Placebo were formed in 1994 with the partnering of
Brian Molko (vocals, guitar) and
Stefan Olsdal (guitar, bass). At the time, Olsdal was taking guitar lessons and was on his way home when he met Molko at the
South Kensington tube station. Molko, observing that Olsdal had a guitar strapped to his back, invited Olsdal to watch him perform at a local bar. On the strength of Molko's performance, Olsdal decided that the two of them should start a band. The two initially formed Ashtray Heart, a lo-fi duo, playing mostly on children's toy instruments. The duo needed a drummer, and although
Steve Hewitt - who would play later with Placebo - was their first choice, he was working with London-based band Breed at the time. This led
Robert Schultzberg to assume the position of drummer. Schultzberg had known Olsdal from
boarding school in Sigtuna, Sweden where they had played together in a band. The newly formed band released the single "
Come Home" on Deceptive Records in February 1996. This led to signing a contract with
Hut Records and the band began to work on their debut album.
Placebo was recorded over two months in 1996 in Dublin and London and was produced by
Brad Wood. After an argument in August 1996 shortly before their first television appearance, Molko decided that it would be best for the band if Schultzberg left. However, Schultzberg suggested playing together until they finished the promotion for the album, which the rest of band accepted. Before going on stage for their first show in the state of
New York, Olsdal informed Schultzberg that he would not perform on the tour in Germany that was following the US tour. Schultzberg played two more shows with the band in Paris after the US tour, the last of which was a performance at "Nulle Part Aillleurs". Molko has said that he was "tired of being the focus of Robert's rages against the world". Schultzberg left the band in September 1996 and was replaced by Hewitt. ==Composition==