2022 studio album by Placebo
Never Let Me Go
Released 25 March 2022 Recorded 2019–2021
Genre
Alternative rock
[1] Length 57 :35
Label
So Recordings
Elevator Lady
Rise
Producer
"Beautiful James" Released: 16 September 2021
"Surrounded by Spies" Released: 9 November 2021
"Try Better Next Time" Released: 11 January 2022
"Happy Birthday in the Sky" Released: 4 March 2022
Never Let Me Go is the eighth studio album by British
alternative rock band
Placebo , recorded between 2019 and 2021 and released on 25 March 2022. The album was made available for pre-order on 9 November 2021.
[13]
It is Placebo's first studio album in over eight years, following 2013's
Loud Like Love .
[14] It is also their first album to be recorded as a duo, following the departure of drummer
Steve Forrest in 2015. Concurrent with the album announcement, on 4 November 2021, the band revealed a 2022 headline tour of Europe and the United Kingdom.
[15]
The first single from the album was "Beautiful James", released on 16 September 2021. The second single, "Surrounded by Spies", was released on 9 November 2021.
[16] The third single, "Try Better Next Time" was released on 11 January 2022. The fourth and final single, "Happy Birthday in the Sky", was released on 4 March 2022.
The album achieved strong
chart performance, peaking at # 1 in the
UK Indie Chart , # 1 in the
Austrian ,
Dutch , and
German album charts, and # 3 in the
UK Albums Chart .
Critical reception
Never Let Me Go received positive reviews. At
Metacritic , which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 78, which indicates "generally favorable reviews", based on 13 reviews.
[3]
NME gave the album 4 stars, stating it was a return to form for the band, and their best since 2006's
Meds .
[12] In Under The Radar, Jimi Arundell commented "It’s good to hear that they’re still around and continuing to push themselves, though perhaps just not far enough"
[17]
Track listing
All tracks are written by
Brian Molko and
Stefan Olsdal , except where noted
Never Let Me Go track listingTitle Writer(s) 1. "Forever Chemicals" 5:09 2. "
Beautiful James " 4:08 3. "Hugz" 3:51 4. "Happy Birthday in the Sky" 5:09 5. "The Prodigal" 4:46 6. "Surrounded by Spies" 5:14 7. "Try Better Next Time" 3:07 8. "Sad White Reggae" 3:25 9. "Twin Demons" 3:58 10. "Chemtrails" 4:31 11. "This Is What You Wanted" 4:11 12. "Went Missing" 5:05 13. "Fix Yourself" 5:01 Total length: 57:35
Never Let Me Go Deluxe Digital Album track listingTitle 14. "Surrounded by Spies" (
Timo Maas and Andre Winter Smack the Spies Extended Remix) 7:35 15. "Surrounded by Spies" (
Richard Norris Bag on the Platform Mix) 6:33 16. "This Is What You Wanted" (
Digital 21 & Stefan Olsdal Remix) 5:34 17. "Try Better Next Time" (live) 3:02 Total length: 80:19
Personnel
Placebo
Brian Molko – vocals, electric guitar,
drum machine , keyboards,
loops , percussion, synthesizer,
whip ,
production , creative direction
Stefan Olsdal – electric bass, electric guitar, keyboards, piano, synthesizer, background vocals, production,
engineering
Additional personnel
Adam Noble – production,
mixing , engineering (all tracks);
programming (1, 3–12)
William Lloyd – engineering (all tracks), programming (4–6, 8, 11, 12), keyboard programming (10)
Robin Schmidt –
mastering
Matthew Lunn – drums (1, 3, 8, 9)
Pietro Garrone – drums (1–7, 10–12)
Cody Jet Molko – background vocals (7)
Phil Lee – creative direction, design
Rachel Bungey – design
Stuart Ford – design
Mads Perch – band photo
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
References
^
a
b K., Simon (27 March 2022).
"Review: Placebo - Never Let Me Go" . Sputnikmusic . Retrieved 27 March 2022 .
^
"Never Let Me Go by Placebo reviews | Any Decent Music" .
AnyDecentMusic? . Retrieved 30 July 2022 .
^
a
b
"Never Let Me Go by Placebo" .
Metacritic . Retrieved 1 April 2022 .
^ Yeung, Neil Z.
"Never Let Me Go – Placebo | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards | AllMusic" .
AllMusic . Retrieved 14 April 2022 .
^ Carr, Tom (22 March 2022).
"Album: Placebo - Never Let Me Go" .
The Arts Desk . Retrieved 25 March 2022 .
