Garbage Not Your Kind Of People Review
My Rating [rating=3]
Garbage are a band that challenges the notion of style vs substance. They were often derided for being an overproduced sleek amalgamation of more organic alternative music components (dream pop and trip-hop the core ingredients).
But for myself and many, it’s Garbage’s lack of authenticity that makes them so compelling. Purists cry foul, but I love the genre bending. I get bored with hermetically sealed music.
After 2005’s “Bleed Like Me” they’ve finally resurfaced. How does their new material compare to their back catalogue?
Well the good news is that they still sound like Garbage. The bad news could be that same reason. What once sounded fresh and novel is now a formula. But all is not lost.
The album kicks off with ‘Automatic Systematic Habit’ whose bleeping, warbled synths bring to mind MGMT’s massive hit “Kids”. It’s poppy and catchy, but very lightweight.
‘Big Bright World’ is better, starting with a krautrock beat before getting the slow build/big chorus that brings to mind their recent, excellent cover of U2’s ‘Who’s gonna Ride Your Wild Horses’.
Their first single ‘Blood For Poppies’ is funkier, bringing to mind elements of their greatly underrated album ‘Beautiful Garbage’ married to the skronky guitar of ‘Queer’ from their début album. Now we’re getting somewhere.
‘Control’ follows and it’s even better. With a bottom heavy rhythm complimented by eerie, echoed harmonica it sets an ominous, gloomy tone, complimenting Shirley Manson’s signature bouts of self loathing and self-effacing humor “I confess I’ve lost control, I let my guard down, I let the truth out’. “A final celebration, a bad hallucination, flip a coin and see which way I fall”.
Manson is criminally underrated as both a vocalist and lyricist. No one sounds like her, and she has the great gift of insecure vulnerability infused with gritty inner strength. This makes her empowering for women, while not being so overly defensive that she scares off the guys. She wears her heart on her sleeve and it resonates powerfully from her vocal cords.
The title track brings to mind the epic weepie ‘Cup Of Coffee’. Elements of 60’s psychedelic pop are used to great effect. Shirley Manson always sticks up for the underdog, and this anthem fits in nicely. Something tells me this is her reflection on the anti-gay marriage movement at the moment; “We are not your kind of people, won’t be cast as demons, creatures you despise, we are extraordinary people”.
‘I Hate Love’ could be a sequel to ‘Stupid Girl’ both in sound and lyrical content as Manson ruminates over romantic betrayal. I have a feeling this will get lodged in my head for some time. ‘Sugar’ follows and brings to mind ‘Milk’. Smooth, silky trip-hop it sounds straight out of 1996. I’m not complaining.
But ‘Not Your Kind Of People’ seems to kick into high gear towards the tail end of the album. ‘Battle in Me’ is a standout. Slick beats and crunchy guitars support Manson’s calling out of a man who done her wrong. ‘It’s a bloody war of attrition, let’s see which one of us is going to last the night”.
‘Man On a Wire’ is even better and I feel it’s the albums best. Recalling elements of their forbearer Blondie, this rocks harder than anything else on here, and her vocals punch through the speakers. It has a great glam strut, empowered by Manson’s lyrics of demons overcome: “Could you tell I was afraid? I sat myself down and shot my fear in the face”.
It seems Garbage always ends albums on a contemplative, epic note (‘You Look So Fine’ and ‘Happy Home’ being 2 of my faves from past releases), and this album is no different. ‘Beloved Freak’ is again another paean to the misunderstood and it’s meditative yet stirring.
All in all, this album falls into a similar vein as ‘Bleed Like Me’. It’s not as compelling as their 1st 3 albums, but there’s still plenty to love. If you’re a Garbage fan you’ll find enough to keep you happy, even if it doesn’t break new ground. In a environment of vapid, auto-tuned pop sung by entitled idiotic turds, Garbage fulfill an important role; smart-pop rock for smart folks. A rare thing indeed.
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