"It's
good to be back at Brixton!" said Brian Molko to a screaming,
cheering crowd at the Academy.
And
in contrast to all the frontmen you've heard say it, this time you
genuinely believed the diminutive singer from Placebo.
And
what an entrance!
Behind
a silk screen which allowed glimpses of the band as a flash of images
were projected up, and
on to the rapturous reception of their opening instrumental - 'Bulletproof
Cupid' from 2003's Sleeping with Ghosts - this promised to
be one hell of a gig!
In
fact this was a thank you to the loyal fans who've supported the
'Poison Pixie' - as the press have dubbed him - and his multi-national,
poly-sexual band.
And
a repertoire of songs old and new were played with an energy rarely
seen in a band that has pretty much toured non-stop since April
of last year.
cheekiness
Molko
really seemed to be enjoying himself, and the cheekiness of the
performance was there in plain sight.
I
had misgivings that Placebo could effectively play such a large
venue, having only first
seen them perform last year at the student-orientated Rock City
club in Nottingham.
But
the Academy stage seemed to allow Molko's freedom in performance
and helped make this a show worth seeing.
I can't
fault this gig. I can't fault the two
encores. And I can't fault the enthusiasm of
the crowd or the energy of the band.
If
I had a rating to give, I'd have to give it five out of five - and
for those who missed it, remember that Placebo release their first
live DVD on 15 March here in the UK.
Verdict: Placebo are like a fine wine, getting better with
age and growing smoother in taste!
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