The year was 1995 and I was eight years old. I still remember sitting in the back of my mom’s Plymouth Laser when Garbage‘s debut single “Vow” floated across the airwaves of Boston’s long gone, legendary rock station 104.1 WBCN. The world went silent as I zeroed in on a sound I had never heard come through those speakers before. Provocative and dark, “Vow” was the ultimate first act for Garbage. The song stormed alternative rock music with a juxtaposition of cynicism and pop, heavily influenced by what was happening in 90’s hip hop and electronic music culture. In the debut track, lead singer Shirley Manson sings “I came to cut you up, I came to knock you down, I came around to tear your little world apart,” and that is exactly what Garbage did to pop music.
Garbage is currently on a national tour celebrating their 20th Anniversary in the biz. Aptly titled 20 Years Queer, the tour features the band playing the track listing and all of the B-Sides from their debut self-titled album, which had originally sold over 4 million copies worldwide and was certified double platinum in the U.S., the U.K., and Australia. Talk about a life-lister. We couldn’t pass this up. Check out our photos of their performance from their stop in Boston this past Wednesday, October 21st.
