SOUNDTRACK: GARBAGE-Garbage (1995).
When the debut Garbage album came out I was totally hooked. I was initially skeptical of the album–the sneaky release of “Vow” with no hype (but hype), the Butch Vig connection. But I heard it and wow. Then the rest of the album did not disappoint. I listened to this album so much it’s hard for me to even be objective about it. For a time this was my favorite album. My biggest celebrity bummer was when I found out that they were appearing at a Newbury Comics and I went to the wrong one. By the time I got across town to the real location, the line was huge and the clerk cut off the line about four people in front of me. Ugh.
I’m not sure what it was about this album–it’s slick, it’s technically overproduced (three producers who spent countless months tinkering with it) but it doesn’t really sound overproduced. It’s an interesting pastiche of pop, grunge, electronic and goth. It’s a dark album for sure, but it has pop tones all over it. It’s also musically interesting, like the way the disc opens. The opening riff of “Supervixen” is a few notes and then just stops and then resumes. It’s weird and off-putting for the opening of an album and it immediately grabs you.
Then you get the sultry goth-lite of “Queer.” Overtly sexual, dark and sneaky it’s a perfectly naughty radio friendly alt rock song. This was released during a time when women were ruling alt-rock, so it wasn’t singular in any way, but it certainly led the way for more women fronted gothy bands. And so did “Only Happy When it Rains” –the surprise mope rock hit.
“As Heaven is Wide” is a really dark song, understandably not a hit, but really sexy and groovy. “Not My Idea” brings in some of the first non minor key chords–where Manson sings in her sweeter voice until the raucous chorus. “Vow” seems like such an unlikey first single–the stuttering guitar the nonsinging vocals, it really doesn’t showcase Shirley’s voice all that well. But as a middle of the album song it’s nice and hard hitting. “Stupid Girl” was also pretty huge–it’s got some wonderfully raw sounds to keep it from being too treacly (well and the lyrics do too, of course).
“Dog New Tricks” has a lot going on musically underneath Manson’s voice that I still find it really compelling–like the staggered guitars that don’t seem to fit, but do. “My Lover’s Box” (which I always assumed was called “Send Me An Angel”) is another slow sultry number although the guitar riff is way too reminiscent of Aldo Nova’s one hit (“Fantasy). “Fix Me Now” is one final loud, oddly upbeat song, followed by the wonderful gothy closer “Milk” which emphasizes keyboards in a way that the rest of the album doesn’t.
It’s a great debut, an album that I still regard very highly even if I don’t listen to it all that often anymore.
[READ: February 3, 2013] Where’d You Go, Bernadette
Sarah brought this book home and said I would like it. And I was able to read a few pages when she ran into a store and it was very funny so I couldn’t wait to read the whole thing (despite the rather stupid cover). Maria Semple was a writer for Arrested Development among other shows and recently turned her pen to novels (this is her second book).
One of the delights of this book was having literally no idea where it was going. Meaning that by the end of Part Two (there are six parts), I really had no idea where it would end. By the time it ends it all makes sense, but it wasn’t telegraphed, which is pretty cool. This book also ties nicely to Mr Penumbra’s 24 Hour Bookstore. In Penumbra, much of the action took place at and around Google. In Bernadette, much of the action takes place in and around Microsoft. Based on these two fictionalizations, it sounds like Google is a more enjoyable place to work as Google gave you free food made to your specifications whereas in Microsoft all they had was free candy machines (and lots of layoffs and jealousy that they can’t use an iPhone).
The story is narrated by Bee, and eighth grader who scores all S’s on her private school report card (S is the highest you can get, since they don’t believe in grades). The note accompanying the report card raves about Bee’s intelligence, generosity and helpfulness around the school). That night at the dinner table, Bee tells her parents what she wants for getting such a great report card (she had always wanted a pony, but has changed her mind): She wants to go to Antarctica on a cruise with the family.
This presents a problem for Bee’s mother Bernadette because she pretty much never leaves the house. Well, she does, but only to drive Bee to school. She has recently started outsourcing her life to a woman in India (for 75 cents an hour). The woman does literally everything for her, including making reservations at a restaurant 1/2 a mile from Bernadette’s house. But Bernadette wasn’t always like this. Indeed, she was once a future star in the architecture field until the tragic event that changed everything for her.
That change inspired a move with her husband, Elgie, to Seattle (a city which she now loathes–in great detail) where he found a job at Microsoft. He thrived there and soon was put in charge of the Samantha 2 project–a program that allows you to interact with all your devices using only your mind (his TED talk is the fourth most viewed ever!). (more…)
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SOUNDTRACK: FOREIGN EXCHANGE-Tiny Desk Concert #370 (July 5, 2014).
It’s amusing how “religious” lead singer Phonte Coleman comes across in this set given how profane his language is. He begins the set by telling us what a “church clap” is: a church clap is when you clap for someone when they sing in church but they suck. It’s a slow clap that says keep trying, baby.
I Just Read About That... 