Guster or Garbage?

By Alisha Stamper

arbage or Guster, my friends? That is what ALL life boils down to. Do you prefer the girl rock that empowers you, or the feel-good, first song on a mix CD your now husband made while you were dating? Have you mellowed to the point of yuppiness if you choose Guster? Does Garbage need you back, or more aptly, do you need Garbage back? If you don't choose, does that mean you aren't ready to give up high school and college life? Should you be? Because I'm at an impasse, here are my plugs for each:

Garbage

Version 2.0 was on repeat the entire summer of 2006 in cabin G-29 at Independent Lake Camp. Thank you, Rosalind. Thank you, Shirley Manson, for creating unity with unruly teenage girls. That is the great thing about Garbage–it speaks to EVERY girl, and empowers them. It tackles issues like unexpected pregnancy (which is terrifying when you're 16 whether you're active or not), hits them head-on and makes being responsible a good thing. Additionally, vocal movement is doable with Garbage (sorry Mariah, Beyonce, etc. There's no way I'll even try to follow your vocal gymnastics).

Guster

Though some songs blend together and sound the same, there is something appealing about his voice, right? And the words are definitely male. Guys should have no problem singing these ballads to their ladies. I also really like that they don't sound processed. Nice balance of sounds without it being something you HAVE to listen to on HUGE speakers in surround sound. They maintain equilibrium and give you a good listening experience EVERY TIME.

So, which path would you take?