Bleed Like Me

On the first day in the studio, Garbage composed a new track, "Right Between the Eyes", in 30 minutes.[6] Other tracks written during the early sessions were "Hangin' with the Bitches" and "Never Be Free" (with John 5).[3][7] Vig said that the quick start made the band feel optimistic and gave the impression that the album would be completed as rapidly as in six months, but "[the album] took a slow spiral downhill".[5] Recording for the album was halted during the summer when Manson underwent surgery to remove a cyst on her right vocal cord, forcing her to recuperate until August 2003.[8] On September 10, a backhoe careened into the outer walls of Smart Studios, causing extensive damage. Both Garbage and the band Paris, Texas had been working on their albums in the studio.[9] The sessions were permeated by passive-aggressive tensions and an overall lack of artistic focus. According to Vig, "there were a lot of personal arguments and we couldn't agree on songs". Manson suffered writer's block and had trouble writing lyrics, and Vig did not like the way the songs sounded.[10] The drummer said that the group frequently argued during production, and that the entire band almost quit.[11] Duke Erikson said that nobody could agree about the music's direction, and the band was on the verge of breaking up. He said, "When you lose that common bond of the music, you've got nothing".[6] Eventually, the group suffered "a complete and utter band meltdown" in October, leading the band members splitting and taking a break from the sessions.[12]

Vig left the studio and returned to Los Angeles. Over the Christmas period, he encountered excited Garbage fans eager to hear about the album's progress. Not wanting to disappoint them, he disclosed some song titles to them; after this encounter, he realized that the band still had a future.[6] During the break, Vig met Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters in a party, and casually asked if he would perform drums on a Garbage track, "Bad Boyfriend", as Vig had been frustrated with the song's existing drum track.[13]

The band credited the participation of Dave Grohl, who played drums in "Bad Boyfriend", as a motivator in getting the album finished.

At the beginning of 2004, the band decided to try to salvage the album, taking their management's suggestion to work with an external producer for the first time. The musicians also decided that neutral territory would be beneficial, and went to Los Angeles. John King, one half of the production duo Dust Brothers, was enlisted to produce "Bad Boyfriend".[6] Drummer Matt Chamberlain and bassist Justin Meldal-Johnsen were hired to perform on the songs.[14] The recordings were completed in King's studio The Boat and Sound City in Los Angeles.[15] Towards the end of the recording sessions, Grohl spent a day performing on drums for "Bad Boyfriend".[16] The band said his performance was "raising the bar" for the record,[6] and Vig said that Grohl "brought a different energy level to the song", which Erikson and Steve Marker tried to follow with their guitar playing. This influenced most of the songs that followed; the musicians wanted the songs to be "scrappy and primal sounding".[11]

The experience with King, despite only resulting in the completion of one track, "Bad Boyfriend", gave the band perspective and direction.[6] Manson said that because the band members still had problems speaking to each other, King could not get much work out of the band, so they realized that they needed to work out their differences and was the catalyst for the band getting back together and working harmoniously.[5] Vig said that the tensions led the band members to become "burned out on each other", and that reuniting made them feel able to play "fast and furious—as if our lives depended on it".[17] Manson overcame her writer's block and began to inject political slants into her lyrics, matching them with some new material the band wrote immediately after the King sessions; both "Metal Heart" and "Boys Wanna Fight" referenced the 2003 Invasion of Iraq. Despite a plan to record some material with producer Tony Hoffer,[18] the band decided to complete the rest of the album themselves. Erikson later said, "It was kind of seductive to think that maybe someone else [would] solve all of our problems, but in the end you gotta do it yourself".[19]

Feeling that previous album Beautiful Garbage seemed fractured, the band decided to use their live sound; Vig said that he wanted "the pumping energy that all the best raw rock records have".[20] The band decided that their fourth album would have a straightforward rock sound, instead of a reliance upon electronica and computer interventions. The musicians composed separately at their home studios, sending each other tracks through e-mail and couriers, and the band returned to Wisconsin to finish the album. Bleed Like Me emerged from a collage of samples and loops, and this time the sound was simpler. Erikson said that rather than production, they depended on the songs.[6] Vig opted to focus on the production duties and leave the drums to guest musicians such as Grohl, whom he considered better at the instrument than him.[13][15] He also played more guitars on the album, which he found liberating.[15] As a result, drummer Matt Walker also played on several tracks on the album,[21] while Meldal-Johnsen played bass guitar.[22] Most of Manson's vocals were recorded at Vig's home studio, GrungeIsDead.[23]

On October 18, the band began mixing the album.[21] Some songs were mixed several times; "Sex Is Not the Enemy" was re-recorded three times during the mixing process, "Right Between the Eyes" was recalled from mastering twice,[24] and the band included live strings at the last minute on "Happy Home".[25] While the project's working title was Hands on a Hard Body, after the 1997 documentary of the same name,[26] when Manson announced the album's release in November 2004, she confirmed that it would be titled Bleed Like Me.[27] By December 6, 2004, the album was officially completed.[28] It was mastered in New York City;[28] the initial mastering was completed on December 15, 2004, and the final master was ready for January 6, 2005.[27]

Garbage performing during the Bleed Like Me World Tour in Copenhagen on June 1, 2005

Garbage launched the Bleed Like Me World Tour promoting the record on March 29, 2005, with a concert in Paris. The tour visited North America, Europe and Australia,[17] and encompassed headline performances, rock festivals, and television and radio shows.[15] Former Jane's Addiction bassist Eric Avery left Alanis Morissette's backing band to perform with Garbage for the tour.[33] Matt Walker played drums in the August 22 concert in Chicago because Vig had to depart for his mother's funeral.[34] After being initially organized low-key,[29] the tour was moved into large venues when Bleed Like Me and its lead single "Why Do You Love Me" became surprise hits outside the United States.[17] In September, the band canceled concerts planned for the following month in Europe,[35] and released a press statement saying that the band members had overextended themselves.[36] The tour concluded with a concert in Perth, Australia, on October 1, after six months of concerts.[37]

In 2012, Manson recalled, "The making of this record was very sad for me. Being the only girl in a gang of four can get pretty lonely. We were all struggling to find our chemistry together, and as a result, the experience of making and promoting this was tense and unenjoyable. Ironically, our shows were selling out every night. But after a while, we decided that we needed to go home to lick our wounds."[38]

The album was preceded by the lead single "Why Do You Love Me",[39] which peaked at number seven on the UK Singles Chart—Garbage's highest-charting single since 1996's "Stupid Girl"[40]—while reaching number eight on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart in the United States,[41] and becoming the band's first single since 1999's "Special" to enter the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 97.[42]

The title track was released as the album's second single in the US, reaching number 27 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart and number six on the Hot Dance Club Play chart.[41][43] "Sex Is Not the Enemy", the album's second international single and third single overall, peaked at number 24 on the UK Singles Chart.[44] The final single, "Run Baby Run", charted at number 47 in Australia and at number 97 in Germany.[45][46]