Latest news with #Garbage
News.com.au
a day ago
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Garbage singer Shirley Manson warns ‘expensive' Australia may miss out on more big tours
Shirley Manson confirms there are 'plans afoot' for '90s industrial pop pioneers Garbage to return to Australia later this year for their first tour in almost a decade. The rebel siren who has stalked the country's biggest stages over the past three decades says the delay in returning down under to play to one their biggest fanbases in the world, isn't for a lack of desire. It's a numbers' game. Manson reveals the band, which features famous producers and hitmakers Butch Vig, Duke Erikson and Steve Market, are offered the same fees to play in 2025 as they were paid in the late '90s. As Garbage get ready to head out on a massive US tour in support of their eighth studio album Let All That We Imagine Be The Light, the alt-rock goddess says the explosion in costs from flights and accommodation to staging and freight is putting younger rock bands out of business. 'There are plans afoot to come this year but it's getting increasingly difficult for bands to come to Australia,' she says. 'It's very expensive for us, flights, hotels, wages, everything, and the fees for a band like us, not always but sometimes, remain the same as what we were being paid in the '90s. 'I don't think people fully understand how difficult it is for bands to survive and that is why we are seeing less and less bands because the expense of touring for a band just becomes impossible to sustain. 'We have managed to survive an industry that's brutal by being really canny with the money; none of us live wildly, I drive a f---ing 10-year-old Prius.' Manson has been to hell and back over the past couple of years. She underwent hip replacement surgery to fix the damage wrought by a stage fall she suffered in 2016. Last year her other hip broke and she went through the same operation and recovery process all over again. Dealing with her human frailty, and the sociopolitical flux of her beloved America, where the Scottish singer has lived for decades, tested her spirit. Like all songwriters, when the brain fog of pain and medication lifted Manson set up a small recording studio in her bedroom and channelled her feelings into lyrics for the new record's songs. 'It's the first time I've sort of recorded my part of the bargain independently of the band; it's my era of independence!' she says with pride. 'I was recovering from two major surgeries over the course of two years so I was bed bound and my whole life got sort of turned upside down and all my habits got just disrupted, which was actually in the end, really great both for me and the band. 'It just changed the dynamic completely, which after 30 years is a real gift because of course if you're familiar with one another and familiar with your patterns of working, things can get very predictable.' 'Being in pain and having to learn to walk again was no picnic but I'm grateful for the upheaval in the end because it changed my thinking and it turned out there was a lot of silver linings to this misery.' The 58-year-old sounds different on the songs. Maybe it was the painkillers, perhaps it was the pain but her already expansive, emotive voice has found bolder new colours. Like on Sisyphus, where she channels her recovery – 'This little body of mine is going to make things right' into a soaring electronic club track that is ripe for a cover version from her labelmate Kylie Minogue. The pair were both mentored by the late great Australian music mogul Michael Gudinski. 'Oh my darling Kylie, she would kill that track actually,' Manson says. 'I have such a massive love for her. 'I really try to explore different parts of my voice, with every record that we make. And I really tried to push myself to not stick to what I know so if you hear any new colour in my voice after 30 years, that's the greatest compliment you could possibly pay me.' Manson has a lot of love for the new generation of female pop artists who share her passion for using their art and platform to speak out against injustice. The singer has never shied from using her songs and her social media to protest, and has been buoyed by other women raising their voices from Lady Gaga to Chappell Roan. 'We are screaming about the same bullshit as we did in the '90s. I'm very excited, however, by the new generations of young artists. They really fill me with a lot of joy,' she says. 'Whether they know it or not, they're coming from our school. 'And we've had a dearth of provocative and alternative voices for about 20 years with the advent of uber pop artists who are just ginormous and take up so much space and were well-behaved and sort of conservative. 'I'm not knocking pop, I love pop, so I love seeing these enormous pop stars now who are getting involved in trying to improve our communities and are being courageous, way more courageous than my generation.' Let All That We Imagine Be The Light is out now.
