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Garbage will release their highly anticipated new album "Let All That We Imagine Be The Light", their eighth studio record, on 30th May."Let All That We Imagine Be The Light" was recorded at Red Razor Sounds in Los Angeles, Butch Vig’s studio Grunge Is Dead, and Shirley Manson’s bedroom. The record was produced by the band and longtime engineer Billy Bush.
"Let All That We Imagine Be The Light" is the follow-up to 2021’s critically acclaimed "No Gods No Masters", which charted at Number 5 on the UK album charts and led to some of the best reviews of Garbage’s career.
Speaking about Garbage’s new album, Shirley Manson says: “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”.
"Let All That We Imagine Be The Light" is unmistakably Garbage. All the hallmarks and signatures for which they are known are present here. Big angular guitars, precise, propulsive beats and cinematic soundscapes all lurk beneath Shirley Manson’s unmistakable voice, her lyrics bristling with attitude. This is the sound of a group at the peak of their creative powers - characteristically harnessing sonic juxtapositions and moods to create an album that thrums equally with both light and shade.
Butch Vig says; “We used a lot of analogue synths and sound design on the album, as they seemed to fit the dystopian vibes we were all experiencing. We started recording the album with a clean slate, although given what’s happening in the US and the rest of the world, it’s inevitable that the madness starts to infiltrate the songs. But we definitely wanted the record to have some hope, some light, to convey the feeling that people have the power”.
“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 over-riding 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.” Shirley Manson
Speaking about the album’s opening track "There’s No Future In Optimism", Shirley says: “I really wanted that song to open the album. It starts out with an anthemic call to arms, a clarion call. It’s pretty much a rallying cry to all likeminded people. If you are interested in meeting this world with love, if you are willing to invest in tenderness and not violence or hate, then we are with you. You should come with us.
I have to believe that music and art can still impact culture. I know it still impacts me - that mysterious power which no government on earth can co-opt or buy. Great music exists entirely within its own microcosm in a way - without any interference or corruptive influences. That’s what always makes it so pure and precious. Even though all the pointers in our society say otherwise, I do feel music still has the power to shift atoms, shift thinking and shift positions.”
Discussing the record’s final track, "The Day That I Met God", Shirley adds: “This is the opus on the record and explores the grand theme of great love, something I haven’t written about very much before now. 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 consists of all four original band members, Shirley Manson, Duke Erikson, Steve Marker and Butch Vig. Over the 30 years since their inception in 1995 they have sold over 20 million albums. Their unique sound, songwriting and electric live performances have inspired worldwide adoration, chart success and critical acclaim. They are considered one of the most influential bands of their generation.
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