Garbage Push It At Wembley Arena

Garbage last played Wembley Arena 25 years ago. At the time, they were at the peak of their commercial success, riding high on the string of hits from their second album (Version 2.0): I Think I’m Paranoid, Special, When I Grow Up, Push It, and more. Successive releases were never quite as big and Shirley Manson “never in her wildest dreams” thought they’d ever return to the London venue.

So the singer’s understandably absolutely thrilled to be back; if it’s not obvious from her behaviour (broad, spontaneous grins; clutching her forehead time after time; facial expressions of wide-eyed amazement), she also tells the audience repeatedly and sincerely. “I really have to compose myself,” she admits at one point. “This is fucking bananas,” she shouts at another.

Garbage @ Wembley Arena

Garbage @ Wembley Arena (Abigail Shii)
Garbage @ Wembley Arena (Abigail Shii)

In fact, Manson is incredibly chatty (and endearingly sweary) throughout. She graciously thanks the fans over and over again. “We’ve been through a lot together. We have not made it easy on you. We have been a very, very complicated band to love and we are immensely grateful to you for giving us the space and the benefit of the doubt, and allowing us to stumble, and allowing us to fail,” she acknowledges early on.

She talks about the band’s dark days following the critical response to 2004’s Bleed Like Me and their subsequent decision to fight back (“Get behind us, Satan! We are not done!”). She shares messages of inclusion. “I don’t care what the people in power tell us, we’re all the same and we all function the same. And don’t listen to anyone telling you otherwise,” she preaches. “We’re all weird and it’s fucking awesome,” she announces later.

She reveals that guitarist Duke Erikson pinches her knees when she’s feeling down.

And she bigs up the support acts.

Lucia & The Best Boys “have brought so much incredible energy and love and passion and excitement”, Manson says of Garbage‘s touring partners. “And it’s just so lovely to watch them; they’re wonderful. Lucia’s a queen, she’s like a baby me and, as a result, we’re truly invested in them.” In turn, she declares that if Jehnny Beth “had emerged in the ’90s she’d have been a fucking superstar”.

Both deserve the praise.

Fronted by Lucia Fairfull, the group from Glasgow play A-grade indie where synths and guitars meet. Standouts? The vivacious Picking Petals, with its hypnotic drumming, climactic guitar solo, and emphatic vocal; the slowly soaring Angels Cry Too with the singer’s voice growing alongside the music until she’s holding notes with absolute precision; and the quieter, but more dramatic, set closer Perfectly Untrue, characterised by Fairfull’s ability to shift from high notes to warm croon to full blown Siouxsie Sioux.

Jehnny Beth is a slightly darker proposition. Joined by just two musicians (who mostly spend their time playing keys or manipulating synths) as well as strobe lights and plenty of smoke, the musician-actress-author has no trouble filling the stage with her sheer presence, dramatic gestures and body language, and uncompromising voice. When coupled with her music (epic soundscapes punctuated by big beats and deep bass drones), Beth is impossible to ignore. Tracks like the fragile Flower, distortion-heavy and briefly dreamy I’m The Man (“I’m not different/ We’re all the same”), and retro-futurist torch song Heroine all impress.

But, to be fair, as impressive as the opening acts are, neither come close to matching Garbage tonight. Apart from being a brilliant, generous, enthusiastic performer (constantly engaging the audience or frequently holding out her microphone to encourage singing along), Manson sings as hard as drummer Butch Vig hits. New touring bass player and backing singer Ginger Pooley (once of Smashing Pumpkins) may stay in the background, but her presence is certainly felt, while Erikson and Steve Marker switch fluidly between keys and guitars, frequently stepping out to play a surprisingly aggressive riff. The band certainly haven’t sounded this good in the past 10 years, helped a little by the setlist they’ve compiled.

Songs from their first two albums dominate. I Think I’m Paranoid has lost none of its vitality; Push It hammers as Manson and Marker bounce in unison with the audience; majestic Milk and The Trick Is To Keep Breathing release the pressure; Stupid Girl gets an updated slinky synth groove; Vow sounds even more jagged and menacing than before; Special explodes out of its acoustic opening half; the uplifting chorus of When I Grow Up was seemingly written to soundtrack a night like this; and jubilant show closer Only Happy When It Rains is only improved by an inspired piano ballad intro.

Their third LP, Beautiful Garbage, gets a look in with the fizzy Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go), while the difficult fourth (Bleed Like Me) receives a surprise (but very welcome) showcasing on its 20th anniversary. The title track is all drama with added live punch; Run Baby Run is impeccable indie guitar rock with a chorus intended to be bellowed en masse (it is); the energetic Why Do You Love Me boasts one of the best riffs in the Garbage catalogue. But it’s the industrial buzz of Metal Heart (introduced as “an anti-war song. It’s against all violence against all people in all situations.”) that shines brightest.

But it’s even better to experience songs from 2021’s No Gods No Masters, which the band are now bringing to audiences outside the Americas for the first time. A furious, sadly prescient album that explicitly deals with issues like racism, misogyny, sexism, and capitalist greed, its tracks add a new dimension to Garbage‘s live set. Godhead absolutely rages; The Men Who Rule The World, with its refrain of “money, money, money”, amplifies its message through quiet verses and aggressive choruses; the frantic The Creeps is a full-blown panic attack; a bounding Wolves, inspired by Manson’s nephew, spreads a message of kindness over cruelty; and the synthy title track sounds absolutely effortless, before a dramatic cover of Siouxsie And The BansheesCities Of Dust brings back a shade of darkness.

Yet, regardless of the song, the audience are as enthusiastic as Manson. Wembley Arena probably hasn’t been this loud since Yungblud packed it out with his screaming teen fans. The wild response throws Manson, who reveals Garbage had always been confused by the muted reception they’d get in London. “To be here tonight is so peculiar and so amazing and so weird and wonderful,” she declares in a fitting end to their tour.

Live review of Garbage at Wembley Arena, London on 20th July 2024 by Nils van der Linden. Photos by Abigail Shii.

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