Placebo

With their androgynous aesthetic and raw attack, Placebo caused a stir upon their debut in the 1990s, when Brit-pop ruled the charts and grunge was on its way out. Once described as a glam version of Nirvana, the multinational band delivered a potent blend of dark alt-rock with goth and electronic undertones, creating a sound more aligned with Smashing Pumpkins, Depeche Mode, Muse, and Silversun Pickups. Crashing onto the British scene, the then-trio raised eyebrows with their first hit, "Nancy Boy" from 1997's Placebo, providing a stark alternative to Brit-pop's lad culture. While they continued to expand their European base, the band had a brief moment in the sun in the United States, scoring modest radio hits with "Pure Morning" from 1998's Without You I'm Nothing, "Special K" from 2000's Black Market Music, and "Infra-Red" from 2006's Meds. Although their output slowed into the 2010s -- they released just one official album that decade, 2013's Loud Like Love -- they maintained a strong grip on their core audience, issuing an MTV Unplugged set in 2015 and a series of retrospective B-sides collections from every one of their albums to date. In 2022, nearly a decade after their previous LP was issued, Placebo made a comeback with eighth album Never Let Me Go.