PLACEBO MEDS ALBUM VIRGIN RELEASE: MARCH 13, 2006 REVIEW: APRIL 11, 2006

At five albums, the point of Placebo still eludes me. Their ambition towards decadent grandeur and romantic spleen has never been matched more than halfway by their musical expression. In the particular musical department kept draped in black satin and PVC, fuelled by antidepressants and showered in cold London rain, the band sounds too much like a compromise and Brian Molko’s make-up gets all runny and smudged in the downpour.

The snapshots of paranoia, surging anger and unrest on ”Meds” sometimes echo Suede and Radiohead at their respective dramatic heights (meaning "Dog Man Star" and "Ok Computer"), but it is a very faint echo. Most of what we get here is the usual, evenly spread layer of spiky rock tedium in a style much too familiar from every single release by Placebo.

In terms of celebrity guests, the vocal appearance of Alison Mosshart from The Kills on the title track provides a welcome diversion from Molko’s prominent presence, while Michael Stipe cannot save a fitful song like ”Broken Promise” from its utter lack of direction and focus.

MATTIAS HUSS