Music

Garbage

Absolute Garbage (Deluxe Edition)

By Linda Leseman 

Thirteen years ago, Garbage created a rock-electronica hybrid and proclaimed, "I can't use what I can't abuse" — the opening lyric of "Vow," the first song on this two-disc singles compilation. As always, the songs are rife with residual, mid-'90s, post-Nirvana nihilism and glossed with a Phil Spector-like wall of sound. Shirley Manson, ever the goth Debbie Harry, delivers her dark, cheeky vocals over "Stupid Girl," "Only Happy When It Rains" and "Push It," among other radio hits and scattered lesser-known picks. Disc Two of this special edition offers remixes by top electronic artists: Massive Attack adds a haunting, ethereal string section to "Milk," while Rabbit in the Moon heightens the sensuality of "Queer" with a thumping house mix. Fun Lovin' Criminals revamp "You Look So Fine" into a bluesy ballad. Garbage's style has remained consistent over the years, but these songs lend themselves to reinvention as though they were always intended to pound the walls of clubs and raves. That the original versions sound as modern as the remixes only proves just how innovative this band has been from the beginning.