Garbage’s first album had a bit of electronica that made them unique in the ’90s alternative scene. The band enjoyed greater success with Version 2.0, dabbling a bit more heavily in the electronic sound, but jumped overboard with their third album Beautiful Garbage. After a four year hiatus, Bleed Like Me gets back to that happy medium of guitar and synth achieved in Version 2.0. The first single “Why Do You Love Me” is clearly the class of the album, but there are a number of solid tracks, including “Bad Boyfriend.” If one were to take exception with any part of the disc, it would be that the band hasn’t really evolved since it’s first two records. That said, Bleed Like Me will easily satiate the Garbage fan that missed their presence for the past few years.

Here’s a double dose from last week’s “New Music Friday.” First is the latest release from Beck, Guero. The openning tracks will certainly remind you of Odelay, then gets a bit more toned down toward Mutations or Sea Change. This is an unusual album in that way for Beck; it’s not a completely different direction for him. However, it’s solid from top to bottom, so if you like any of Beck’s pre-Midnight Vultures stuff, you’ll like Guero.

Who’s Abandoned Pools? Abandoned Pools is the current project for one time Eels member Tommy Walter. Naturally, I found them in the ‘See Also’ section of the Eels page at allmusic.com. Humanistic is an alternative/punk-pop type album that isn’t revolutionary by any stretch, but I’ll say it rivals anything heard on the radio. They have a new album coming out this year which I’ll probably check out. Hopefully Walter will show off a bit more of the ‘instrumentalist’ label that intrigued me in the first place.

I started a new habit today. It might be a little pricey, but I think it’s worth it. I call it “New Music Fridays.” This plan was inspired by the $2 discount with a student ID on Thursdays and Fridays at Rasputin. They have a ton of used and cheap stuff there, so ideally the discos will be in the $7 range.

So after considering several options from my list, I finally settled on Elvis Costello‘s My Aim is True. I realized at the concert the other day that I don’t have nearly enough of his music. With Alison, Watching the Detectives, and Red Shoes, it’s generally hailed one of his best. This album was the first of 12 in a ten year period (1977-1986), which I consider an amazing accomplishment.

In the fashionable nightclubs and finer precincts
Man uses words to dress up his vile instincts
Ever since we said it
He went and took the credit
It’s been headed this way since the world began
When a vicious creature took the jump from Monkey to Man
– Monkey to Man (The Delivery Man)

Elvis. The Paramount. It doesn’t get much better than that. The other time I saw Elvis was at the Greek Theater, and it was touted as a greatest hits tour, so I knew almost every song. This was definitely an album tour as the first 5-6 songs were off newer albums, none of which I had heard. Sporting trademark black plastic framed glasses and silver reflective shoes, he then pulled out a couple of classics with “Oliver’s Army” and “I Don’t Want to go to Chelsea.” The band played for two hours with essentially no stops. Only twice did Elvis really make any sort of statement, and the time between songs ranged from zero, as in the transition into “Watching the Detectives,” to 5 seconds as he’d run to pick up the next guitar from the crew. They sent us home with “Peace, Love, and Understanding” and “The Scarlet Tide,” which was uplifting for me in these politically inane times. There was no encore, but none was necessary. Great show.

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