Garbage

17th July 2019

The Alhambra, Dunfermline

A triumphal return to Caledonia for Oor Shurlie and her backing band!, despite (?or in consequence of) making the perhaps slightly odd choice of the Dunfermline Alhambra as the sole Scottish stop on the group's current world tour.  

Not quite my drug of choice Garbage, but I felt that if a name band is prepared to come all the way from LA to perform on my doorstep it would be churlish, if not downright rude, not to go along.

Additionally, The Alhambra has attracted a fair number of big(gish) names recently (Frank Turner's only date North of the Border on his upcoming Autumn 2019 tour is in Dunfermline), so if we locals wished bands to continue to pitch up, we really needed to be doing our bit.


Unfamiliar with much, (indeed pretty much all) of their output, I went along with my slightly arrogant “Go Ahead and Impress Me” face on.  And whilst I found the evening moderately diverting, I certainly did not come away with a burning desire to perform any further Garbage digging.

The two tunes I knew well (Stupid Girl and Only Happy When it Rains) rocked along in fine style, predictably delighting the faithful.  But much of the rest washed over me as well-written, meticulously-performed formulaic grungy pop.

But there were a number of pleasant surprises therein, though.  During No Horses, ironically (or perhaps intentionally) Shirley sounded at times not unlike Patti Smith - back when Patti could still still sing, that is.  And where the band, Manson, I assume, had taken a little time with melody, those songs shone through the aural fug.  I am thinking of the likes of Bleed Like Me and, the evening's high-spot, Special.

The set closer, however, Even Though Our Love is Doomed was a bit of a dirge and seemed an odd one with which to close the main set.  Although the encore was suitably bouncy to send most folks out into the Dunfermline rain more than a little happy.

Shirley Manson

A pensive Eric Avery.

Butch Vig

Garbage - Dunfermline - July 2019

Set list
(This was the set list from the previous gig on the tour, in Leeds.  I don't know enough about the band's stuff to know if there were any deviations from this list)

Control
#1 Crush
Stupid Girl
Temptation Waits
Wicked Ways
No Horses
Dumb
Special
Blood for Poppies
On Fire
Empty
Vow
Bleed Like Me
I Think I'm Paranoid
Push It
Only Happy When It Rains
Even Though Our Love is Doomed

Encore
When I Grow Up

Support act Du Blonde regretfully toiled against sound gremlins for much of their set,
so it was rather difficult to work out if they were any good.