Released: October 9th, 2000
Recorded: Late 1999 – Mid 2000
Genre: Alternative
Record Label: Hut
Duration: 45:44
Producer: Paul Corkett
- Brian Molko – vocals, guitar, keyboards, 6-string bass
- Stefan Olsdal – bass, guitar, 6-string bass, keyboards, backing vocals
- Steve Hewitt – drums, percussion
- Rob Ellis – string arrangements
- Bill Lloyd – bass (“Peeping Tom”)
- Severe Loren – backing vocals (“Taste in Men” and “Special K”)
- Dimitri Tikovoi – string programming
- Justin Warfield – rapping (“Spite & Malice”)
- Paul Collins – sleeve art direction
- Ian Cooper – mastering
- Paul Corkett – production, mixing
- Lorraine Francis – engineering
- Scott Kannberg – sampling
- Dare Mason – production
- Placebo – production, mixing
- Kevin Westenberg – sleeve art direction, sleeve photography
- Taste in Men
- Days Before You Came
- Special K
- Spite & Malice
- Passive Aggressive
- Black-Eyed
- Blue American
- Slave to the Wage
- Commercial for Levi
- Haemoglobin
- Narcoleptic
- Peeping Tom (hidden track “Black Market Blood” starts at 10:14)
- Taste in Men – July 17th, 2000
- Slave to the Wage – September 2000
- Special K – March 19th, 2001
- Black-Eyed – September 2001
- Blue American – May 2002
Why Black Market Music is One of My Favorites
Way back, in my tenth issue of the series, I covered my very favorite Placebo album, Without You I’m Nothing. Their subsequent album Black Market Music is a very, very close second. Whereas Without You I’m Nothing is full of sad songs about loss and depression, and the feeling that without that “someone” you’re nothing (as the title suggests), Black Market Music shows off a darker, sleazier, sultry side of Placebo. It’s a much more lively album, thought it isn’t particularly happier.
This is an album that slinks and slithers in the gutter. It’s dirty. It’s trashy. But it has a speck of glamour as well. It’s a proud and flashy sort of trashy. That’s the kind of vibe I get from this record. Sex is always bubbling beneath the surface and sometimes over the edge, and it isn’t pretty. If Without You I’m Nothing was the long, hard, awful breakup, Black Market Music is a night for rebounding, acting on impulse, shedding any sense of shame and self-esteem with it.
Molko’s voice has gotten a little deeper in the 2 years between the album, which is part of what gives the album its sultry air. Musically, the band has opted for more mid-tempo tracks and augmented several of them with varying degrees of electronic instrumentation. The result is a solid if not slightly experimental chunk of alternative rock with a distinct European edge to it. It’s catchy, it’s interpersonal,and it’s relatable. Molko’s voice won’t be to everyone’s liking, though his whine from the previous record has turned into more of beckon, at least in some songs.
“Taste in Men” opens Black Market Music with a pulsating synth bass line. Molko’s pleas are half desperation and half indifference as he encourages his lover to “change your taste in men” in order that they’ll no longer be looking for a new partner. “Days Before You Came” is short and punchy. Distorted guitar buzzes over the track while the singer works out his confusion over whether or not he was happier before this person came along. “Special K” is standard yet catchy alternative fare where Molko compares his significant other to the drug ketamine, mostly in loose, metaphorical ways.
“Spite & Malice” was one of the hardest songs for me to get into initially and it eventually became one of my favorites. I can’t exactly work out all the playing card analogies, so I’m not 100% sure what the song is about. The music, however, is top notch. Guitars are a little heavier than usual, and Warfield lends his rapping. Molko’s parts include a steady rumble of guitars as he sings an ominous chorus, and the then the rest of the instruments kick it up while Warfield lays down the verses. “Passive Aggressive” alternates between soft and loud in the coolest of ways, mostly because it isn’t quite as simple as “soft” and “loud.” Molko does adopt different vocal styles and the music shifts as well. The quieter parts are little more than a few plucked guitar strings and Molko sort of talking, but the “loud” parts open up with a gentle, soothing melody. Near the end of a song, the immense build up of tension is finally released, and like a blossoming flower, the melody runs its course in fine fashion.
“Black-Eyed” is another cut that follows alt rock conventions fairly closely, spiced up with a tad of electronic noise here and there. It confronts issues of child abuse and neglect with a frenetic chorus to match. “Blue American” is the coldest track on the album. It’s a bleak and resigned rejection of culture where the singer ultimately accepts his own role in what he loathes. “Slave to the Wage” is fun and upbeat, and a sarcastic jab at the typical 9 to 5 grind. “Commercial for Levi” is light and poppy, even happy based on music alone. Allegedly the song is dedicated to a guy who pulled Molko out of the path of an incoming car, though I have no clue what this has to do with raunchy lyrics about golden showers and bestiality. I don’t really know where “Levi” (the lifesaver) fits in, but the song speaks to moderation and acts as a warning to over indulgers, despite how enticing the life may be. “Haemoglobin” is ostensibly a song about blood, yet again any larger symbolism is lost on me.
The next couple of tracks are two of my favorites. “Narcoleptic” is supremely sad, maybe even sadder than anything on Without You I’m Nothing. Instrumentation is kept to a minimum while long guitar notes create an atmosphere of loneliness. Molko is at his best here, and the way he sings, “change of season, love can die” as well as his repeated musings of “it seemed / a place for us to dream” are so incredibly sad. “Peeping Tom” taps into a creepier side of “love;” just like the title says, it’s straight up voyeurism. Traditional instruments are again at a minimum and give way to spacey synth notes alongside piano. The melody is beautiful, and vague nature of the chorus (“I’m weightless / I’m scared”) perhaps suggest something a little more than simple voyeurism. The hidden track “Black Market Blood” is also worth a listen. Molko pulls of the melancholy tune superbly as usual and a sad violin jumps in before too long. It doesn’t feel quite fully formed, maybe 80% there, but with a little more work it’d be a welcomed addition to the album proper.
Black Market Music has plenty of sad moments like its predecessor, but its also got currents of sex, sickness, and sleaze running running through large portions of it. This gives the album a certain energy to it, even if it does trend towards the negative. Although identifiable as alternative, it can be a little “off” sounding due to the band’s mostly European roots. Placebo made it big over in mainland Europe, landing on the charts in France, Belgium, and several other countries; unfortunately, they only occasionally surface in popular American music. They continued to produce their own flavor of music after Black Market Blood, though nothing quite so dark and diverse. Without You I’m Nothing is certainly the definitive Placebo release, but it’s tough to ignore how solid Black Market Blood is, and for that reason, I tend to regard both of these as essential Placebo listening.
Written by The Cubist
Other albums from Placebo in this series:
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I collect as much video gaming paraphernalia as I can get my hands on, especially when it comes to hardware. With over 40 systems including oldies like the ColecoVision and Intellivision, obscurities like the CD-i and 3DO, and the latest and greatest including the Wii U, PS4, Xbox One, 3DS, and PS Vita, I get easily overwhelmed. Most of the time you can find me firmly nestled sometime between 1985 and 1995 when it comes to my games of choice, but I’m also having a great time seeing what the 8th generation has to offer.
Currently in love with: Mortal Kombat
Email me anytime, about anything: thecubist@butthole.nerdbacon.com
