Bleed Like Me

Garbage - Bleed Like Me
First things first, five years ago I was in love. I was obsessed. With Garbage. Then, in 2001 the arrival of beautifulgarbage, and perhaps also my departure from school and discovery of other bands that I came to like very much, lessened the love. I hated the pop sound of bg and felt that the band had sold out. Nevertheless I eagerly awaited the arrival of the bands 4 th album, and this morning left the house as soon as I was awake to find an outlet selling it. I walked home with it in my hot little hands, admiring the slick red and grey album art and feeling intrigued by song titles such as ‘Right Between The Eyes' and ‘It's All Over But The Crying'. I can't say that my relationship with Garbage is back on however, maybe the sex just isn't as good anymore, or should I say that the spark has gone? Bad Boyfriend Some other reviews have cited this track as being evidence that the band rock out once again on this album, but I don't really see it. This isn't the dark indie musings of the self titled album era, it's radio friendly pop rock. The heavy drums in the verses don't really suit Shirley's voice, but it all fits together better once we get to the chorus and the beat begins to speed up, the hooks are flying and your foot will be tapping. Towards the end her voice seems to sound even better, and overall it's a strong opening track. Run Baby Run The opening few seconds sound like a trance track, and the verses sound more like an outright pop track than in ‘Bad Boyfriend'; but we are still in the land of real instruments. This song's chorus is wonderful, with subtle hints of melancholy shining through the gloss; far and away my favourite song on the album. Right Between The Eyes The first four songs on the album have a pretty similar sound, but this is the weakest of the bunch. Despite trying to be an angry song the general feel of the song is very upbeat, and the lyrics are for the most part uninspired and cliché – “Don't care what they have to say / Why you listening to them anyway? / Why do you have to give them what they want? / They love to watch as you fall apart”. Why Do You Love Me As this is the first single of the album some of us have been listening to it over the internet for the past few weeks (and maybe even months). On the first few listens I found the chorus annoyingly repetitive, but when you listen to the song as a whole (rather than a 30 second internet clip) it fits. This is a stand out track and the lyrics are far more similar in vein to the previous albums that to many of the other songs on this album. A sing-a-long, dance-around-the-room track. Bleed Like Me This title track has been cited in rumours as being a choice for the next single. The pace slows down here, but not too drastically. Overall Shirley handles the subjects of self harm and anorexia well, avoiding the glamorisation of the subject some bands seem to enjoy. The use of instruments here is good, but maybe a little too heavy at times, drowning Shirley's voice out a little. Metal Heart When reading the booklet this song has very good lyrics, with a depth of feeling not always present in the band's later work, but when you hear the song only the naff lines seem to stand out of the clash of instruments that makes up the musical element of the song – lines like ‘they say the world is round'. This song is slightly annoying, reminds me of the elements that made ‘beautifulgarbage' so disappointing and feels like a filler track. Sex Is Not The Enemy Another song that has been cited as a possible single, and it's easy to see why – another slice of pop rock it is bland and inoffensive, and includes both the words ‘sex' and ‘revolution' in it's chorus. It's All Over But The Crying A slow pace appears for the second time on this track, and the sadness in the lyrics feels genuine and believable. It's still not ‘Medication' however, or even the more touching slow songs on ‘beautifulgarbage' like ‘Nobody Loves You'. Still, it's as catchy as a slow song can be and has more emotion than a lot of songs here. Boys Wanna Fight Oh no. I really dislike this track. The guitar work is good, but it's bland and so blatantly conspired to be catchy. The verses remind me of the worst ‘beautifulgarbage' tracks like ‘Untouchable' and ‘Androgyny' until the guitars make a comeback. Why Don't You Come Over By the time you reach this point on the CD you'll know that the album is in decline. This song wants to be angry, it wants to be the new ‘Vow', albeit with a stronger beat and a more polished sound.; but the emotions sound forced, it's too poppy and I have to use the word bland once again … Happy Home At last, some real emotion again! This song obviously stems from the break up of Shirley's marriage, and the lyrics are well written. My only criticisms of this track are the chorus – where the heavy drums distract from the deep feelings of the rest of the song, and Shirley's wordless singing over it feels pointless – and that even this isn't a proper slow song, which is a tremendous disappointment considering the raw emotions behind every other final song on the band's albums. Overall, I give this album a 4 out of 10. Some fans will no doubt be very angry with me over this, but it just isn't magical and special in the way the first two albums are; and although the fast tracks are stronger than those on ‘beautifulgarbage' the lack of a proper dramatic and weepy song renders it more similar in quality to the last album than the first two masterpieces.
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Garbage - Bleed Like Me

