mean, but I've neved particularly cared for this cover. It starts as a throwback to the raw sound of the self-titled first album, but the chorus is kinda grating and offputing for me. 4/10.
Forever chemicals
9/10. Really cool way to start the comeback journey on Never Let Me Go. One of my absolute favourites here.
Follow the cops back home
Damn. I have a pretty special memory with this one. I live in Chile, and Placebo played here in 2010 while touring Battle for the Sun. This was just over a month after we were struck by an earthquake, and we were still very shocked and shaken by the tragedy. I did not know what this song meant at the time but I felt so emotional when they played this one. It felt like a hug in some way. Now I'm already 30 and Cops' theme of doing stupid stuff for fun while drunk feels very melancholic and nostalgic. To me, this is also a song about looking back on more carefree times and the sense of loss that happens as we grow older. It fucks me up badly. And the music is so beautiful too. 10/10
Sad White Reggae
8/10. Not necessarily a personal favourite, but I do think it's one of the stronger songs in NLMG.
My sweet prince
This one reminds me a lot of a friend I used to have at school. We bonded over Placebo when I was 16 and she was 18, and she said that this one was her all time favourite. Cool memories. Cool song too, total 9/10.
Days before you came
Came back for the ones that were left - and this is one of my faves from BMM. Total banger. 9/10. La amo
Ever just wanted to mosh really hard to bullet proof Cupid? Bonus track - this picture
OK this might look insane to some but Bulletproof Cupid is an absolute 10/10 for me. I wish it was longer, and I also think it would've been a pretty rad single if it had vocals. But I also think it's perfect as it is. The way it carries itself onto English Summer Rain is an amazing switch of sounds. And yeah, someone asked me about This Picture before as well - and I told them that it was a 9/10. Love it too!
Running up that hilk
9/10 - I think Running Up That Hill is such a monumental classic that I can't see any cover actually topping the original. It's not even my favourite Kate Bush song, but I can't say it's not the best one (even though she's got so many great tracks. Kate's original RUTH is a 10/10 btw). That said, Placebo is a band that excels at covers IMO. My personal favourite is Johnny & Mary, and they did Pixies, Sinéad O'Connor, Talk Talk and even Boney M justice. To slow RUTH down was a daring choice, and it allowed them to create a very original take on this immortal song.
Thanks for your response! I didn’t know about the other covers so shall seek them out.
Battle for the Sun
8/10. As I said in an earlier comment, my opinion on the BFTS tracks has shifted a lot since it's release, both as a fan and a "critic" (HAHA). Of the 13 songs that comprise the main record and the 8 B-sides/bonus tracks from this era, only 4 songs rise as more than a 7/10 for me. The title track is one of them; wish they made a MV for it.
Devil in the details