Scotsman
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Shirley Manson interview: Rock icon on Garbage and her ‘wild years' in Edinburgh band
Shirley Manson, Garbage's iconic frontwoman, speaks to the Evening News about her incredible career and the alt-rock veterans' eighth album, Let All That We Imagine Be The Light. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... The band were formed in 1994, when Edinburgh-born Shirley met American bandmates Butch Vig, Duke Erikson and Steve Marker. They would go on to become one of the biggest musical acts of the '90s, selling over 15 million albums worldwide. Their best known songs include Stupid Girl, Only Happy When It Rains and the theme to the 1999 James Bond film, The World Is Not Enough. Before finding world stardom with Garbage, Stockbridge-raised Shirley sang with Edinburgh indie stalwarts Goodbye Mr Mackenzie. So how much of a debt, if any, does Shirley owe to her former band? Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad I have a huge debt to Goodbye Mr Mackenzie. Without them I wouldn't have been prepared for the insane rise of Garbage that I enjoyed. I have a lot of love in my heart for them, and it's wonderful to see them get the kind of praise they deserve. I follow them on Instagram and to see them getting rave reviews, five out of five stars, and entering the Scottish charts is really gratifying. They are insanely talented, and yeah, I'm really proud of them. It's glorious. They are lovely, special people. And they are great artists. You've said in the past it was a wild and decadent time that gave you a 'spectacular education in the world of rock and roll'. It was fantastic. EVERY. SINGLE. DEBAUCHED. GLORIOUS. MOMENT. It was a wild, wild ride. And I have zero regret. We were disobedient, untameable... and hey, that's what you're supposed to do when you're young, right? It was a riot. It was the first time I'd ever been outside of Scotland when Goodbye Mr Macknzie played on the continent and it was glorious. To see the world for the first time while in a rock and roll band - it doesn't get better than that! You famously took a call from Garbage and jumped on a plane to America to audition for the band. What would have happened if you hadn't taken that flight? Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The great tragedy of Goodbye Mr Mackenzie is that we were severely mismanaged. It caused a lot of financial duress, and basically destroyed the band. And we had stopped functioning as Goodbye Mr Mackenzie by the time I got the phone call from the Garbage boys. I still think it's terrible... what I call the Swiss cheese effect... when certain things go wrong and you're involved with the wrong kind of people at the wrong time and the wrong place. And that basically hampered Goodbye Mr Mackenzie's momentum. We had run into the rocks basically. And I got this phone call... I don't know where I'd be if I hadn't. I probably would have had to go and get a job. I had no money, I was on the dole. I had no qualifications. And I didn't really know what I would do, so I got the call, and I jumped really cos I didn't have any other option. And I had no idea what I was jumping into. I literally just jumped into the void and it all paid off for me in the end. But I had no idea at the time that it would. I was like, 'ok, this is something to do. I'm gonna do it and I'll get to go to America'. And that's what happened. Did it surprise you how big Garbage became - and how many records you guys sold? Even if you'd talked to me after the success of the first three records, I would not have thought that we'd be enjoying a 30-year career. That's still astounding to me. Even today I'm still reeling from the fact I get to put new records out on a major label and be speaking to journalists like yourself.... that's still kinda wild to me. It just seems like the kinda thing that happens to others, so I don't take it for granted. And I certainly did not see it coming when I jumped on that after making the first record... I was proud of the record we'd made, but I didn't think it had any legs, at all. I was really caught off guard. And then when we released the second one, and we sold as many copies as the first album, that shocked me. So yeah, it's just bizarre. How much do you think the music industry has changed for female artists since your trailblazing early days with Garbage? Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad I think social media has encouraged the new generation of young women to speak out. I see that in the pop world. All these young women who are pop stars are now massively outspoken about things that they believe in - whether it's Olivia Rodrigo or Lady Gaga or Billie Eilish. They all have causes that they will speak out on - and in a forthright manner. They are way more switched on than my generation was. I was an anomaly really amongst female artists - and I'm not saying I'm the only one cos there were a lot of women in the 90s who were outspoken and talking about taboos. But as outspoken as our generation was, and as outspoken as my peers were, it's nothing compared to how women are now. And I'm so excited by it - it's thrilling to me. What are your proudest moments as an artist? Opening the Scottish Parliament. Absolutely. You have no idea what it feels like to be called up by your management and asked if you want to play at the opening of the first Scottish Parliament in 234 years - or however long it was. It was momentous. It was such a glorious evening and to sing in this spectacular setting underneath our ancient castle... it's etched in my memory and is something I am immensely grateful to have been a part of. How much has Edinburgh changed since you were a teenager? And have the changes been for better or worse? Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It's changed. Of course it has. You would want it to change. Nothing stays the same. The city has its own evolution, just like a human being does. Sometimes you lose some beautiful things, and sometimes you gain a lot by change. So I do see that. I personally enjoy a lot of the changes I've seen in Edinburgh - and also I'm a little heartbroken at the death of that amazing moment in time when Edinburgh just had a burgeoning club scene. My favourite was the Hoochie Coochie club. All these kinda places where all the outsiders - the freaks and the geeks - would meet... that seems to have been eroded across the whole globe. There are different clubs that now exist, but I feel like the global communities are much more homogenised than they were when we were young. And I miss that. I miss everybody dressing differently and expressing themselves through their style in wilder, more provocative ways. I miss all the punks and rockabillies and the rockers, etc etc. They used to congregate outside Bruce's Records and places like that. And those record stores disappeared for a while. But old school record stores are coming back, and I think that's wonderful. It's exciting. The new album, Let All That We Imagine Be The Light, features a more optimistic tone compared to Garbage's previous work - would that be fair to say? Going into making this record, I was determined to find a more hopeful, uplifting world to immerse myself in. The title of the album, Let All That We Imagine Be The Light is the perfect descriptor for this new record as a whole. When things feel dark it feels imperative to seek out forces that are light, positive and beautiful in the world. It almost feels like a matter of life and death. A strategy for survival. Our last album was extremely forthright. Born out of frustration and outrage – it had a kind of scorched earth, pissed off quality to it. With this new record however, I felt a compulsion to reach for a different kind of energy. A more constructive one. I had this vision of us coming up out of the underground with searchlights as we moved towards the future. Searching for life, searching for love, searching for all the good things in the world that seem so thin on the ground right now. That was the overriding idea during the making of this record for me - that when things feel dark, its best to try to seek out that which is light, that which feels loving and good. When I was young, I tended towards the destruction of things. Now that I'm older I believe it's vitally important to build and to create things instead. I still entertain very old romantic ideals about community, society and the world. I don't want to walk through the world creating havoc, damaging the land and people. I want to do good. I want to do no harm. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad You've said in other interviews that you were 'completely cut off' from Garbage during the writing process for this new album, following hip surgery you underwent in 2023. Tell us about that. I was in Los Angeles recovering from surgery and I had a lot of brain fog going on because I was on a lot of pain medication. And I was literally learning how to walk again. So I didn't have the fortitude to go into the studio with the band. I just didn't have it in me. So for the first time in 30 years, we were forced into a different way of working. Retrospectively it was actually a gift to be able to disrupt all these old habits of ours. It was actually amazing. It was magical. I wouldn't want to do it again, but I think it really worked for us at that moment. One of the standout tracks on the album is the final track, The Day That I Met God. Tell us about that - did you meet the big man? The idea came to me when I was recovering from major surgery and I felt so raw, vulnerable and scared. I was on the treadmill for the first time following an operation when I suddenly felt this powerful sensation of healing love around me - it was a moment that uplifted me. It took me out from what had felt like hell. The vocal you hear is the writing demo, the first take. Just me sitting on the edge of my bed, in recovery, singing into a handheld microphone. I was feeling so vulnerable and I think that's what lends the song added poignancy. It's really a song about mortality but it's also an expression of gratitude. Gratitude for getting older, gratitude for the longevity of our band, for good health, for the great mystery and for the ongoing, creative adventure of life'. Garbage's new album, Let All That We Imagine Be The Light, is out now.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
SEVENTEEN Achieves Seventh No. 1 on Top Album Sales Chart With ‘HAPPY BURSTDAY'
