Placebo have teamed up with British artist Stuart Semple to develop a unique colour and a very special limited edition packaged double A-Side 7” vinyl record. The 7” features their new cover of Tears for Fears’ anthemic ‘Shout,’ as well as their version of Kate Bush’s iconic ‘Running Up That Hill’, a rare opportunity to get this on vinyl again.
In this unprecedented collaboration, for the first time ever a band and a visual artist have authored an entirely new colour, aptly named PLACEBO.
PLACEBO paint is inspired by Semple’s lifelong love of Placebo. Changing colour in front of your eyes in different lights, PLACEBO morphs from a deep purple hue, through black, into a shimmering blue.
In addition to the new PLACEBO paint, which is available for all to purchase and use, Semple has also created an original acrylic and charcoal on canvas painting using the hue, titled ‘SHOUT,’ which now forms the cover artwork and artwork for the limited-edition record. Powerful and visceral, an expression of the emotive anthem, the artwork also enacts a physical concept that enables you to interact with the packaging to extend the shout, literally.
Stuart Semple explains: “Placebo has always conjured colours in my mind. I’ve been painting along to their records since I was a teenager and that bruise blue-black is something that I feel encompasses the feeling and emotion behind the music. When we get our emotions out on the surface and express ourselves, it can look dark and painful, but there’s always a beauty in it. I’ve always loved Placebo’s covers, they always seem to hone in on such important songs for the times we are in. Being in the studio and working with the lyrics from SHOUT was amazing in how relevant they are to our lives. I feel like right now a lot of people have a lot of emotion compressed inside.
“‘Running Up That Hill’ has been a song I’ve painted to almost more than any other over the last couple of decades. Again, it’s got a driving emotion and a kind of plea built into it that’s really uplifting. It’s a masterpiece and only Placebo could really do a cover of it justice. Weirdly, my first big exhibition in London almost 20 years ago had a painting called ‘Sucker Love’ after a Placebo song and a painting called ‘Thunder in Our Hearts’ from Kate Bush’s lyrics. So, it’s a strange and magical synchronicity to find myself collaborating with my favourite band and making a cover for those two songs.”
Alongside the vinyl, Semple and Placebo have created 1000 limited edition 100ml bottles of the Placebo paint. Each limited-edition bottle is handmade in Semple’s studio by his team of artisan paint makers, using the unique ‘placebo’ pigment made in collaboration with the band. Each comes in its own special collectable packaging, including an embossed ‘Placebo’ logo box wrapped in a silver vacuum pack, and is individually numbered – an artwork in its own right.
The colour of the specially created pigment shifts from a deep purple, through bruisy blues to black as it adapts to different lights, enabling lovers of the band to express themselves and make their mark.
Vinyl and paint are now available to pre-order here.
