When asked to describe the dueling guitar swells inherent in Garbage’s music, Steve Marker replies: “There isn’t any one answer to that question. It’s just trial and error.”
Marker’s bandmate Duke Erikson agrees. “We often try to avoid focusing on guitar as the main tool,” he explains. “Sometimes we play the guitar with a synthesizer at the same time, just to give it extra dimension.”
“We’ve been doing it for decades,” Marker adds. “It’s ephemeral – almost like magic when it happens. Duke is more of a musician and I’m more of a graffiti artist. It’s a good combination; and one without the other wouldn’t be as strong.”
Garbage released their self-titled debut album 30 years ago, featuring hits including Stupid Girl and I’m Only Happy When it Rains, both of which illustrate the point Marker and Erikson are making.
That same hazy guitar work is displayed on their eighth studio record, 2025’s Let All That We Imagine Be the Light. “We’ve never been interested in flashy solos,” Erikson says.
Marker notes: “It’s always about textures; it’s got to make the song work rather than just be a clever part. If there’s a brilliant part we’ll gladly erase it and go with something that serves the song. We have a sixth sense about that.”
Looking back on the success of that first album in 1995, he says: “We couldn’t have predicted that. We didn’t even plan on playing live – we didn’t think we could make those sounds work on a stage. We’ve kind of figured out how to do that, but it's been one step at a time. You can’t really plan.”
Where did you take inspiration for Let All That We Imagine Be the Light?
Erikson: “We all had a similar viewpoint on making this record a bit bolder. For instance, I played the Squier Fender VI for a bit more bottom end; to make it feel more weighty. And because Shirley Manson was laid up for so long with her hip problem, Butch Vig, Steve, and I spent a lot of time in the studio throwing ideas around.”
Marker: “I’ve been doing a lot of classical stuff which has nothing to do with Garbage, and I’ve been learning to read music. We don’t just listen to bands like us; it comes from all over the place.”
Garbage’s sound is dense and lush, and not always guitar-centric. Is it tough to find individual space?
Erikson: “I don’t really think that way. It’s all about the song – what you’re trying to do melodically and sonically. I think in those terms now. In the past, guitars were the focus, and synthesizers provided the atmospherics. For this record, it’s the other way around. I think we found new uses for the guitar.”
Marker: “We’ve all got strong opinions about where a song should go. You can really feel it in the room when it’s working, and it’s starting to sound like us. I don’t even want to define it too much. It’s just something that happens.”
You’ve been making music together for 30 years. What’s the secret sauce between your individual styles?
Erikson: “Maybe I tend to be more melodic, and Steve’s more of the angular guy. But that’s not totally true; I did a lot of stuff on this record that’s angular. We’ve played together for so long that we’ve influenced each other’s approach. Sometimes it’s just who gets to the guitar faster!”
Marker: “Duke tends to understand what the notes are, and what harmony is going to work. He can play piano really beautifully – I can’t! I can barely read music. I tend to be more into textures and trying out pedal combinations to come up with something I haven’t heard yet.”
What’s the story behind the first single, There’s No Future in Optimism?
Marker: “A lot of the songs started as jams. We sat in this little room and just played to see what we’d come up with. That song was probably a 20-minute jam, and everybody took the rough tracks home. It’s a big mess but I thought, ‘Wow, this could be really cool.’
“Some of the textural guitars that are on the final version were done at my house, not even thinking about it. There’s some sort of a Telecaster clean; just one note, droning through the whole song. I did that while I was tuning up, and it sounded kind of cool, so I left it.
“I had knocked together a demo and said, ‘Hey, what do you think of this?’ The others liked it a lot. We sent it to Shirley, and she came up with some wonderful lyrics. That main heavy riff, to me, sounds like Garbage; that came about from Duke and me going back and forth on it.”
The Day I Met God is another standout. How did that come together?
Erikson: “That started out a lot bigger – a lot more big chords, and it was more bombastic. Then we started stripping it back to the simple synthesizer sequences.
“As we were working on it, Shirley came up with lyrics and melody almost immediately, which kept things moving nicely. There was a flow; we didn’t overanalyze anything. We’d already stripped it back quite a bit before we sent it to Shirley.”
We’re pretty aware of the mark that the first and second records made, but if you’re going to start worrying about that, then you’re stuck
Duke Erikson
Marker: “It was very abstract; very long and atmospheric. Luckily, Shirley had just had surgery, and she was under the influence of certain things! She heard the demo and apparently came up with the words all in one straight shot. She did it in one take, and we kept it because there’s a certain atmosphere to it. It’s one of my favorite things we’ve ever done because it’s so different.”
It’s been 30 years since Garbage released its self-titled debut album, which still sounds fresh today.
Erikson: “Can we not talk about how long it’s been?! I can believe it, and I can’t. It’s crazy. And God bless us, we just made another one.”
Marker: “I still think it sounds pretty good. We recently reissued it on vinyl and remastered it, I think, from the original analog tapes. It’s got a quality that I don’t think we’ve ever been able to get back.”
Do I’m Only Happy When It Rains and Stupid Girl still hold up for you guitar-wise?
Marker: “They really do. With Stupid Girl it’s really about the bassline. The groove of that song is what makes it work, and the guitar bits that are more atmospheric. I think, for the time, we were fairly modern-sounding.
“Only Happy was a lot heavier on the guitars, but it was still a pop song. It does have a solo, and a lot of that is backward guitar. We had to figure out how to play it backward and flipped the two-inch tape reels over. I struggle playing that every night – it’s really hard to get right!”
Do you feel overshadowed by the expectations that record generated?
Erikson: “No, it never comes up. I don’t think any of us thinks about that. We’re pretty aware of the mark that the first and second records made, but if you’re going to start worrying about that, then you’re stuck. We constantly think in terms of moving forward. Whether we do or not is another question!”
Marker: “I think people would be happier if we tried to duplicate that. But I don’t think it’s possible, and I don’t think we’d want to because – it’d be really boring. Parts of our career have been when we veered off the path and didn’t give in to the early days.
“When the record company sees you’ve had success, they want you to duplicate it. But we never felt like that was what we were in it for, so we never tried. It wouldn’t be possible anyway.”
Is that because you’re both very different players now than in 1995?
Erikson: “I can’t comment on my level of playing! Working in this band, I’ve learned a lot about possibilities and thinking outside the box. I think more in terms of approach rather than playing ability.”
I’ve been playing around with a more new pedals. It’s fun to revisit that now that I’m older
Steve Marker
Marker: “In the early days I’d play whatever was lying around in the studio. We’ve never had one specific thing; it’s not like I have this one Marshall stack that I always use. I’ve been playing around with a more new pedals. It’s fun to revisit that now that I’m older.”
What do your rigs look like now?
Erikson: “I play a Guild Starfire; I love that guitar, and Fender Teles. And I fell in love with the Squier Bass VI. I play it all the time to offer up something at a different space in the sound. It’s a bit awkward to play those live – well, I’ve never really tried!”
Marker: “The Helix stuff works great. You can pretty much get any sound you’re looking for, and it’s consistent. It always works and it’s always good. I’ve got a couple of Fender baritone guitars for the sound that’s almost like a detuned metal guitar.
“I’m always looking for new stuff – I don’t think I have a set rig other than the live stuff, which is those baritone guitars through the Helix stuff, and a Gretsch Brian Setzer signature 6120. It’s black, not orange, and it’s one of the best guitars I’ve ever had. That’s my main guitar these days.”
- Let All That We Imagine Be the Light is released on May 30 and it’s available for pre-order now. See Garbage on tour during the summer and fall.
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