By Jae-Ha Kim
Chicago Sun-Times
April 20, 1997
Of the top 10 grossing concerts of the year, Bush has had a lock on the top six.
But when the band’s frontman, Gavin Rossdale, was told the good news, he was more interested in eating Pop Rock candy than talking about what it was like being competitive in ticket sales with Metallica and Kiss.
“Can you hear it?” a delighted Rossdale said, letting a reporter who had called for an interview hear the crackling explosion of dyed sugar fizz in his mouth. “I haven’t had any in such a long time, and it’ll probably rot my teeth. It’s not very good, but it’s a fun experience.”
That last sentence sounds like what detractors say about the five-year-old group’s grungy music. Since its 1994 debut album “Sixteen Stone,” Bush has been slagged by American critics for sounding like Nirvana-wannabes. In their native England, the musicians were virtually ignored.
“I think that the whole Bush-copying-Nirvana (thing) is totally full of – – – -,” said Chicago-based producer Steve Albini, who recorded Bush’s latest double-platinum album, “Razorblade Suitcase.”
“I’ve listened to a lot of bands that I think sound like Nirvana,” Albini said. “I’ve recorded at least a dozen bands in my own basement that sound like Nirvana. I think that Bush wears its influences on its sleeve and is proud of that . . . but I wouldn’t for a minute fault them for that because they’re not trying to hoodwink anybody.”
Disregarding the album’s critics, Bush hit the road for almost two years nonstop in the United States. Slowly, they won a following. Radio and MTV eventually caught up with them. “Everything Zen,” “Little Things,” “Comedown,” “Glycerine” and “Machinehead” became hit singles and received heavy rotation on video channels.
“Sixteen Stone” went on to sell more than 7 million copies and Bush became the biggest British band in America, easily outselling their highly hyped and critically adored compatriots Blur, Oasis, Elastica and Pulp.
They’ve also moved up onto the arena level. A good chunk of Bush’s enormodome shows already are sold out, including their Thursday concert at the Rosemont Horizon, where Chicago’s Veruca Salt will open for them.
While Bush’s staggering album sales and income have made it easier to dismiss the digs from critics and fellow musicians, the band wouldn’t mind getting just a pinch of respect for their hard work.
“We just accepted that if we wanted to make any impact in the world of rock music or whatever, you have to tour the U.S.,” Rossdale said. “I was reading this trade magazine the other day that listed tour dates for bands. For (the techno group) Prodigy, it listed Los Angeles, New York, Chicago and San Francisco, and that was it. That was their American tour. We were laughing because back home in England, we could imagine (the weekly music magazine) NME going, `The Prodigy Take America!’ English `slacker’ music has traditionally been about doing a few (U.S.) cities, a bit of coke and being told by your record label how great you are. Then you go home and call up and go, `Where’s the record?’ And they say, `It’s No. 178 . . . but it’s looking good! W-A-K has played it a lot in Wisconsin!'”
Laughing, Rossdale proved he could give as good as he could get.
For his part, Albini remains puzzled by Bush’s lack of respect: “In the circles that I travel in, Bush is considered something of an unspeakable band. But I think the evidence is that that is far more by association than through any actual sin on the part of Bush. I think that Bush did things about as honorably as you can. The thing that you can say about Bush that isn’t true about most Johnny Come Latelys is that their success is entirely based on people hearing their music and liking it. They developed an audience the old-fashioned way: by playing and having people like them. . . . They are not one of these hype-created instant band sensations. They actually made a record, people liked it and they worked their – – – – – off and delivered the goods live.”
Still, former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl’s allegations that Bush ripped off Nirvana’s sound isn’t wholly unfounded. Both bands love loud guitars, howling melodies and sometimes mumbled vocals. But, then, so do many other pre- and post-Nirvana groups.
Rossdale admits that he hasn’t reached Kurt Cobain’s songwriting level yet. He lists the writers he admires with a zealous fan’s enthusiasm: Nick Cave, Frank Black of the Pixies, the Jesus Lizard’s David Yow.
“(Yow) is the best lyricist there is, and Jesus Lizard is just the best band,” Rossdale said. “The way they play is amazing. They’re probably the most scary band in the sense that I don’t know if I can ever achieve the level that they’re at.”
When reached for a comment about his famous fan, Yow was a bit more reserved.
“I know that Bush is an English group and they’re comprised of white males,” he said. “I’m not that familiar with their music, but I understand it sounds a lot like some American groups comprised of white males.”
He’ll have time to get acclimated to Bush’s music. The Chicago-based Lizard has been confirmed to open for Rossdale and company June 27 through July 10.
Meanwhile, Rossdale plans to treat himself to a belated birthday present after he turns 30 in October. He wants to take a six-month holiday next year to work on new songs and relax with his girlfriend, Gwen Stefani of No Doubt.
Until recently, the couple have remained coy about their relationship. As recently as Christmas, Stefani told the Sun-Times that she was nothing more than friends with Rossdale. She didn’t mention that she had a set of keys to Rossdale’s London apartment.
The photogenic duo met in 1995 when No Doubt was picked to open for Bush. Within days, Rossdale and Stefani were dating.
“The whole concept of us dating appears a bit cartoonlike, which I don’t like,” he said. “We didn’t want to come out right away and say, `I date so-and-so’ and then break up in a few weeks. So we just waited to see if there was any reason to tell anyone. In the beginning when you’re dating someone, especially when you’re away so much, it’s impossible to know whether someone actually is going to be your girlfriend.”
Stefani has made no secret of her desire to marry someday – hopefully, but not necessarily, to Rossdale.
“I know,” he said, laughing. “Well, she is an Italian girl and she’s very sweet. I think about marriage all the time and romantically, yeah, I’d marry her tomorrow. But I come from a typical sort of broken home, so marriage is such a sacred thing to me. When I get married, I want to stay married forever. I’d have to live with Gwen for at least a year to be real about it. I’ve always lived with people that I’ve been going out with because that seems a really good way of finding out about them. But I’d be happy to try.”
Despite Rossdale’s relationship with Stefani and his previous long-term relationship with a model named Jasmine, for whom he wrote the ballad “Glycerine,” rumors have circulated that he is gay. Boy George’s allegation in his autobiography that Rossdale dated a drag queen named Marilyn only added fuel to the fire.
“I just sort of laughed it off as a sort of funny comment,” said Rossdale, who said he is not gay. “I took it in the spirit in which it was written, which was humorously bitchy. I think there are far greater things for me to worry about than that kind of thing, you know what I mean? Marilyn has said in the press that what Boy George wrote was a load of bull- – – – so it doesn’t really matter to me. I come from a far too permissive society to take massive offense to that kind of thing. I have nothing to hide anyway.”
While Stefani may be his lady love, Rossdale’s companion is a furry Hungarian sheepdog named Winston, which he has insured for more than $5.5 million. He even named his new record label after the dog: the Mad Dog Winston Recording Co. The first band signed to the company – which is distributed through Trauma (home of Bush and No Doubt) – is a Swedish outfit called Souls. Interestingly enough, Albini produced some of the band’s songs.
“The band is brilliant,” Rossdale said. “I got their first record two or three years ago when I was on tour in Europe and I fell in love with this band. I listened to their record for two weeks and then I took them on tour with us. It’s not that important to me how many artists we get on the roster. I only want to sign bands that are complete and – – – – – – – brilliant.”
Asked if he would have signed Bush to Mad Dog, Rossdale laughed.
“Of course,” he said. “Wouldn’t you?”
