Album Review: Bush - 'Man On The Run'

Bush decided to write their sixth album 'Man On The Run' with their live show in mind, possibly due to the two year touring stint they completed since their reformation prior to this album's creation. In addition to this, frontman Gavin Rossdale has clearly decided to put a bit more attention back on melody, just like in the band's early days.

As expected, it's fairly standard rock music all the way, opening track 'Just Like My Other Sins' starts with some fuzzy overdriven guitar and a solid beat, which opens up into a big chorus that is truly reminiscent of the band's late-90's heydays. The focus on some catchy hooks actually saves the album from being some throwaway regurgitation of out-dated rock, it serves as a pretty good reminder that Bush can actually pen a decent tune.

Some of the songs feature little modern twists, tricky effects, synths and whatnot, and some delve back to the older sound, like 'The Gift', which has a similar feel to classic Stone Temple Pilots and the scene in general that birthed Bush. To be fair however, this is probably the best situation for fans, something old and something new.

The energetic 'Bodies In Motion' is a stand-out thanks to its simple chord progression and aggressive vocal delivery, the guitar mimics the lead set by the previous songs' vocal melodies and keeps things simple and catchy making for something extremely memorable. 'Surrender' has a similar effect but in a slower environment, it is a driving anthem with plenty of space that gives some dynamics to the album's pace and feel at the right time.

Fourteen tracks is a lot of Bush, thankfully the band toggles between all of the elements mentioned above enough to keep things from becoming to stale. The record closes with an attempt at some big stadium rock on 'The Golden Age', group chants and soaring that will rival any 30 Seconds To Mars attempt. Once again the chorus is the strongest part of the song, rounding off an album of great chorus lines which is essentially what you need to get the punters on side so 'Man On The Run' will no doubt be received very well.

Bush could very easily have become a stale cover version of their former selves, but they can write some pretty catchy tunes and seem to know how to tweak things enough to stay current. 'Man On The Run' is up there with some of their finest work.

1. Just Like My Other Sins

2. Man On The Run

3. The Only Way Out

4. The Gift

5. The House Is On Fire

6. Loneliness Is A Killer

7. Bodies In Motion

8. Broken In Paradise

9. Surrender

10. Dangerous Love

11. Eye Of The Storm

12. Let Yourself Go

13. Speeding Through The Bright Lights

14. The Golden Age