Placebo @ 9:30

Just got back from seeing Brit neo-glam/new wave-rs Placebo at DC instituion the 9:30 Club. They attracted a large crowd of angry goth kids, fashionable and unfashionable alterna-sexuals, and a smattering of disappointingly normal but loyal fans like myself. Ranging from old favorites, often reworked, and new numbers off the album they’re touring to support, “Sleeping With Ghosts,” their set ran at least a good hour. This was the first date of the US leg of their tour and the band seemed energetic and well-rehearsed.

Androgynous lead singer Brian Malko tossed off a few biting song introductions and blew off calls from the crowd: “Touch me, I’m sick!” someone shouted, to which Malko responded a curt “I’ll pass” before launching into another song.

Their new material is superb, and while the single “This Picture” is catchy, “English Summer Rain” stood out amongst the new stuff. While they didn’t get to my back catalogue favorite “Brick Shithouse,” the band did close with an enthusiastic cover of The Pixies’ “Where Is My Mind?,” proving that they not only know their musical roots, but can bring something new to the crowded field of alt-rock. Worth the second-hand smoke and inevitable hearing loss.