Not Your Kind Of People GDB Review

I’ve been lucky enough to hear the new Garbage album in full ahead of it’s release and this is my track by track review of Not Your Kind Of People.

Automatic Systematic Habit
A great opening track which is a really strong introduction to get the album going. The band haven’t quite nailed this track live as the album version is far, far stronger than the live recordings which are floating around the web at the moment.

Big Bright World
After a slow intro BBW evolves into a really upbeat tempo track, I can see this joining the live set list in a few months as a replacement/alternative to something like When I Grow Up.

Blood For Poppies
This is the biggest grower on the whole album for me. If I’m totally honest when I first heard this track a couple of months back I was pretty disappointed. It took me about 10 listens before I really enjoyed it, I just wasn’t feeling it but now I love it. The sing-along chorus will be a festival favourite in Europe over the summer.

Control
The first track from this album which I feel has got instant appeal on the very first listen.

The first time I heard it I liked it from the very start. A great track and potential single. The Chorus is great with Shirley singing “I feel I’ve lost control, I let my guard down…”

Not Your Kind Of People
This track is really slow, it’s almost like a dreamy state (if that makes sense). This was a surprise to me, after all this is the title track and in my head I had this really up tempo song in my head, prior to hearing the samples. I can’t see this being a single. The track ends with Shirley singing “we are extraordinary people”, that they are.

Felt
I need to listen to this track some more it didn’t jump out at me much at all, maybe a few more listens will help.

I Hate Love
Some fans I know don’t like the repetitive backing track on this I’m in the love it camp. A great all round track and future single for sure.

Sugar
Another slow one on the new album. Like Felt I could do with a few more listens of this track as well.

Battle In Me
Another track that didn’t blow me away when I first heard it but like Blood For Poppies I like it a lot now.

Man On A Wire
Every-time I’ve heard this track from the live recordings it has reminded me of the debut b-side Trip My Wire and not just because of the word Wire being included. I think it’s the tempo of the track itself, should be awesome live.

Beloved Freak
A slow, dreamy track to finish the album.

Overall…
I won’t lie this album isn’t as good as the first two but will mature to be a fine recording. I feel that older fans will be very pleased by what they hear, it is far closer to Bleed Like Me than 2001’s beautifulgarbage and therefore closer to the roots that many of us fell in love with right back in the 90’s.

The potential singles I feel are; Automatic Systematic Habit, Control, I Hate Love and Man On A Wire, I’ve most likely jinxed this and now none of them will be.

I’ve seen a lot of reviews that have rated this album low or average scores which I think is a little harsh but having heard it I understand why they may have given these scores if they only listened the once. If Not Your Kind Of People doesn’t hit you straight away then give it another couple of listens, you will thank me for it because this album is defiantly a grower and one you will come back to in years to come, a fine revival from Garbage.

4 G’s out of 5

Not Your Kind Of People is released via STUNVOLUME on the following dates around the World;

• Australia & New Zealand on May 11, 2012
• Worldwide on May 14, 2012
• North America on May 15, 2012, the deluxe edition will be released 1 week later
• Japan on May 16, 2012