Battle for the Sun [PA]

Performer: Placebo
Engineer: Kevin Dietz; James Brown
Producer: David Bottrill
Distributor: Fontana Distribution

Notes: Audio Mixer: Alan Moulder. Placebo made a name for themselves playing tough alt-rock with a glammy, sexually provocative swagger. For the their first album since 2006's MEDS, the group pulled from the many facets of their sound through the years and created what is perhaps the consummate Placebo release. Tracks alternate between smart, angsty guitar-driven rock ("Kitty Litter," the title track) and anthemic, hook-heavy Britpop ("Ashtray Heart," "Bright Lights"), with touches of dark electronica and lush synth textures thrown in. While the band continues to explore themes of hard living, there's also considerable self-examination taking place here, with alternatives to the rock & roll lifestyle explicitly laid out on the table. BATTLE FOR THE SUN finds Placebo continuing to evolve as a band in more ways than one. Placebo's career is a living, breathing example of the power of a niche audience. After making a mild splash in the glam-friendly Brit-pop aftermath -- they ratcheted up the gothic androgyny of Suede, straightening out the guitars while piling up the makeup, vocal tics, and tortured poetry -- the group settled into an appreciative cult that never seemed to penetrate the pop consciousness on either side of the ocean. Battle for the Sun, the band's sixth album and first with drummer Steve Forrest, is given a steel-reinforced production by David Bottrill, a sound that could conceivably be placed on mainstream rock radio if that format still existed, or if it were used as a vehicle for something else than Placebo's music, which remains resolutely pitched toward a niche audience, no matter how many little frills of horns or farting synths grace their guitar grind. Certainly, a good portion of what makes Placebo a cult band is Brian Molko himself, how his strangled vocal affectations and enduring angst speak directly to a small, dedicated batch of listeners while alienating all others, something that Molko, after a decade and a half of semi-stardom, rightly wears as a badge of honor, but the increased care spent on the sound of Battle for the Sun emphasizes how the band's sound -- an extension of '80s growth, right down to its reflected love of '70s Bowie, but never unfriendly to any passing electronic fad -- is never quite hooky, nor does it have a rock kick. Instead, everything about Battle for the Sun -- the thumping rhythms, the subtly churning keyboards, the clanking grind of the digital distortion -- is coloring for the group's disaffected stance, not so much stylish but terminally out of time, alienation preserved in amber for those few who understand. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine After making a mild splash in the glam-friendly Brit-pop aftermath, Placebo pitched their music toward an appreciative cult, and Battle for the Sun, the band's sixth album and first with drummer Steve Forrest, continues the group's disaffected stance. This time, the music is given a steel-reinforced production by David Bottrill, a sound that could conceivably be placed on mainstream rock radio if that format still existed, while remaining resolutely aimed at Placebo's niche audience. Certainly, a good portion of what makes Placebo a cult band is Brian Molko himself, how his enduring angst speaks directly to a small, dedicated batch of listeners, something that Molko, after a decade and a half of semi-stardom, rightly wears as a badge of honor. Yet there is increased care spent on the sound of Battle for the Sun, emphasizing how the band's sound is never unfriendly to any passing electronic fad, including the thumping rhythms, subtly churning keyboards, and clanking grind of digital distortion heard here. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Alternative Press (p.130) - 4.5 stars out of 5 -- "BATTLE FOR THE SUN takes the best elements of their sound and focuses it into a cohesive listening experience -- there's no filler to be found." Q (Magazine) (p.129) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "[W]ith vibrant, lusty tones as epitomised by the title track, whose swirling synths and strings build to a euphoric climax."

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