Release Date: 15 February, 1994
Audio CD
Tracks
- Dogs in a Cage
- Suffocate Me
- You Can Love Her
- King of the World
- Sleep With Me
- Heartbreak to Hate
- Sun Won't Shine - Angelfish
- Mummy Can't Drive
- Tomorrow Forever
- End
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Rating 4.5
Shirley Manson: Before GarbageIn 1993, before she was literally handpicked by the guys in Garbage to become their lead singer, Scottish lass Shirley Manson recorded one self-titled album with the band Angelfish. In short, this is a very good, solid rock album, highlighted by Shirley's sultry lead vocals on such cool tunes as "Suffocate Me," "Sleep With Me," and "Mummy Can't Drive." Little did Shirley realise it at the time, but she was practically auditioning for Garbage with this album, and she passed with flying colors. Angelfish quickly folded, and Shirley graduated to the big leagues of rock with Garbage, but Angelfish's lone album is great stuff, and is a must-own for any fan of Garbage who desires that one extra album with the seductive voice of Shirley Manson. Buy it! Almost GarbageGarbage is the band that made the female vocalist Shirley Manson famous. She sings very well in this album too. Her voice is kinda mysterious. The opener "Dogs in a Cage" is a strange track but also excellent. Some parts of the album sound like there would be Deborah Harry from Blondie singing Type O' Negative. I guess that many of them who liked the early Garbage albums "Garbage" and "Version 2.0" like this album. Some songs offer great treats..."Suffocate Me", "King of the World", "Heartbreak to Hate", "Mummy Can't Drive". and "The End" to mention some great songs. The band plays well and Shirley sings as great as in Garbage's debut. This is just one of the albums that didn't have a huge success although it would have deserved. "You Can Love Her" has same kind of start than in Garbage "Only Happy When It Rains"...I wonder have they noticed it...
Stars: Dogs in a Cage, Heartbreak to Hate, The End, Suffocate Me
Recommended for Shirley Manson/Garbage fansI got this album--most likely the same as the majority of the people who bought this album--because I am a fan of Garbage and wanted to listen to Shirley Manson's older band. I wasn't sure what to expect. As a huge fan of Garbage, and as someone who thinks Shirley Manson is one of the greatest frontwomen of the last 20 years, I decided to give it a chance, with no real expectations, one way or the other.
The result was that I was very pleasantly surprised. The sound of Angelfish was far more primitive than Garbage. Angelfish didn't have the the gloss and the synths of Garbage, so it sounds more stripped down and basic. Compared to Garbage, the songs are more straight-forward and guitar oriented, but still have the same pop-sensibility. The band, Martin Metcalfe (guitar) Derek Kelly (drums) and Fin Wilson (bass) are all competent musicians, but to be honest, aren't of the same caliber as Butch Vig, Duke Erikson and Steve Marker. The entire CD is a fine collection of songs, and although some tracks are better than others, there isn't really any filler. The overall tone/vibe of the album is somewhat dark and cynical, as song titles like "Dogs in a Cage," "Suffocate Me" and "The Sun Wont Shine" would suggests. And as much as I enjoyed these songs, I find that the more pop oriented material are the album's high-points. "You Can Love Her," "Sleep With Me," and "Heartbreak to Hate" remain some of Manson's most memorable enchanting songs to date.
Angelfish was a young band, just starting out, and this was an excellent debut. If Manson had not gone on to sing for Garbage, I imagine they would have improved over time. Angelfish is a relatively short album, only about 35 minutes total. In sum, it's a good, short-but-sweet, somewhat cynical pop album. Although Angelfish's lone album is not as good as anything Garbage has released, it's still a fine album and highly recommended for Shirley Manson/Garbage fans. |
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