Garbage (1995)

Garbage is the debut studio album by American rock band Garbage, released on August 15, 1995 by Almo Sounds. It was recorded from April 1994 to May 1995, during which the album was overhauled multiple times. The band aimed "to create something that sounded fresh" by experimenting with different styles and genres, and lead singer and songwriter Shirley Manson wrote about darker themes in her lyrics.

The album was promoted with five singles: "Vow", "Only Happy When It Rains", "Queer", "Stupid Girl", and "Milk". All singles entered the UK singles chart—two reaching the top ten—while the first, second and fourth of these entered the US Billboard Hot 100. After the album was completed, Garbage embarked on a year-long tour from November 1995 to December 1996, playing on the European festival circuit and supporting acts like the Smashing Pumpkins.

Garbage earned critical acclaim upon release, receiving three Grammy nominations in 1997 and other accolades. The album peaked at number 20 on the US Billboard 200 and number six on the UK Albums Chart, and charted within the top 20. It garnered multi-platinum certifications in several territories. In the years following its release, Garbage is regarded for its unique production and blend of rock and electronic music.

Background

In 1983, Butch Vig and Steve Marker founded Smart Studios in Madison, Wisconsin, and Vig's production work brought him to the attention of Sub Pop. Vig's old band Spooner reunited in 1990 and released another record, but disbanded in 1993 as Vig's and Marker's careers as producers gained strength.

In 1994, as Vig became "kind of burned out on doing really long records", he got together with Duke Erikson and Marker, and they started producing remixes for acts such as U2, Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails and House of Pain, featuring different instrumentation and often highlighting new guitar hooks and bass grooves. The experience inspired the three men to form a band, in which they "wanted to take that remix sensibility and somehow translate it into all of the possibilities of a band setup." An early comment that their work sounded "like garbage" inspired the band's name.

Shirley Manson had been performing with the Edinburgh-based rock band Goodbye Mr Mackenzie since 1984. In 1993, several of the members, including Manson, formed the side project Angelfish. Their only studio album, Angelfish, was as commercially unsuccessful as preceding albums by Goodbye Mr Mackenzie, selling only 10,000 copies.

Initial sessions with Vig on vocals and the members' past work with all-male groups led to the band's desire for a woman on lead. Marker was watching 120 Minutes when he saw the one-time airing of the music video for Angelfish's "Suffocate Me". He showed the video to Erikson and Vig while their manager, Shannon O'Shea, tracked Manson down. When Manson was contacted, she didn't know who Vig was and was urged to check the credits on Nirvana's album Nevermind, which Vig had produced. On April 8, 1994, Manson met Erikson, Marker and Vig for the first time in London. Later that evening Vig was informed of Kurt Cobain's suicide. Garbage was put on hold as Angelfish was touring North America in support of Live. Erikson, Marker and Vig attended the Metro Chicago date, and Manson was invited to Madison to audition for the band. The audition did not go well, but Manson socialized with the men while there and they found they had a similar taste in music. Angelfish disbanded at the end of the Live tour. Manson called O'Shea and asked to audition again, feeling that "it would work out".

Recording

In her return to Smart Studios, Manson began to work on skeletal versions of the songs "Queer", "Vow" and "Stupid Girl". While looking for a record deal for the album, Garbage sent out demo tapes with no bio, to avoid a bidding war over Vig's production history. Garbage signed with Mushroom Records UK worldwide and to Jerry Moss's label Almo Sounds for North America. Manson's contribution was licensed to both Mushroom and Almo by her label Radioactive Records.