SEVENTEEN achieves its seventh No. 1 on Billboard's Top Album Sales chart as the group's latest release, SEVENTEEN 5th Album 'HAPPY BURSTDAY' debuts atop the list dated June 14. The set sold 46,000 copies in the United States in the week ending June 5, according to Luminate. SEVENTEEN scored its first No. 1 on Top Album Sales in 2021. In turn, with seven No. 1s in the 2020s, the act ties TOMORROW X TOGETHER for the most No. 1s among groups, and the second-most among all acts in the 2020s. Only Taylor Swift, with nine No. 1s on Top Album Sales in the 2020s, has more this decade. More from Billboard Woman Arrested for Attempted Break-In at BTS Jung Kook's Residence on the Day of His Military Discharge Carín León Is Ready to Prove He's The 'Missing Link' Between Regional Mexican and Country Music The Grammys Add New Country Category for 2026 Also in the top 10, the region gets shaken up by albums from Miley Cyrus, Taylor Swift, Kendrick Lamar, Sufjan Stevens, Garbage and Aesop Rock. Billboard's Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart's history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album (TEA) units and streaming equivalent album (SEA) units. Miley Cyrus' Something Beautiful debuts at No. 2 on Top Album Sales with 27,000 copies sold, marking her 15th top 10 (inclusive of titles credited to her Disney Channel character Hannah Montana). Morgan Wallen's I'm the Problem falls to No. 3 (16,000; down 45%) after two weeks atop the list. Two Swift albums return to the top 10 after an outpouring of fan support following the news that Swift had acquired her Big Machine Records-era music catalog. Her 2017 album reputation reenters at No. 4 (15,000; up 1,183%) and her self-titled 2006 self-titled debut reenters at No. 6 (8,000; up 955%). Kendrick Lamar's chart-topping To Pimp a Butterfly reenters at No. 5 on Top Album Sales (11,000; up 639%) after a 10th anniversary reissue on multiple vinyl variants, as well as a cassette tape. Another 10th anniversary reissue, this time from Sufjan Stevens, also impacts the chart, as his Carrie & Lowell reenters at No. 7 (8,000; up 2,656%). (For both Lamar and Stevens, all versions of their respective albums, old and new, are combined for tracking and charting purposes.) Garbage's Let All That We Imagine Be the Light debuts at No. 8 with just over 7,000 sold, securing the band its fourth top 10-charting set. Lamar's former No. 1 GNX falls 5-9 (a little more than 7,000; down 15%) and Aesop Rock nabs his first top 10-charting effort with his new release Black Hole Superette debuting at No. 10 (7,000). Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Four Decades of 'Madonna': A Look Back at the Queen of Pop's Debut Album on the Charts Chart Rewind: In 1990, Madonna Was in 'Vogue' Atop the Hot 100
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Music reviews: Miley Cyrus, Garbage, and Keith Jarrett
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. ★★★ Something Beautiful is "another Miley Cyrus grab bag," veering from dream-pop balladry to clubby R&B to goth rock and more, said Mark Richardson in The Wall Street Journal. "That sounds like a criticism, but it's really not." With guest appearances that include Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes and Nick Zinner of Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Cyrus' ninth album "goes places you would never expect." And despite a second half dominated by electronic dance tracks that waste Cyrus' vocal talents, her "willingness to confound" is welcome when so many other pop acts are content to be predictable. The "very grand claims" Cyrus has made about Something Beautiful ask us to consider it as a grand statement, said Alexis Petridis in The Guardian. She has called it an attempt to medicate a sick culture and has spun off a film billed as a pop opera that's actually "just a load of pop videos." The music itself, however, is "all very well written and well made," including that club-ready second half. Though a couple of tracks will chart, what this Miley venture lacks is "the kind of obvious smash-hit single by which her albums stand or fall commercially." ★★★ Garbage is "alt-rock royalty," and the band's eighth album reaffirms as much, said Neil Z. Yeung in AllMusic. "Confident and driven," it's "a potent rallying cry" for the fight against impending darkness, whether that's mortality or the erosion of American democracy. The songs were created when singer Shirley Manson, 58, was recovering from a second hip-replacement surgery, adding lyrics to her bandmates' instrumental tracks. The result is an album fueled by the quartet's "signature" blend of "jagged guitar riffs, elastic bass, precision drumming, and electronic-kissed atmospherics," all held together by "Manson's inimitable vocals." Since reuniting in 2010, this band born in the 1990s has issued "one rock-solid album after the next," said Andrew Sacher in Brooklyn Vegan. This one's "certainly fresh enough" to be mistaken for the work of the younger artists Manson has inspired, including Chappell Roan and Olivia Rodrigo. While the record mines Garbage's "darker industrial side," Manson has made a point of moving on from 2021's No Gods No Masters by lacing her lyrics with more hope. "We could all use a little more of that energy right now." ★★★★ Is a fourth album harvested from a single 2016 European concert tour "too much of a good thing?" asked Mike Gates in UK Vibe. "Not when it's Keith Jarrett." New Vienna arrives as the celebrated pianist, who ceased performing after suffering strokes in 2018, turns 80 and observes the 50th anniversary of his landmark Köln Concert album. The performance recorded in an 1870 Vienna concert hall finds him "in spirited mood, shaping new music in the moment," music that's meaningfully different from what he played at other stops on the tour. This is Jarrett "in his perfect element: simply improvising the moment he takes the bench," said Michael Toland in The Big Takeover. Stringing together nine short pieces, he "hits onevery aspect of his multifaceted playing," opening with a blitz of staggering notes, then paying tribute to Viennese composers Arnold Schoenberg and Alban Berg with the "lush chords" of Part II. Part VIII's "bluesy runs and finger-snapping rhythm" take us "from the concert hall to the bawdy house." He closes with "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," showing an inspiring ability to "draw new feeling out of familiar notes."
