Brian Molko says he was inspired to cover Shout in order to give his son and his contemporaries “a protest anthem”.
Following this year’s excellent eighth album Never Let Me Go, Placebo have shared more new music in the form of a fantastic industrial cover of Tears For Fears’ classic single Shout.
Discussing their reasoning for tackling this 1984 new wave hit – taken from Tears For Fears’ album Songs From The Big Chair – Placebo vocalist Brian Molko explains, “In the mid 1980s when I was a teenager, Shout by Tears For Fears served as part of my political awakening. Today I realise that it could be about anything that angers or frustrates a person. For me it’s a call to arms for self-expression, speaking one’s own truth.
“As I watched my son’s generation become more politicised, and the world continue to crumble around us, I wanted to offer him and his contemporaries a protest anthem, since it appears that it is mostly them who still have the capacity to save us from ourselves.
“Shout’s essence as a song is its simplicity, it feels very natural to engage directly with it. This rallying cry against apathy will hopefully provide a context for those who care to express their anger. Or simply offer some kind of catharsis. It certainly still does both for me.”
Stream it below:
Catch Placebo live at the following dates this year:
November
18 Portsmouth Guildhall
19 Brighton Brighton Centre
21 Liverpool Eventim Olympia
22 Manchester O2 Victoria Warehouse
24 Cardiff Motorpoint Arena
26 London O2 Academy Brixton
27 London O2 Academy Brixton
29 Leicester De Montford Hall
30 Leeds O2 Academy
December
2 Newcastle O2 City Hall
3 Glasgow O2 Academy
5 Dublin 3 Arena
7 Cambridge Corn Exchange
8 Birmingham O2 Academy
Read this: Placebo: “Making music felt like a lifeline, and that feeling still exists to this day”
