Niki N. Phaser

            Since his departure from Placebo, in September 2007, drum virtuoso Steve Hewitt hasn’t been slacking off. Helped by friends and family, Hewitt has started a new musical project. The band is called Love Amongst Ruin. This will also be the name of their debut album. Yes, that is correct, an album is already on the way. It was recorded at the Moles Studio (Bath, UK) in the spring-summer period of 2008. Paul Corkett, who produced The Cure’s Bloodflowers, among other noteworthy stuff, was invited to work on some of the tracks. It’s not the first time Hewitt collaborated with this producer. Paul Corkett also produced and engineered Placebo’s Black Market Music. The mixing was done overseas, at the prestigious Bernie Grundman studios in Los Angeles by Brian Gardner, whose discography is as eclectic as can be: from 2Pac to Red Hot Chili Peppers to Barbra Streisand.

            Currently, Steve Hewitt is putting the ‘finishing touches’ on the band’s line-up, as most of the musicians involved in the recording sessions are members of other bands and unable to commit long term to Love Amongst Ruin. Rehearsals are on the way, but before the band premieres any new music, there is still the issue of finding the right management and a label. Knowing that, studio-wise, Steve Hewitt wasn’t restricted to playing only drums for Placebo, one cannot help wondering what this new project of his will sound like, especially since he’s also doing vocals for his new band. For more info, check his:

MySpace Page 

At the time of its release, Playing the Angel (2005) was a bit of a comeback for Depeche Mode, considering that it had been four years since Exciter. Nonetheless the album confirmed once and for all their status as a lasting band and as a legend-to-be. Precious, the first single had a lot to do with this, but the singles that followed were rather odd choices.

The real stand-out track of the album was The Darkest Star, which, as the title states, is an unique combination of light and darkness. It is, for sure, the most hypnotic song ever written by Martin Gore. It has everything that Depeche Mode “copyrighted” in music: uncomfortable perverse vocals by Dave Gahan, weird electro-effects filling every space, ambiguous lyrics about needing (or using ?) someone. Maybe the timing, almost seven minutes, severed all chances for The Darkest Star to be released as a single, but it remains a treasure within a treasure.