Sixteen Stone

by

Bush

Edit

When this album came out in 1994, you either loved it or hated it. Most of those who hated it did so because they sounded too much like Nirvana (and Nirvana at this time were gods). Regardless of the criticisms, it didn't seem to hurt the album's success. "Everything Zen," "Machinehead", "Little Things," "Comedown," and "Glycerine" were huge hits -- all over the radio. I still hear these songs today on the local modern rock radio station. This is because of one good reason -- the songs are incredible, regardless of their supposed lack of originality. Bush (along with Collective Soul, Live, Foo Fighters, and others) created what would be called post-grunge rock, which is basically a more polished grunge sound with greater pop-sensibility. This sound dominated the rest of the 90's (for example, Third Eye Blind in the late 90's) until the rise of various metal groups (such as Linkin Park) and emo-punk groups (such as Taking Back Sunday) that dominate modern rock radio today.

This debut album from Bush will forever be considered as one of the greatest albums of the 90's (certainly in terms of success). For those of us who grew-up in that decade, it will forever form the soundtrack of our lives at that time and indubitably will bring back fond memories. Bush was a great band for a simple reason -- they had great songs which nearly everybody loved.

Here's my album recommendations for those interested in post-grunge rock of the 90's:

Bush - "Sixteen Stone"

Live - "Throwing Copper"

Collective Soul - "Collective Soul"

Stone Temple Pilots - "Purple"

Candlebox - "Candlebox"

The Offspring - "Smash"

Foo Fighters - "Colour & The Shape"

Everclear - "So Much for the Afterglow"

Our Lady Peace - "Clumsy"

Hum - "You'd Prefer an Astronaut" (includes their one and only hit, "Stars," which is perhaps my favorite song of the 90's)

This band would have never sold any records if Gavin Rossdale looked like Tad Doyle. Their music is a boring, insincere rehash of Nirvana. They replace Nirvana's emotional intensity and excellent songwriting with forced angst and laughable lyrics. If this band had gotten together in the 80s, they probably would have worn spandex and played glam-metal. They'll latch onto ANY musical trend to sell records... their last two records both dabbled in "electronica". A message to anyone who's considering buying this album--- Do you REALLY want to pump more cash into that prettyboy Gavin's pockets? If you're so starved for "alternative rock", spend your money on something worthwhile like a Pixies record.