Duke Erikson, Shirley Manson, Steve Marker, Butch Vig are Garbage. Steve and Butch started Smart Studios "in the mid 70s", Duke came to work there. When these three producers needed a singer, they found Shirley. The rest is history/chemistry/our blind luck!!! From Left to Right: Duke, Steve, Shirley and Butch. Each an essential part of the chemistry.
The key is emotional intensity. The words, music and delivery convey emotional intensity. Usually dark, but always strongly evocative.
The richness of the music is amazing! On the Absolute Garbage DVD it says they have some songs that have 120 tracks!!! The mixture of smoothness, chaos, new, old, slow, fast, fruity, yet dry! The early core has a very synthesized feel, especially Vow - not some GEEKy hollow sound, either. Lots of songs have a classic rock sound; Special is an example. The mix of dissonance and perfection is fun - it reminds me of the Beatles You Can't Do That. The new Tell Me Where it Hurts with a big band sound + classic sixties. I'd love to hear a good music critic go over some of the songs and point out counter points and key shifts and stuff like that. I'm sure they would have a field day.
Every song on every CD is a great song! This means you can listen to each CD over, and over, and over again and never get motivated to eject it. I listened to Version 2.0 in may car for my 50 minute commute for about a year!
It's coming up to the 14th of February. Being that we have a new song called "I Hate Love" and having been blown away with the artistic efforts made by you all for the Garbage Cover Contest we decided we would like to see your love-hating artistic creations - paintings, drawings, photos inspired by this event. However, unlike the Garbage Cover Contest which was not run by Garbage, this is an official request by us. (February 2012)
| Garbage (aka G) | 1995.08.15 | |
| Version 2.0 | 1998.05.12 | Start with this one. If you buy this and don't like it, I owe you a beer or equivalent beverage. |
| Beautiful Garbage | 2001.10.02 | Released less that a month after 9/11, bringing some semblance of Reality back to reality. |
| Bleed Like Me | 2005.04.11 |
I have a CD titled Maximum Garbage with some history. Put out by Chrome Dreams in 2001 - not authorized by Garbage. Interesting.
I will love you till the day that I die I will love you till the day that I die |
Classic beginning. Falsetto vocals, twanging guitar, cerebral, then BANG, the driving relentless guitar! |
You walked into the room The sun hit my eyes The force you struck me down caught me by surprise You sprung the mojo and it worked like a charm I felt invincible with you in my arms |
Typical of the clarity of love, the strength of love. When Shirley is singing, there is no doubt it is real, and real strong. The chorus tries to get started, but peters out. Who knew! |
I must confess it can feel good to feel pain Like breaking waves or getting caught in the rain Playing those games cause we had nothing to do I was oblivious I was losing to you |
Typical of the dark moods evoked by their music. |
I will love you till the day that I die I will love you till the day that I die |
Relentless chorus! |
Holy Jesus Holy rock'n'roll The more I gave to you the more you grew bored And making love became the waging of war No peace No tenderness No fun anymore |
Holy Jesus; Holy Rock'n'Roll - This sticks in my head. Delivered masterfully.
Ethereal transition into chorus. |
I will love you till the day that I die I will love you till the day that I die I will love you till the day that I die I will love you till the day that I die |
Garbage songs often portray a clearly strong, even overpowering emotional commitment to a relationship. That is one of the things that attracts me. |
I dreamt that I called out your name You turned your face to me and started to say Something so beautiful it hurt deep inside So I will love you till the day that I die |
These words are masterful, especially 'something so beautiful it hurt deep inside'. I'm not even sure I grok that, but it hurts deep inside. |
Farewell Farewell I'm sure gonna leave you (I will love you till the day that I die) Farewell Farewell I'm sure gonna leave you (I will love you till the day that I die) Farewell Farewell (I will love you till the day that I die) I'm sure gonna leave you |
This is the dark, the ambiguity, the strong emotional bond, the flawed, sometime obsessive love that Garbage dishes out so well. Yes, it is hopeless, but, I will love you till the day I die. |
respectfully submitted, on this day: 2007.09.03
Yesterday, I replied to a tweet about Champagne & making xmas dinner with a suggestion for a Garbage xmas album featuring "I'm only happy when it snows" and voila: