Watch Placebo face their demons in trailer for new documentary ‘The Search For Meaning’ featuring Garbage’s Shirley Manson, IDLES’ Joe Talbot and more
Placebo have announced details of a second feature-length documentary, This Search For Meaning. Check out the trailer below.
The project is an intimate and enlightening portrait of the band, which explores both the meaning and subject matter behind their songs, while also diving into their evolution as a group and as human beings.
Created by Scottish award-winning filmmaker Oscar Sansom, the documentary won’t simply present a narrative about the origins of the band, it’ll instead take a deep dive into the legacy they created through their themes of surveillance, culture, scrutiny, sexuality, gender identity, addiction, trauma and more.
It’ll also include informal conversations with both vocalist-guitarist Brian Molko and bassist–guitarist Stefan Olsdal, as well as contributions from artists who either admire or have been inspired by Placebo. These include Garbage’s Shirley Manson, Robbie Williams, Self Esteem (Rebecca Lucy Taylor), Idles frontman Joe Talbot, Yungblud and contemporary artist Stuart Semple.
“The result is honest and rewarding – capturing the sense that we are all just trying to figure out our place in this world; and hopefully making some sense of it too,” reads a press release. Check out the trailer below.
The overall narrative of the film is structured around new performances of Placebo’s latest songs – taken from Never Let Me Go – captured at Britain’s legendary Twickenham Film Studios.
It also includes archive footage of the band, as well as exclusive, never-before-seen, material that spans across their entire career. It’ll also explore the band’s creative and personal collaboration with David Bowie and his enduring influence over their own material.
An exact date has not yet been announced, although the documentary is expected to have a theatrical release in September this year. Sign up here to find out more information about the film as it is shared.
The news of the project arrives following Placebo sharing details of their first-ever live album box set back in November.
Titled ‘Placebo Live’, the box set marked the first time that the band have shared a live album during the entirety of their 25-year-long career. It also marked the first time that any live performances from the band have been made available on vinyl.
It was comprised of performances captured during their shows in Mexico, Spain and London, and the full live album included, ‘Collapse Into Never: Placebo Live In Europe 2023’, was recorded live at the Low Festival in Spain last year.
Back in Spring 2022, the band’s latest album ‘Never Let Me Go’ was given a four-star review from NME, who hailed it as their best since 2006.
“You won’t find a ‘Nancy Boy’ on here, but a whole lot of new, wonderful weirdness,” it read. “The result is Placebo’s best and most consistent album since 2006’s dark, intoxicated ‘Meds’ – and might prove their most rejuvenating since 2003’s arena-filling ‘Sleeping With Ghosts’. ‘Never Let Me Go’ is a true renaissance record… a record that finds Placebo inspired and ready for a new era, reinventing the rock veterans for the modern age.”
Around that time, the members also spoke to NME about what it was like to share their first album in a decade, as well as the influence that they took from Bowie – a topic explored in the upcoming documentary.
Asked about how the icon’s passing in 2016 may have shaped the album, Olsdal explained how he finally took Bowie’s advice to sing much more on the record – but claimed that the impact of his death was more personal.
“We were young and probably felt like we deserved to be with him,” he said, looking back at their time working together in the ‘90s. “But for me, his personality outshines the music.”
Molko agreed: “This may sound like a grandiose statement, but it’s true. David taught me how to be a better person, but it took his passing for me to really reflect on it. When it was happening, I was far too arrogant and far too drunk to notice the real impact of what was going on.
“The thing with David was that he treated everyone who he came into contact with with the same dignity, kindness and humanity – it didn’t matter what your status was. You could be the waiter or Johnny Cash. You’d get the same amount of respect. That’s really David’s legacy for me.”
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Liberty Dunworth
NME
