Their first album, Sixteen Stone (1994), was a huge commercial success. Almost overnight, Bush went from playing small pubs in London to headlining arenas in the US, the result of extensive promotion on MTV and non-stop touring. Critics labeled them as an inferior derivative of bands such as Nirvana and Pixies, and this criticism followed them throughout their career as a band. In particular, Rossdale’s throaty singing voice and random, stream of consciousness-style lyrics were dismissed by some as an imitation of Nirvana’s lead singer, Kurt Cobain. Although the band reached superstar status in the U.S., they failed to have much impact on the britpop riddled UK charts, the lone exception being their single Swallowed, which reached #7. A change in record labels, management and an extended hiatus did not bode well for the band, who unofficially split in 2002. Bush’s albums include Razorblade Suitcase (produced by Steve Albini), Deconstructed, The Science of Things, and Golden State, none of which matched the sales success of the debut album, Sixteen Stone. Frustrated by the disappointing sales of Golden State (their fifth album, in 2001) and lack of support the band was receiving from Atlantic, the band decided to go on a hiatus. Band members went to work on various other musical projects notably Gavin Rossdale, and his new band Institute. Gavin Rossdale is the husband of Gwen Stefani. In recent interviews, Rossdale said he hasn’t ruled out the possibility of Bush getting back together, but says it is on the back burner at the moment. However, drummer Robin Goodridge may have halted any plans of a Bush reunion by announcing he has joined UK rock band Elyss, who are currently working on their debut album due out later this year. In 2005, Bush released The Best of ‘94 - ‘99, a greatest hits compilation, and Zen X Four, a CD and DVD which features the band’s music videos. Zen X Four was released on Kirtland Records and has its own website. Bush’s members included Gavin Rossdale, Dave Parsons, Robin Goodridge, Sacha Putnam, Nigel Pulsford, and Chris Traynor who played lead guitar during the Golden State tour. The track The People That We Love was featured in the game Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit 2. There was also a Canadian band from Toronto named Bush. Drummer Whitey Glan, who had also played for Alice Cooper, penned the song “I Can Hear You Calling” which was later a hit for Three Dog Night. Their only album was released in early 70s and was called Bush. In Canada, Rossdale’s band was once known as Bush^X, because the 1970s band Bush, led by Domenic Troiano, owned the Canadian rights to the name. In April 1997, it was announced that Troiano had agreed to let them use the name Bush in Canada without the exponent X, in exchange for donating $20,000 each to the Starlight Foundation and the Canadian Music Therapy Trust Fund. |
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