do you know the feeling of not hearing something for a long time, and upon hearing that song or album again, a flood of emotions takes over ? you may have not heard the song in years, and yet you find yourself remembering every lyric, every turn of the bass, every pause the band makes. you may actually have forgotten the song even existed, and there’s no feeling like rediscovering that song again.
Imagine that feeling, and then magnify that by a thousand. that’s what it’s like to see those songs played live.
I saw Garbage earlier. I’ve forgotten how much the band used to mean to me. I was stupid enough to almost pass on the show. I made it a point to not listen to their albums, because i wanted to greet them like most old, good friends greet each other after a while: with a bit of surprise, because everyone’s gotten so much older, but ultimately with a feeling of coming home. it was weird seeing Shirley Manson for the first time after six years. she was, and still is, one of my favorite frontpeople of all time. the pale white skin, the huge eyes, the tiny dress, the defiant stance, the shock of red hair, and of course— the Scottish brogue.
“tis a rare blessing tae have wot we have roit now. tae not have bain together in seix years, and still be greeted with on umayzing audyens,” she says, the joy of performing again apparent in her eyes. “wots greit aboot this is that we get tae reviset the garbage back catalogue. and oi still clairly remembar recording this song one solemn noit, wroiting it with me boys. we hovent done this song since the Garbage 2.0 tour, thertein years agoo. we’re happy tae do it noow.”
and then she sings this song, a song i was totally in love with, completely forgot existed, and fell in love with again just earlier tonight. the trick is to keep breathing.
