Rowsdower!
Avenger
- Joined
- Jan 16, 2011
- Messages
- 27,929
- Reaction score
- 7
- Points
- 31
Didn't see a thread for this.
Bush is an interesting case. Even when they were one of the biggest bands in the world, they were very polarizing. Other grunge and post-grunge artists criticized them, calling them a Nirvana rip-off. Then there were those who didn't like them because every teenage girl in the 1990s was in love with Gavin Rossdale. Whatever.
I've always been a fan and they were actually the first band I saw in concert (unless you could Weird Al). I like all of their albums and I felt that they were one of the few alternative bands that pretty much got better as they went along. Razorblade Suitcase - though a good album - was a bit of a letdown after Sixteen Stone, but I thought The Science of Things and especially Golden State were exceptional albums. It's almost criminal (IMO) how ignored Golden State was. I felt that album was their strongest, and features some of their most heartfelt power ballads (Float, Ghostman) and some of the most kickass rockers I've heard by ANY alternative band (My Engine is With You, Reasons).
Anyway, 10 years later, after dabbling in a solo career, another band, and attending a lot of Roger Federer matches, Rossdale is back with Robin Goodridge (minus Pulsford and Parsons) and last week they released The Sea of Memories. How is it? Well, I'll be honest here. Upon my first listen, I wasn't sure I'd give it a second shot. Few of the songs clicked with me right off the bat. But then I remembered that I had the same reaction to Bush's first two albums. For some reason, Science and Golden State clicked with me immediately, but I took a little time warming up to Sixteen Stone and Razorblade.
So I gave it another try. I gotta tell ya, these songs grow on you. Or at least they did for me. The first three tracks (The Mirror of the Signs, The Sound of Winter, All My Life) are dark and edgy... classic Bush tunes that could fit on any of their albums. Maybe a little predictable but I'll admit, I think I like Rossdale best when he doesn't step too far out of his comfort zone. He has a voice and a lyrical style that simply suit dark, unsettling rock tunes full of buzzy guitars. The middle of the album takes a bit of a detour once we get to the almost-poppy-but-still-rocking Afterlife (the first single which was actually released a year ago). From there, we get the heartfelt All Night Doctors (a very pretty tune but I prefer the original bonus track version) and the almost happy sounding Baby Come Home and Red Light. Those two tracks are quite a departure for Bush, while the following track, She's a Stallion, is a little disjointed but it helps to keep it from being predictable. The tracks that follow are more familiar territory for the band and again sound like songs that could come from any Bush album, particularly The Heart of the Matter (not a Don Henley cover, don't worry).
All in all, I've found the album to be pretty addictive. If you download it (or buy the CD, if anyone still does that) give it a few listens. It might not click with you immediately but I think if you're a fan of the band's previous work, you'll really dig their new effort if you give it a chance.
8/10
Bush is an interesting case. Even when they were one of the biggest bands in the world, they were very polarizing. Other grunge and post-grunge artists criticized them, calling them a Nirvana rip-off. Then there were those who didn't like them because every teenage girl in the 1990s was in love with Gavin Rossdale. Whatever.
I've always been a fan and they were actually the first band I saw in concert (unless you could Weird Al). I like all of their albums and I felt that they were one of the few alternative bands that pretty much got better as they went along. Razorblade Suitcase - though a good album - was a bit of a letdown after Sixteen Stone, but I thought The Science of Things and especially Golden State were exceptional albums. It's almost criminal (IMO) how ignored Golden State was. I felt that album was their strongest, and features some of their most heartfelt power ballads (Float, Ghostman) and some of the most kickass rockers I've heard by ANY alternative band (My Engine is With You, Reasons).
Anyway, 10 years later, after dabbling in a solo career, another band, and attending a lot of Roger Federer matches, Rossdale is back with Robin Goodridge (minus Pulsford and Parsons) and last week they released The Sea of Memories. How is it? Well, I'll be honest here. Upon my first listen, I wasn't sure I'd give it a second shot. Few of the songs clicked with me right off the bat. But then I remembered that I had the same reaction to Bush's first two albums. For some reason, Science and Golden State clicked with me immediately, but I took a little time warming up to Sixteen Stone and Razorblade.
So I gave it another try. I gotta tell ya, these songs grow on you. Or at least they did for me. The first three tracks (The Mirror of the Signs, The Sound of Winter, All My Life) are dark and edgy... classic Bush tunes that could fit on any of their albums. Maybe a little predictable but I'll admit, I think I like Rossdale best when he doesn't step too far out of his comfort zone. He has a voice and a lyrical style that simply suit dark, unsettling rock tunes full of buzzy guitars. The middle of the album takes a bit of a detour once we get to the almost-poppy-but-still-rocking Afterlife (the first single which was actually released a year ago). From there, we get the heartfelt All Night Doctors (a very pretty tune but I prefer the original bonus track version) and the almost happy sounding Baby Come Home and Red Light. Those two tracks are quite a departure for Bush, while the following track, She's a Stallion, is a little disjointed but it helps to keep it from being predictable. The tracks that follow are more familiar territory for the band and again sound like songs that could come from any Bush album, particularly The Heart of the Matter (not a Don Henley cover, don't worry).
All in all, I've found the album to be pretty addictive. If you download it (or buy the CD, if anyone still does that) give it a few listens. It might not click with you immediately but I think if you're a fan of the band's previous work, you'll really dig their new effort if you give it a chance.
8/10