First things first, five years ago I was in love. I was obsessed. With Garbage. Then, in 2001 the arrival of beautifulgarbage, and perhaps also my departure from school and discovery of other bands that I came to like very much, lessened the love. I hated the pop sound of bg and felt that the band had sold out. Nevertheless I eagerly awaited the arrival of the bands 4 th album, and this morning left the house as soon as I was awake to find an outlet selling it. I walked home with it in my hot little hands, admiring the slick red and grey album art and feeling intrigued by song titles such as ‘Right Between The Eyes' and ‘It's All Over But The Crying'. I can't say that my relationship with Garbage is back on however, maybe the sex just isn't as good anymore, or should I say that the spark has gone?

Bad Boyfriend Some other reviews have cited this track as being evidence that the band rock out once again on this album, but I don't really see it. This isn't the dark indie musings of the self titled album era, it's radio friendly pop rock. The heavy drums in the verses don't really suit Shirley's voice, but it all fits together better once we get to the chorus and the beat begins to speed up, the hooks are flying and your foot will be tapping. Towards the end her voice seems to sound even better, and overall it's a strong opening track.

Run Baby Run The opening few seconds sound like a trance track, and the verses sound more like an outright pop track than in ‘Bad Boyfriend'; but we are still in the land of real instruments. This song's chorus is wonderful, with subtle hints of melancholy shining through the gloss; far and away my favourite song on the album.

Right Between The Eyes The first four songs on the album have a pretty similar sound, but this is the weakest of the bunch. Despite trying to be an angry song the general feel of the song is very upbeat, and the lyrics are for the most part uninspired and cliché – “Don't care what they have to say / Why you listening to them anyway? / Why do you have to give them what they want? / They love to watch as you fall apart”.

Why Do You Love Me As this is the first single of the album some of us have been listening to it over the internet for the past few weeks (and maybe even months). On the first few listens I found the chorus annoyingly repetitive, but when you listen to the song as a whole (rather than a 30 second internet clip) it fits. This is a stand out track and the lyrics are far more similar in vein to the previous albums that to many of the other songs on this album. A sing-a-long, dance-around-the-room track.

Bleed Like Me This title track has been cited in rumours as being a choice for the next single. The pace slows down here, but not too drastically. Overall Shirley handles the subjects of self harm and anorexia well, avoiding the glamorisation of the subject some bands seem to enjoy. The use of instruments here is good, but maybe a little too heavy at times, drowning Shirley's voice out a little.

Metal Heart When reading the booklet this song has very good lyrics, with a depth of feeling not always present in the band's later work, but when you hear the song only the naff lines seem to stand out of the clash of instruments that makes up the musical element of the song – lines like ‘they say the world is round'. This song is slightly annoying, reminds me of the elements that made ‘beautifulgarbage' so disappointing and feels like a filler track.

Sex Is Not The Enemy Another song that has been cited as a possible single, and it's easy to see why – another slice of pop rock it is bland and inoffensive, and includes both the words ‘sex' and ‘revolution' in it's chorus.

It's All Over But The Crying A slow pace appears for the second time on this track, and the sadness in the lyrics feels genuine and believable. It's still not ‘Medication' however, or even the more touching slow songs on ‘beautifulgarbage' like ‘Nobody Loves You'. Still, it's as catchy as a slow song can be and has more emotion than a lot of songs here.

Boys Wanna Fight Oh no. I really dislike this track. The guitar work is good, but it's bland and so blatantly conspired to be catchy. The verses remind me of the worst ‘beautifulgarbage' tracks like ‘Untouchable' and ‘Androgyny' until the guitars make a comeback.

Why Don't You Come Over By the time you reach this point on the CD you'll know that the album is in decline. This song wants to be angry, it wants to be the new ‘Vow', albeit with a stronger beat and a more polished sound.; but the emotions sound forced, it's too poppy and I have to use the word bland once again …

Happy Home At last, some real emotion again! This song obviously stems from the break up of Shirley's marriage, and the lyrics are well written. My only criticisms of this track are the chorus – where the heavy drums distract from the deep feelings of the rest of the song, and Shirley's wordless singing over it feels pointless – and that even this isn't a proper slow song, which is a tremendous disappointment considering the raw emotions behind every other final song on the band's albums.

Overall, I give this album a 4 out of 10. Some fans will no doubt be very angry with me over this, but it just isn't magical and special in the way the first two albums are; and although the fast tracks are stronger than those on ‘beautifulgarbage' the lack of a proper dramatic and weepy song renders it more similar in quality to the last album than the first two masterpieces.

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