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Entertainment world reacts to Greta Thunberg interception in Gaza-bound aid boat
Early on Monday morning, Israeli forces intercepted and seized a boat called the Madleen, which was heading to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid in what activists said was a protest against Israel's ongoing military campaign in the Gaza Strip. A group of activists, including Greta Thunberg, will be returned to their home countries after the Gaza-bound boat they were travelling on was seized, Israeli authorities said. Israel's Foreign Ministry dismissed the voyage as a public relations stunt, saying in a post on X that "the 'selfie yacht' of the 'celebrities' is safely making its way to the shores of Israel." Thunberg shared news of the campaign in a video update on 2 June that saw her wear a Fontaines D.C. charity jersey and raise awareness for the 'Freedom Flotilla' trip, with the boat departing from Italy. The group has claimed that authorities had 'forcibly intercepted' the boat and acted with 'total impunity.' Huwaida Arraf, a Freedom Flotilla organiser, shared: 'Israel has no legal authority to detain international volunteers aboard the Madleen. These volunteers are not subject to Israeli jurisdiction and cannot be criminalised for delivering aid or challenging an illegal blockade - their detention is arbitrary, unlawful, and must end immediately.' Thunberg accused Israel of "kidnapping" her and reached out for global support. In a statement, she said: 'I urge all my friends, family, and comrades to put pressure on the Swedish government to release me and the others as soon as possible'. The entertainment world has responded to the interception of the boat. Legendary rock band Garbage reshared a post that called for 'the release of all involved immediately,' and before posting an update with the caption: 'All eyes on the @gazafreedomflotilla . Let aid in. What is happening to the Palestinians is monstrous. How many more dead children do we have to see before the world acts?!?' Singer-songwriter Cat Power shared an update on Instagram pushing for the release of Thunberg and the activists. 'We demand the immediate release of all 12 hostages taken by Israel in violation of international law,' the singer shared in the caption, before listing out the names of those who were onboard the Madleen. 'THE WORLD MUST ACT NOW. THIS IS A CRISIS.' Norwegian singer Aurora shared an update that claimed the Israeli government offered Thunberg the option to 'attack, arrest, or turn back', while Irish rap group Kneecap shared an earlier update that said: 'Solidarity with Liam Cunningham (Game Of Thrones actor) and all on the 'freedom flotilla' to Gaza'. British singer-songwriter Nadine Shah also shared a video made by an activist on the Madleen, which said: 'This is not the world you want to leave behind to your children. When you look into the faces of your children, know there are children in Gaza, the same age, and they have the same rights. They have the right to live in dignity, they have the right to live free. They have the right to just live. Do everything in your power, keep your eyes on us and remember why we are here. You need to do the real work, and that is to stop your government from sending weapons to Israel to commit these war crimes and atrocities.' Bambie Thug, last year's Eurovision entry for Ireland, also reposted an update that read: 'We demand that Madleen is allowed to land safely and peacefully in Gaza with all activists unharmed', while author Matt Haig shared the following regarding Greta Thunberg and the criticism aimed at the young activist: 'Like her. Don't like her. But she is the opposite of 'performative'. She is literally heading into a genocide with a target on her back.' After an almost three-month blockade aimed at pressuring Hamas, Israel started allowing some basic aid into Gaza last month. Humanitarian workers and experts say it is not enough and have warned of famine unless the blockade is lifted and Israel ends its military offensive. An attempt last month by Freedom Flotilla to reach Gaza by sea failed after another of the group's vessels was attacked by two drones while sailing in international waters off Malta, organisers said. The group blamed Israel for the attack, which damaged the front section of the ship.
