Bush - Black and White Rainbows

Bush
Black and White Rainbows
2017
Spotify

There are some bands from a bygone era who cause quite a stir by releasing new music. I am thinking mainly about Garbage, since they are in a similar category to Bush and when Garbage's new record came out people were clamoring to hear what was next. Not so much with Bush, and for good reason because this album is in a word: Bad. With all the relationship turmoil Gavin Rossdale has gone through in the past few years with now ex Gwen Stefani you would expect a self reflective album steeped in dealing with that pain. Black and White Rainbows however feels more like a man airing his grievances rather than coming to terms with Reality. The first track "Mad Love" has this sentiment: "you did me wrong, but I'm still a good guy because I have 'Made Love' for you" which is utterly fucking ridiculous. Just because you are a good guy and have mad love does not mean you can't do something shitty or treat someone bad, its a way to excuse your own behavior without taking any responsibility for it. You could almost forgive this naivety coming from some kid, and as only a one off kind of odd song, but Rossdale holds this line throughout the record leaving you absolutely scratching your head. The mid-tempo stadium filling rock songs are so generic musically that they could have been written by numbers. Power chords? Check. Slight Guitar Riff? Check. Throw in some strings to seem emotional? Done and Done.

Not only is Black and White Rainbows boring but it is also long. You would hope with a record this base it would at least be over quickly, but Bush latch on to these sounds and lines and just keep repeating them over and over. "Sky Turns Day Glo" seems like some kind of ploy for those trying to remember the 80s, but the song has no sounds from the decade. "Toma Mi Corazon" again latin for no other reason than it has a Spanish title seems like pandering gone totally wrong. Hey let's make a latin song for the latin people, but only have the title be in Spanish and a few words here and there, I mean what the hell is the idea? Because everything is so similar from start to finish the second half of the record is an absolute slog, barely moving the needle. The only bright spot is the somewhat more uptempo "The Beat of Your Heart", but the lyrics are so stupid that there is never an opportunity to really buy in. Black and White Rainbows just leaves you wondering who is this album for? Is it Gavin trying to repair his damaged image? The record just seems utterly pointless, long and the worst offence boring. I listened to this one so you don't have too, so please don't.

1.0 out of 10