Garbage To Perform Queer At Greek For 20th Anniversary

GARBAGE

GARBAGE play Humphrey’s Concerts By The Bay Oct. 6 and Greek Theatre Oct. 8 photo courtesy of Garbage

Garbage will kick off their 20 Years Queer Tour on Oct. 6 with a performance at Humphrey’s Concerts By the Bay, followed by a show at the Greek Theatre in Oct. 8.

The band, comprised of Shirley Manson (vocals), Steve Marker (guitar), Duke Erikson (bass) and Butch Vig (drums), will play their breakthrough, self-titled debut album, in its entirety for the first time during the tour.

The critically acclaimed album featured an odd mix of simultaneous drum parts, unusual sound effects, a considerable number of guitar overdubs and a heavy dose of sampled loops from artists such as The Clash and Clyde Stubblefield. Despite being the band’s first release, the album produced multiple hits such as “Only Happy When It Rains”, “Stupid Girl”, and “Queer” and “Vow.”

Although Garbage has completed five world tours across 35 different countries, the upcoming stretch of shows remain no less enticing than the veteran band’s first gig more than 20 years ago.

“We’ve never really gotten complacent,” Marker said. “It’s always exciting. Every show is different because of the audience.

“We always appreciate how lucky we are that people come and see us. I think it would suck if we felt like ‘oh god we have to play ‘Stupid Girl’ again.’ Even though we have played it over a thousand times, I’ve never felt like that once.”

In addition to preparing for their sixth world tour, Garbage is also in the process of putting the finishing touches on their untitled sixth album, which was recorded in various studios across LA. According to Marker, the band followed a similar recording process to their previous album, Not Your Kind of People.

“When we made our first few albums, we would go to Smart Studios in Madison, Wisconsin, which we owned at the time. We would go in there for a year and hardly ever come out except to go to the bar,” Marker joked. “For the new album, we would work for a week or two and then I would come back home. We’re not really on the kind of label that is paying unlimited money for us to be in a big major studio for six months at a time, so we have to adapt.”

The new album, expected to be released in the spring, will be the band’s second record after a lengthy hiatus that began at the end of their Bleed Like Me Tour in 2005.

“I think it has turned out to be a blessing. For me, it led me to realize just how important the band was to my life and how much I miss not doing it,” Marker admitted. “When we did come back to it a few years ago, playing shows was just a blast because everybody realized ‘this is a lot more fun than sitting at home.’

“That’s not to say that it hasn’t been difficult. Sometimes it’s too much and you just want to get away. But I don’t think we would still be doing it this long if it was just like a business relationship.”

While the band has no trouble garnering enthusiasm for the string of 27 shows that await them, the sight of a cheering crowd remains a bit intimidating, even for the seasoned members of Garbage.

“For me it’s still totally alien to go in front of that many people. You always get nervous. You have to be on your toes to make it work and it’s a bit scary,” Marker said. “But that’s exhilarating. We love the excitement of it and I guess that’s kind of why we keep doing this. It keeps you alive.”