ARTIST · ALT / ROCK

Placebo

Needle-sharp strumming and falsetto drama—MTV Europe midnight made anthem.

Alternative rock
Glam rock

Updated 27 October 2026

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Biography

Without You I’m Nothing proved fragility could headline as loudly as sneer.

Molko/Stefan Olsdal chemistry defined two-decade aesthetic continuity.

Lyrics tackle identity, desire, and unpretty emotion without sloganeering.

High-bitrate streams separate DI grit, hi-hat air, and narrow stereo vocals.

Brian Molko and Stefan Olsdal met at school in Luxembourg and formed Placebo in London with drummer Robert Schultzberg. Their self-titled debut (1996) included Nancy Boy. Without You I’m Nothing (1998) with David Bowie on Without You I’m Nothing, and Black Market Music (2000) followed.

Sleeping with Ghosts (2003) and Meds (2006) kept them among Europe’s rock leaders. After Loud Like Love (2013), the band returned in 2022 with Never Let Me Go.

Placebo: recent news, 2020–2026

2022 Never Let Me Go, the band’s first album in nine years, was released in March.

Interesting facts about Placebo

01 Anglo-American rock band formed in London in 1994; Brian Molko and Stefan Olsdal are long-term core members.
02 Their 1996 self-titled debut included Nancy Boy and Teenage Angst.
03 Multiple top-ten UK albums across late 1990s and 2000s.
04 David Bowie sang on the title track of Without You I’m Nothing.
05 Brian Molko and Stefan Olsdal met at school in Luxembourg.