In summary:

Bush have finally shaken off the Nirvana comparisons which dogged their early work, carving out their own identity and crafting an album full of their best material to date. It doesn’t have the strength of the three classic singles which propelled their debut LP to the top of the charts, but it makes up for it by providing a solid listen from start to finish.

The Science Of Things receives 8/11.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Despite the commercial success of their first two LP’s, UK-rockers Bush were written off as little more than a Nirvana rip-off.

That all changed on The Science Of Things.

The follow-up to 1996’s harsh Razorblade Suitcase, it features the hit single The Chemicals Between Us, which spent five weeks at #1 on the Billboard Alternative Airplay Chart, and it showcases a new sound for Bush; no longer attempting to win over their critics, they appear more streamlined, confident, and relevant than ever before.

Kicking off proceedings with Warm Machine, it’s evident that Bush feel more at home with this fuller, thicker sound than the ultra-raw production of their previous album. Nigel Pulsford’s guitar soars through the wall of supporting noise, while Rossdale’s clever wordplay takes center stage (“Tread slowly for I know / There’s a thousand miles to go / Without blinking”), this is a leaner, meaner Bush than we’ve previously known, and it’s fantastic.

Lead single The Chemicals Between Us perhaps does the best job of demonstrating the progress which has been made here; where formulaic grunge-by-numbers song structures once ruled, now they are well-layered with electronic grooves, tight drum loops, and a sense of urgency which was previously lacking.

It works incredibly well.

Rossdale and co. appear to have ironed out many of the kinks which hindered their previous work. For instance, there is no mid-album slump here, nor do we find songs careering off in unexpected directions.

The Disease of The Dancing Cats features the frontman at his lyrical best, delivering attention-grabbing lines which range from the sublime (“Your whiskey talks louder / Than most things I’ve read you’ve said”) to the absurd (“It’s all over for orangutans / Looks like they’re back on the street again”), and the bombastic breakdown sing-a-long of Spacetravel (with an appearance from Gwen Stefani on backing vocals), “You’re scared of the government / Scared of the government”.

Elsewhere, tracks like Prizefighter, Altered States, and Dead Meat highlight how effective Bush can be when they write straight-ahead rock songs – a skill which they would really master on their next album.

Nothing is perfect, of course, and there are a couple of mis-steps along the way. These include English Fire, a rocker which fails to go anywhere worthwhile, and 40 Miles From The Sun, which begins as a decent ballad but ultimately feels half-cooked.

Arriving near the end of the running order, the brooding Letting The Cables Sleep delivers on all the promise they showed for stripped back ballads on previous albums. It really benefits from the superior production which flows throughout The Science Of Things, and it went on to become a sleeper hit for the band, racking up an impressive 17 weeks on the charts. Album closer Mindchanger continues the formula which worked so well on other tracks, layering Gavin Rossdale’s pained vocals (“We’ll never run when we’ve got all these broken bones”) over thick guitars, looping drums, and a devastatingly effective mid-song wall of noise that will make the hairs on your arms stand up.

In summary:

Bush have finally shaken off the Nirvana comparisons which dogged their early work, carving out their own identity and crafting an album full of their best material to date. It doesn’t have the strength of the three classic singles which propelled their debut LP to the top of the charts, but it makes up for it by providing a solid listen from start to finish.

The Science Of Things receives 8/11.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★