26. May 2016 By Walter Price 0

Music Biz Tales: Shirley Manson

…We’re not letting you waste your career like that…”

Strange Little Birds
Out June 2016

Sure, the bitch fest of the last 10 years (and certainly before) has been about the big label machine and how perhaps they don’t particularly care for artistic freedom and favor the bottom financial line is well established. Couple that with the underlying panic of how stale business models and the internet have scrambled even the most ‘brilliant’ of music professional’s minds and we have ourselves the ever presence cluster-duck that has infiltrated countless music geek’s conversations and filled endless pages of options.

Garbage have been well established as eclectic alt rock pioneers for their wide ranging sounds showcased in tracks and albums utilizing a ‘no boundaries’ approach. Blurring genre lines and preconceived notions of what should be done and how the fertile and eager minds of the 90’s would hear music.

After blasting onto the music scene and tantalizing critics’ unprepared minds in 1995 with their self-titled multi-platinum alt-rock- masterpiece; things seemed all good for these ground breakers. But subsequent albums maybe didn’t do as well commercially as everyone had wished and things kind of got to the point frontwoman Shirley Manson wanted to branch out and perhaps do a solo record.

Of course this is the abridged version of events but it is where this music biz story finds its footing. September of last year Manson spoke to Nerdist podcaster Chris Hardwick about (as the show blurb says), “… the rise of Garbage’s popularity, what makes Scots so unique, and breaking rules at sushi restaurants. She also talks about what it’s like going from indie band to mainstream band, dealing with success, and Garbage’s upcoming tour and new album!.” And we will focus in on the segment were Manson speaks about trouble making an inexpensive solo album, the rise of internet stars and how the music business is ‘about’ making money.