bygone era", while Laila Hassani of Heat summed up her five-star review by writing, "Few modern female-fronted rock bands stand the test of time, but this reminds you why, along with Gwen Stefani's No Doubt, Garbage are one of them." A reviewer for Instinct wrote "this hits collection is loaded with songs best described as massive... you'll find something to love here". Jaime Gill, in a review for BBC Music, felt that "Absolute Garbage is a fine legacy, the sound of a briefly brilliant and always interesting band" and that overall the album "sounds like no other greatest hits you own." Digital Spys Nick Levine wrote, "By wrapping their nut-grabbing hooks and transcendent melodies in layers of gutsy guitars, Garbage managed to make pop music for people who thought they didn't like pop music. For that reason, whatever happens next, they deserve to be remembered fondly." Many reviewers felt that the chronological running order put more emphasis on the band's well-regarded earlier periods. "The selection of songs perhaps indicates Garbage view their career the same way many fans do", wrote Victoria Durham of Rock Sound, and "that they never quite managed [to match] the brilliance of their early work." Johnny Dee of Classic Rock expressed, "The later material here sounds formulaic, however, new song "Tell Me Where It Hurts" adds strings to the dynamic and sits well alongside their peerless early material". AllMusic reviewer Stephen Thomas Erlewine considered that despite ignoring 2000s singles such as "Run Baby Run", "it already seems that the comp has lingered far longer than necessary on the last stage of Garbage's career", in contrast to the debut album singles "still sounding sleek and alluring." Kerrang! magazine's Tom Byrant also felt that Garbage's work had dated, expounding, "Something that was once so much a part of the Zeitgeist has remained rooted to the era it marked, untranslatable across the millennial divide. Still, songs like 'Stupid Girl' and 'Only Happy When It Rains' [...] maintain an urgency and spite that sees their intent remain intact." Billboard writer Kerri Mason praised the choice of remixes on the special edition: "the band continually brought the best of dance's best producers, not one of the thirteen tracks is a throwaway." Ben Hogwood of musicOMH called the compilation a "deserved retrospective", further noting that "the best way to get to know Garbage is through their albums, which demonstrate their strength in