"The Bitter End" is a song by British

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...

band

Placebo A placebo ( ) is a substance or treatment which is designed to have no therapeutic value. Common placebos include inert tablets (like sugar pills), inert injections (like saline), sham surgery, and other procedures. In general, placebos can af ...

. It was released as the lead single from their fourth studio album, ''

Sleeping with Ghosts ''Sleeping with Ghosts'' is the fourth studio album by British alternative rock band Placebo. It was recorded from late 2002 to early 2003 and released on 1 April 2003 by record labels Virgin and Hut. ''Sleeping with Ghosts'' reached number 11 ...

'' (2003), on 10 March 2003. The song is based on the novel ''

Nineteen Eighty-Four ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'' (also stylised as ''1984'') is a dystopian social science fiction novel and cautionary tale written by the English writer George Orwell. It was published on 8 June 1949 by Secker & Warburg as Orwell's ninth and fina ...

'' by George Orwell. There are several references to it throughout the song, one of the most noticeable being the reference to 2 May - the date on which the two main characters, Winston and Julia, first spend the night together. "The Bitter End" and "

Every You Every Me "Every You Every Me" is a song by British alternative rock band Placebo, released as the third single from their second album, '' Without You I'm Nothing'', on 25 January 1999. It was released as a 2-CD set and on cassette, but promotional copie ...

" are the two most often played songs in the Placebo's live shows.

Critical response

Critics generally praised the single upon its release. Reviewing ''Sleeping with Ghosts'', BBC.co.uk's rock/indie reviewer Dan Tallis described "The Bitter End" as "a good pop tune",Tallis, Dan. ''"Placebo, Sleeping with Ghosts"'', album review, March 2003, a
BBC.co.uk
last accessed 8 January 2007. having "just the right amount of dark, gothic atmosphere to please their fans and enough radio friendly guitars to please the new generation of indie kids." The Times thought the song "ramped up the energy level to devastating effect." ''

Rock Sound ''Rock Sound'' is a British magazine that covers rock music. The magazine aims at being more " underground" and less commercial, while also giving coverage to better-known acts. It generally focuses on pop punk, post-hardcore, metalcore, punk, ...

'' reasoned that the track's "kick ass romp"Perrone, Pierre. ''"Sleeping with Ghosts"'', album review, March 2003,

magazine. reinforces "their status as purveyors of pure indie pop in the vein of

The Smiths The Smiths were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1982. They comprised the singer Morrissey, the guitarist Johnny Marr, the bassist Andy Rourke and the drummer Mike Joyce. They are regarded as one of the most important acts to eme ...

." However,

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

saw differing influences woven in the track, reporting that "The Bitter End" "sees Placebo powering along with a relentless U2- chasing-after-

The Cure The Cure are an English rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith has remained the only constant member. The band's ...

melody that's as infectious as 24." Summarising Placebo's 2004 singles collection, '' Once More with Feeling'', BBC.co.uk's Nottingham music reviewer Jaime Gill stated that "each song stems from a songwriter so instinctive and precise that when he writes a song called "The Bitter End", that's exactly what it sounds like."Gill, Jaime. ''"Placebo - Once More With Feeling (The Singles)"'', album review, 2 November 2004, a
BBC.co.uk
; last accessed 8 January 2007.

Music video

The

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...

sees the band playing in the dish of the

Lovell Telescope The Lovell Telescope is a radio telescope at Jodrell Bank Observatory, near Goostrey, Cheshire in the north-west of England. When construction was finished in 1957, the telescope was the largest steerable dish radio telescope in the world at ...

, one of the largest radio telescopes. Halfway through the video, it displays an

infrared Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from around ...

image of a couple chasing after each other. They eventually catch each other up and kiss against a wall. Near the end of the video, the band is rained upon. It was filmed close to Stockport in Cheshire,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Track listings

CD 1 CD 2 7-inch vinyl

Formats

"The Bitter End" was released on 10 March 2003 via Elevator Music/Hut Records,Singles from 'Sleeping with Ghosts'. "The Bitter End", a
PlaceboWorld.co.uk
last accessed 16 January 2016. the first single to be culled from ''Sleeping with Ghosts''. Two CD singles offering differing B-sides were issued, as well as a single in 7-inch vinyl format. Later, "The Bitter End" saw inclusion on the November 2004 compilation '' Once More with Feeling: The Singles''. Key *B - "The Bitter End" *D - "Daddy Cool" *T - "Teenage Angst (piano version)" *BV - "The Bitter End video" *E - "Evalia" *DP - "Drink You Pretty"

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bitter End, The Placebo (band) songs 2003 singles 2003 songs Number-one singles in Portugal Song recordings produced by Jim Abbiss Songs written by Brian Molko Songs written by Stefan Olsdal Songs written by Steve Hewitt Virgin Records singles