Up Next on the chopping block is another rewind review and yesterday, July 18, 2025 the latest album has dropped. The band back on the chopping block is Bush and I know when I did their original review I was a little harsh on some of their albums, but let’s see if anything has changed. So with that, let’s take a look………..
Sixteen Stone- oh yes, I remember when I wrote about this originally and I was not too kind to it. But upon listening to it again, I actually enjoyed this one a lot more. Yes the songs that are popular from this are incredibly overplayed and I still don’t really care for them, but that could be because I’m just tired of hearing them. At the end of the day, this is a 90s classic and a good album. It’s not really a grunge sounding album, but it does kind of tow that line a little bit. Either way a classic.
Previous Score: 3/10
New Score: 8.5/10
Standouts: Everything Zen, Swim, X-Girlfriend
Razorblade Suitcase- again I think in my original review I said it had like a grunge flavor to it and to some degree this still kind of does. This one in the previous album both have that same kind of feel and again both are classics. I would say I like this one just a little bit more as it contains my favorite Bush song that being Swallowed. My biggest complaint about these songs is that they just need to be shortened up a bit. Instead of five minute long songs, maybe the songs should’ve been 3 to 3 1/2 minutes long. But aside from that, the rest of the album is a great album and it’s a classic for a reason.
Previous Score: 9/10
New Score: 9/10
Standouts: Swallowed, Personal Holloway, Synapse
The Science Of Things- I forgot that this one has some electronic elements on it. It also at the same time does carry over that sound from the first two records. But going back to the electronic elements. I do like that. They were trying out different things which gives this album almost an experimental kind of feel. Well, some might say this is not a very good album. I actually enjoyed this one quite a bit maybe more so this time than the last time I listened to it either way check it out.
Previous Score: 8/10
New Score: 8.5/10
Standouts: Prizefighter, Warm Machine, Mindchanger
Golden State- it seems like they’re maybe trying to go back to how they sound on the first album. It’s a good record, but I feel like out of all their records. This one kinda gets overlooked and that’s too bad because it’s a good album. It does tend to drag in parts, but at the end of the day, it’s definitely worth a listen.
Previous Score: 8/10
New Score: 8.5/10
Standouts: My Engine Is With You, Float, The People That We Love
The Sea Of Memories- this one kinda reminds me a little bit of Razorblade and I do remember the song Sound Of Winter being played on KROQ quite a bit. Now this is their first album after like a 10 year gap and I gotta say for an album being made after that long, it’s pretty good. Again, it reminds me a lot of their second album, which is a good thing.
Previous Score: 8/10
New Score: 8/10
Standouts: I Believe In You, The Heart Of The Matter, The Mirror Of The Signs
Man On The Run- I remember seeing this one before it was just OK but listening to it again I actually enjoyed it a lot more than I would’ve thought. The songs aren’t anything mind blowing or new but this is something about this record. That’s just really enjoyable. Again I feel like this is one of theirs that does tend to get overlooked but if you haven’t listened to it in a while, definitely do so.
Previous Score: 7/10
New Score: 8.5/10
Standouts: The Only Way Out, This House Is On Fire, Bodies In Motion
Black And White Rainbows: I remember when I first reviewed this album, I didn’t think to favorably of it. Listening to it a second time I do think it’s a little bit better, but not by much. It just seems to drag on a bit and this is one of those albums that I kind of couldn’t wait to be over. It’s not an unlistenable album by any means I just thought it was boring and it dragged. I would say so far if they had to throw away an album, this would probably be the one.
Previous Score: 2/10
New Score: 6/10
Standouts: Peace-S, Nurse
The Kingdom- so if I remember correctly, this one was a recommendation and ultimately what got me to put this band up on the chopping block in the first place. That said the fact that they were able to put out this good of an album during the COVID-19 pandemic is pretty impressive. This is the one that should’ve come out after Man On The Run because it’s sort of seems like it picks up where that album left off. What I like about this record is that it’s just a very much straightforward rock record. Again, the songs on here remind me of some of their earlier albums and it’s just a great album.
Previous Score: 10/10
New Score: 9.5/10
Standouts: Quicksand, Blood River, Words Are Not Impediments
The Art Of Survival- so this one does seem to be a bit slower than the previous album, but it’s also got a much darker tone which works really really well. If you read the lyrics, this is actually a dark album, but even the tone of this album is also dark. I do know that this is their most politically charged album given the time that this was released, which makes sense. But what I do like about this album is that there are some really cool riffs and it feels like a post grunge album either way check this one out if you haven’t already and I’m going to go ahead and give this one 9/10
Standouts: Heavy Is The Ocean, Judas Is A Riot, Shark Bite
I Beat Loneliness- so at the time that this is being written, this album was released two days ago and I gotta say it’s sort of feels like it’s the end of some kind of trilogy with this one and the last two. Now for me personally I would’ve liked this to a focused more on riffs and sort of what they did on the previous two albums, but I guess they wanted to focus more on the lyrics, which is fine, but it took me a couple of lessons to really appreciate this album. Overall, it’s a good album and it definitely is a great follow up to an album like The Art Of Survival. I’m gonna go ahead and give this one 8/10.
Standouts: Scars, Love Me Till The Pain Fades, The Land Of Milk And Honey
I did forget how great this band is and after seeing them live, it really does make you appreciate them even more. Gavin Rossdale has one of those really distinct and unique voices in rock music that can be soothing, but also gruff at the same time. This was a band that back in the day I wrote off completely because of their radio hits but if you listen to the actual albums, those songs are what make these albums great. Are their popular songs overplayed? Yes but again listen to the full album and the context of it and you will appreciate them a tad more.
Final Grade: A-
Previous Album Rankings:
- The Kingdom
- Razorblade Suitcase
- The Sea Of Memories
- The Science of Things
- Man On The Run
- Golden State
- Sixteen Stone
- Black and White Rainbows
New Album Rankings:
- Razorblade Suitcase
- The Kingdom
- The Art Of Survival
- Man On The Run
- Sixteen Stone
- Golden State
- The Sea Of Memories
- The Science Of Things
- I Beat Loneliness
- Black And White Rainbows
Sinister Reviews 