Digital Diversion

Bush is back … back from Rossdale’s solo albums and family life with a new album, The Sea of Memories (released September 13). So how do you dust off the cobwebs and put the new material through its paces? Book a tour of smaller venues including San Francisco’s Great American Music Hall (which holds, what? maybe 500 people?), outfit the stage with enough lighting equipment that the chandeliers on the balcony dim every time the strobes kick in and cram the sold-out room with the Bush die-hards including a gaggle of ladies pressed tight against the stage.

Wasting no time getting to the material, Gavin and crew busted out The Mirror of the Signs from The Sea of Memories as the show opener and spent the rest of the set bouncing between the new stuff and the tried-and-true off of Sixteen Stone, somewhat surprisingly largely eschewing the balance of their catalog. The new material received a positive reception from the crowd, especially considering it’s only been out a week, and integrated pretty seamlessly with the old with the exception of the ballad All Night Doctors which lacked the edge of the rest of the set. Based on the audience reaction, though, I may have been the only one that noticed.

I know the review mentions cobwebs above, but there were truly none to be seen. Gavin no doubt still knows how to work a room, making sure that the aforementioned ladies got plenty off face-time in exchange for their enthusiasm. Add in a tour of the balcony during The Afterlife which included an up-close-and-personal serenade for one lucky lady that surely made her dreams come true, and it would be hard to argue that these guys didn’t give it their all during the 90+ minute set.

With any band coming out of an extended hiatus, there’s always going to be the lingering question about relevance. Bush clearly demonstrated tonight that there’s still a place for them.

Setlist:

• The Mirror of the Signs
• Little Things
• I Believe In You
• Greedy Fly
• The Sound of Winter
• Everything Zen
• The Chemicals Between Us
• The Heart of the Matter
• The People That We Love
• All Night Doctors
• Swallowed
• The Afterlife
• Machinehead

–Encore–

• Alien
• Come Together
• Glycerine
• Comedown

Supporting Act: Dead Sara

© 2011 Alan Snodgrass | www.digitaldiversion.net. Please do not use without express permission (contact). If you like what you see, leave a comment below and subscribe so you can be notified of new posts. You can also become a fan on Facebook for access to exclusive photos.

Very cool rock band fronted by a ballsy female singer channeling a healthy dose of Joplin and a guitar player with a machine gun-fast right hand. These guys (and gals) banged out a tight, 30 minute set, successfully doing exactly what an opening act should do … get the crowd lubed and pumped.

© 2011 Alan Snodgrass | www.digitaldiversion.net. Please do not use without express permission (contact). If you like what you see, leave a comment below and subscribe so you can be notified of new posts. You can also become a fan on Facebook for access to exclusive photos.