Welcome
back to the CD Odyssey! Up next an album that’s been in the collection for a
very long time.
Disc 1374 is…. Self-titled
Artist:
Garbage
Year of Release: 1995
What’s up with the
Cover?
I’m going to say this is a close up of a pink boa. Or possibly a skin sample
from a dead muppet. Both items that would catch your attention if you found
them in the garbage. Of course, what were you doing rooting around in the
garbage in the first place? Perhaps investigating the mysterious disappearance
of Abby Cadabby…
How I Came To Know
It: I
think this was Sheila’s album originally. I might have bought it for her as a
gift back when a CD was a pretty common gift (it still is for me, but I’m
weird). Anyway, I don’t remember exactly how this came into our collection, but
it was back when CDs were king. Nowadays, you could find a copy of this album
in a bargain bin at almost any record store practically begging you to take it
home for a dollar.
How It Stacks Up: We have two Garbage
albums. We used to have three, but I didn’t think much of their sophomore
effort (“Version 2.0”) and parted with it long ago. Of the two we still have I
like them both for different reasons, but I guess I’ll put their self-titled
debut in first place by a hair.
Ratings: 2 stars but almost 3
Back in the mid-nineties, before Youtube and streaming services, you listened
to two or three singles off an album, and then you bought it and hoped for the
best. This didn’t make albums back then any better or worse on average than
they are today, but it did mean you didn’t know in advance.
Based on sales alone, Garbage’s eponymous debut was a wild success, going
multi-platinum and spawning five radio singles. At the time I thought it was a
solid rock record, and like everyone else I took joy in its crunchy guitars and
Shirley Manson’s sultry vocals. 25 years later my ardor has faded.
The things that make the record good haven’t gone anywhere. The guitars
still crunch, and Manson’s vocals still whisper with sexy promise. However, this
time around the record sounded artificial and a bit flat emotionally. This is
the result of some questionable production decisions that felt novel and
exciting back then, but that haven’t aged well. There are too many layers to the
sound, and when it isn’t being layered it is being squelched on and off
aggressively, to create an overt and artificial syncopation. All of this drenches
the songs in the musical equivalent of getting too much dressing on your Caesar
salad.
There are still some great moments. “Stupid Girl” was a hit back
in the day and it is still a lot of fun. Yes, there are weird production
moments, including some kind of electronic scraping sound that sounds like a
robot drinking oil through a straw. However tune is strong enough to carry the
day, and even the layering here is used to good effect; stripped away to let
Manson’s vocals do their thing, and then thickening up with a groove that makes
for a rock song that is also suitable for dancing.
“Queer” also held up well, and even had a picked guitar hook that
stands out against the clash of chords that dominate the record. By contrast, “Only
Happy When It Rains” has not recovered from radio overplay, and now sounds dated
and…dare I say it…corporate?
There are also songs like “Milk” which are supposed to sound mysterious
and moody but instead feel soporific. The kind of thing you put on in the back
of a lounge where stockbrokers order martinis at the end of the day and talk
about work. Yech.
Albums from the mid-nineties can easily run to excess, as every artist suddenly
realized that they had 80 minutes of run time, and often not realizing they
shouldn’t use it all. At 12 songs and 50 minutes, “Garbage” is surprisingly
restrained for its time. This, combined with some high points and a bit of
nostalgia for my twenties, together saves this one from the ignominy of the
bargain bin. For now.
Best tracks: Supervixen,
Queer, A Stroke of Luck, Stupid Girl
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