Glossy ’90s alt-rock luminaries Garbage have been busy in recent years celebrating the 20th anniversary of their self-titled debut album, but it appears the nostalgia act is over. Today, Shirley Manson and crew have released a driving new song, “Empty”, and it’s the first taste of the band’s sixth studio LP, Strange Little Birds. The new record, the follow-up to 2012’s Not Your Kind Of People, is due June 10 on the band’s own label, STUNVOLUME.
“‘Empty’ is just exactly what it says it is,” Manson says in a presser. “A song about emptiness”.
While we are not one to disagree with Ms. Manson, we will note that the sound of “Empty” is anything but — the lush, swirling track has a nice throwback Garbage glow — even gets a bit shoegaze-y — and has us reminiscing about those first few albums. It’s a pretty stellar effort, and bodes well for the new LP.
Listen to “Empty” below, scan Garbage’s confirmed live dates, read our October 2015 interview with Butch Vig and look through our photo gallery from when the band played the Orpheum last fall.
GARBAGE LIVE DATES
May 24 – La Cartonnerie – Reims, France
May 26 – Rock im Revier Festival – Dortmund, Germany
May 27 – Women Of The World Festival – Frankfurt, Germany
May 28 – Rockavaria Festival – Munich, Germany
May 30 – The Paradiso – Amsterdam, Holland
May 31 – Den Atelier – Luxembourg, Luxembourg
June 1 – Caribana Festival – Nyon, Switzerland
June 3 – Le Radiant – Lyon, France
June 4 – Montereau Confluence Festival – Montereau, France
June 5 – La Belle Electrique – Grenoble, France
June 7 – Center Urbane Kulture Kino Siska – Ljubljana, Slovenia
June 8 – Fabrique – Milan, Italy
June 10 – Nova Rock Festival – Nickelsdorf, Austria
June 13 – Troxy – London, UK
June 14 – Rock City – Nottingham, UK
June 16 – Mad Cool Festival – Madrid, Spain
June 18 – 101WKQX PIQNIQ – Chicago, Illinois
July 6 – Summerfest – Milwaukee, WI
August 8 – Lokerse Festival – Lokeren, Belgium
August 10 – A Summer’s Tale – Luhmühlen, Germany
August 12 – Fête du Bruit, Landerneau, France
August 14 – Kubana Festival, Riga, Latvia