^ Lockwood, Andrew (23 March 2022).
"Placebo - Never Let Me Go Album Review" .
Contactmusic.com . Retrieved 25 March 2022 .
^ Goggins, Joe (23 March 2022).
"Placebo – Never Let Me Go review" .
DIY . Retrieved 25 March 2022 .
^ Eastoe, Dillon (24 March 2022).
"Album Review: Placebo – Never Let Me Go" .
Gigwise . Retrieved 25 March 2022 .
^ O'Connor, Roisin (24 March 2022).
"Album reviews: Placebo – Never Let Me Go, and Aldous Harding – Warm Chris" .
The Independent . Retrieved 25 March 2022 .
^ Winwood, Ian (24 March 2022).
"Album review: Placebo – Never Let Me Go" .
Kerrang! . Retrieved 25 March 2022 .
^ Beaumont, Mark (22 March 2022).
"Placebo's Never Let Me Go: first album in nine years is worth the wait" .
Louder . Retrieved 25 March 2022 .
^
a
b Trendell, Andrew (24 March 2022).
"Placebo – 'Never Let Me Go' review: a renaissance rock record with an experimental edge" .
NME . Retrieved 25 March 2022 .
^ Jones, Damian (4 November 2021).
"Placebo announce new album 'Never Let Me Go' and tease 2022 UK and European tour" .
NME .
^ Kenneally, Cerys (4 November 2021).
"Placebo announce first album in over eight years Never Let Me Go" .
The Line of Best Fit .
^ Stickler, Jon (4 November 2021).
"Placebo Announce Eighth Studio Album 'Never Let Me Go' " . Stereoboard.com .
^ Skinner, Tom (4 November 2021).
"Placebo announce new single 'Surrounded By Spies' " . NME .
^ Arundell, Jimi.
"Never Let Me Go" . www.undertheradarmag.com . Retrieved 4 April 2022 .
^
"ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart" .
Australian Recording Industry Association . 4 April 2022. Retrieved 1 April 2022 .
^
"Austriancharts.at – Placebo – Never Let Me Go" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
^
"Lescharts.com – Placebo – Never Let Me Go" . Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
^
"Ultratop.be – Placebo – Never Let Me Go" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
^
"Ultratop.be – Placebo – Never Let Me Go" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
^
"Czech Albums – Top 100" .
ČNS IFPI . Note : On the chart page, select 13.Týden 2022 on the field besides the words "CZ – ALBUMS – TOP 100 " to retrieve the correct chart. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
^
"Dutchcharts.nl – Placebo – Never Let Me Go" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
^ "
Placebo: Never Let Me Go" (in Finnish).
Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland . Retrieved 3 April 2022.
^
"Offiziellecharts.de – Placebo – Never Let Me Go" (in German).
GfK Entertainment Charts . Retrieved 1 April 2022.
^
"Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2022. 14. hét" (in Hungarian).
MAHASZ . Retrieved 14 April 2022.
^
"Official Irish Albums Chart Top 50" .
Official Charts Company . Retrieved 1 April 2022.
^
"Album – Classifica settimanale WK 13 (dal 25.03.2022 al 31.03.2022)" (in Italian).
Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana . Retrieved 2 April 2022 .
^
"NZ Top 40 Albums Chart" .
Recorded Music NZ . 4 April 2022. Retrieved 2 April 2022 .
^
"Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart" .
OLiS .
Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry . Retrieved 7 April 2022.
^
"Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100" .
Official Charts Company . Retrieved 2 April 2022.
^
"Top 100 Albums: Week 13 (2022)" . El portal de Música (in Spanish).
Productores de Música de España . Retrieved 2 April 2022 .
^
"Veckolista Album, vecka 13" .
Sverigetopplistan . Retrieved 1 April 2022 .
^
"Swisscharts.com – Placebo – Never Let Me Go" . Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
^
"Official Albums Chart Top 100" .
Official Charts Company . Retrieved 1 April 2022.
^
"Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50" .
Official Charts Company . Retrieved 2 April 2022.
^
"Jaaroverzichten 2022" (in Dutch).
Ultratop . Retrieved 14 January 2023 .
^
"Rapports annuels 2022" (in French).
Ultratop . Retrieved 14 January 2023 .
^
"2022: La production musicale française toujours au top" (in French).
Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique . 6 January 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2023 .
^
"Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts 2022" (in German).
GfK Entertainment charts . Retrieved 16 December 2022 .
^
"Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2022" . hitparade.ch (in German). Retrieved 27 December 2022 .
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