One day producers Butch Vig, Steve Marker and Duke Erikson were in a studio remixing a track for Nine Inch Nails when a visiting friend commented that what they were recording sounded like “garbage”.
The trashy sound they were producing became the basis for their new project and was christened after their friend’s remark.
Scottish vocalist Shirley Manson was recruited, and she cut a powerful figure as the frontwoman with her shock of red hair and enormous attitude.
Rewriting most of the lyrics for the songs on the album, Manson articulated her battle against depression and set the tone of the band’s self-titled 1995 debut album.
Alternating between scathing, vicious, vengeful, wicked, longing and vulnerable, she could sing and convey practically any mood with great aplomb.
And she was supported by some tremendous songwriting and musicianship – lush, warm loops, tinkering, thick layers of samples and keyboards, all cut with razorsharp guitar.
Tracks such as Milk and A Stroke Of Luck were darker than the deepest pits of Hell, and Vow has to be one of the greatest ever debut singles.
“I am sweet, but fuck with me and I’ll mop the floor with you.” Shirley Manson. 1996
Shirley Manson Vocals, guitar
Steve Marker
Guitar
Duke Erikson
Guitar, keyboards, bass
Bryan ‘Butch’ Vig
Drums
Video
You May Also Like
Cardigans, The On record, The Cardigans followed in the exalted Swedish rock & roll tradition of fellow countrymen…
Pendragon Under their own steam Pendragon released half a dozen albums between 1985 (The Jewel) and 2001…
Bachelors From Prague Melbourne-based Bachelors From Prague formed in 1985 and played an infectious blend of 1940s jazz, 1950s…
Sinead O'Connor Sinead O'Connor grew up in a turbulent household marred by divorce and abuse. By the time…
Darling Buds, The Although they generated reams of coverage in the late-80s weekly music press, Newport's Darling Buds never…
Gang of Four Forged in the crucible of late 70s student politics, marked by a determination to think beyond…
Throwing Muses Boston’s Throwing Muses introduced a feminine sensibility that made a mockery of banal notions of 'Women…
Boo Radleys, The Five years after forming as shoegaze wannabes in 1988, The Boo Radleys issued their third album, Giant…
Scottish vocalist Shirley Manson was recruited, and she cut a powerful figure as the frontwoman with her shock of red hair and enormous attitude.
