Born on August 2: Butch Vig, the multifaceted drummer of Garbage

You might think there's not much to say about a rock drummer, in this case the one from Garbage. And yet, nothing could be further from the truth! Because Butch Vig is a musician with a thousand facets...

Like his friend Steve Marker on bass, he's primarily called upon to provide the rhythmic backbone of Garbage's repertoire. Without ever hammering his drums like a lumberjack, the now 70-year-old Wisconsin native truly leaves his mark on tracks such as "I'm Only Happy When It Rains," "Push It," and "Stupid Girl." It just goes to show that it's possible to exist alongside the swashbuckling (and often redheaded) Shirley Manson.

Alongside his time with the Scottish-American band (with a few temporary infidelities), Butch Vig has developed his own interests. Before the Garbage adventure, he played in local bands, the most famous of which remains Spooner. With two albums already under his belt since 2017, his latest personal project bears the amusing name 5 Billions In Diamonds.

To pursue his passion for sound and produce his own music, as well as some of the bands he collaborated with, Butch managed Smart Studios in Madison, Wisconsin, between 1983 and 2010. It was at this unfortunately bankrupt studio that he left his mark on some of the most memorable rock albums of the '90s: "Gish" by the Smashing Pumpkins (1991), "Bricks Are Heavy" by L7 (1992), "Nevermind" and "Incesticide" by Nirvana (1990 and 1992), and, of course, Garbage's early albums, including the infamous "Version 2.0" in 1998.

Vig also collaborated on several albums by Killdozer, Urge Overkill, Sonic Youth, notably "Dirty" (1992), House of Pain, Green Day, Foo Fighters, and dozens of others. Famous hunting board...

(MH with Stéphane Soupart -  Photo : © Etienne Tordoir)

Photo: Before their March 30, 1996, concert at Vooruit in Ghent, Belgium, Garbage pose in front of the local Holiday Inn. Butch Vig is third from the left.