The drummer for Placebo Steve Hewitt has quit the band in a split described as “amicable”.

He replaced Robert Schultzberg on drums to record Placebo’s debut album in 1996 and stayed with the group for the next 11 years.

Singer Brian Molko and bassist Stefan Olsdal claim they are in no rush to replace Hewitt.

Molko said: “Being in a band is very much like being in a marriage and in couples – in this case a triple. People can grow apart over the years.

“To say you don’t love your partner anymore is inaccurate considering all that you’ve been through and achieved together.

“There simply comes a point when you realise that you want different things from your relationship and that you can no longer live under the same roof, so to speak.”