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Razorblade Suitcase

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Razorblade Suitcase
Studio album by
Bush
Released19 November 1996[1]
StudioSarm Hook End and Abbey Road Studios, London, England, U.K.
GenreGrunge[2][3]
Length61:43
Label
ProducerSteve Albini
Bush chronology
Sixteen Stone
(1994) 		Razorblade Suitcase
(1996) 		Deconstructed
(1997)
Singles from Razorblade Suitcase
  1. "Swallowed"
    Released: 15 October 1996
  2. "Greedy Fly"
    Released: 28 January 1997
  3. "Bonedriven"
    Released: 16 April 1997
  4. "Cold Contagious"
    Released: 20 December 1997

Razorblade Suitcase is the second studio album by English rock band Bush, released on 19 November 1996 by Trauma and Interscope Records. The follow-up to their 1994 debut Sixteen Stone, it was recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London with engineer and producer Steve Albini. Its sound is more raw than that of its predecessor and has frequently been compared to Nirvana's In Utero (1993), which was also produced and engineered by Albini.[4][5] The album is widely regarded as being the last major "grunge" album of the 1990s.

Razorblade Suitcase debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, selling 293,000 copies in its first week of sales in the United States.[6] To date, it remains the only Bush album to top the Billboard 200.[7] The twentieth anniversary of the album was marked with a reissue officially titled Razorblade Suitcase (In Addition) on 16 December 2016, including the remastered album and four rare bonus tracks: "Broken TV," "Old," "Sleeper" and "Bubbles."[8]

Recording and production

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Gavin Rossdale wrote most of the songs for Razorblade Suitcase in under one month. "Swallowed", along with others from the album were written while on the road.[9] In an interview with the Deseret News published on 2 January 1997, Rossdale explained:

"I was trying to write songs while my life was falling apart. While my longtime girlfriend of five years was leaving and packing in one room, I was writing in the other room."[9]

The band chose Steve Albini to produce the album. In an interview with Spin during the final stages of the recording process Rossdale was quoted as saying that Albini "has been more important to me in terms of records I've listened to than any other person."[10] Around the same time Albini declared that he put more time and energy into Razorblade Suitcase than he had with any previous albums.[10]

Content

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Described as a grunge album by Entertainment Weekly,[3] Razorblade Suitcase invited strong comparisons to the music of Nirvana, whose final album In Utero had been produced by Albini in 1993.[4] "Swallowed" and "Bonedriven" in particular conjured a description of "irresistibly reminiscent" of Nirvana.[11] "Straight No Chaser" was opined by The A.V. Club to be the "sister ballad" to the band's earlier hit "Glycerine",[12]

Nicholas Slayton of Medium opined that the lyrics of Razorblade Suitcase "focused on three main ideas and problems";being trapped in situations with no way out, fallout from relationships and loneliness.[13]

"Personal Holloway"

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"Personal Holloway", according to Slayton, reflected lament for societal norms forced on women. Gavin Rossdale, in 1999,stated that the song was about a female friend who attempted to commit suicide; the song contains references to paracetamol as a result. It contained a lyric "deaf and dumb with the lights on, married by signs" which was inspired by list of all the people who'd lived in an English country house, at which Rossdale stayed, for the past 300 years; one couple from around 200 prior were listed as "deaf and dumb, married by signs".[13][14]

"Swallowed"

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Gavin Rossdale commented in 2017 that the lead-single, "Swallowed", reflected "massive success after failing for years".[15]

"Insect Kin"

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"Insect Kin" has been described by Rossdale as being "mood, pure mood". The song's lyrics mention vicodin, an opiate pain medication, and Red Stripe, a brand of lager beer, which Rossdale explained "were pretty much what I lived on when my stomach was really bad". "Insect Kin" contains references to Rossdale's previous love interest Courtney Love, particularly in the lyric "it's all the pain in the way she walks, it's all the pain in her wave goodbye".[13][14]

"Cold Contagious"

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"Cold Contagious" musically has been compared to the work of Neil Young.[16] Rossdale has introduced the song at live performances as being "about revenge", although Rossdale has stated that the song is about several subjects, including seeing households fall apart following the breakup of relationships.[14]

"History"

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"History" was themed around abortion.[13]

Promotion

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In 1997, Bush embarked on a worldwide tour, the Razorblade Suitcase Tour, to promote the album. Stretching from late January into November of that year, it took the band through Europe, North America, South America, Asia, and Australia. It included stops at many major music festivals around the world, including Glastonbury Festival, Pinkpop Festival, Reading Festival, Rock am Ring, Rock im Park, and Pukkelpop.[17][18]

Release and reception

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Razorblade Suitcase was released on November 19, 1996, through Trauma Records. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, selling 293,000 copies in its first week.[6] It remained at number one during its second week of release in the US. The album also debuted at number one in Canada, with first-week sales of 45,900 copies.[6] Despite the album selling fewer copies than Sixteen Stone in the US, it marked a commercial peak for the band in their native Britain, where it reached number four on the UK Albums Chart.[19]

The band originally planned to release the album in early 1997 but decided it would be better for a late 1996 release, especially considering that U2's next album was pushed into 1997.[9]

The lead single from the album, "Swallowed", was released in October 1996 and was a huge success in the US, holding the number one spot on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart for 7 weeks.[20] It remains the band's longest charting number one single. "Swallowed" also marked the commercial peak for the band in their native United Kingdom's singles charts, where it made number 7.

"Greedy Fly" was the second single released from Razorblade Suitcase and reached number three on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart.[20] The singles "Swallowed" and "Greedy Fly" peaked at number seven and number twenty-two, respectively, on the UK Singles Chart.[19]

"Bonedriven" and "Cold Contagious" followed as singles but did not make an impact on the charts.[20]

"Mouth" was remixed and later released as a single from the band's 1997 album Deconstructed. The remixed version reached number five on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart.[20] "Mouth" is featured on the soundtrack and in the film An American Werewolf in Paris. The "Mouth" music video features Julie Delpy, who also starred in the film.[21]

20th anniversary reissue

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The 20th anniversary of Razorblade Suitcase was marked by a reissue, officially titled Razorblade Suitcase (In Addition). It was released digitally on 16 December 2016,[22] and on vinyl on 10 February 2017.[23] The reissue includes the remastered album and four rare bonus tracks: "Broken TV", "Old", "Sleeper", and "Bubbles". Prior to the reissue, three of the four bonus tracks had been released as B-sides ("Broken TV" with "Swallowed" and "Old" with "Greedy Fly") or found on compilations, but "Sleeper" had never received a proper release.[8] The vinyl release of the reissue is on 180 gram black and white swirl vinyl and comes housed in a metallic silver gatefold cover with re-interpreted artwork, a poster of lyrics (including the songs that weren't on the original), and liner notes from producer Steve Albini.[8]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
Entertainment WeeklyC[3]
The Independent(Negative)[11]
Rolling Stone[24]
NME1/10[25]
Select[26]
Spin5/10[27]

Razorblade Suitcase received polarized reviews upon its release. Some critics dismissed the album because they felt that although the band attempted to distance themselves from bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam in terms of their sound, they ultimately failed at creating a sound of their own. For example, Entertainment Weekly reviewer David Browne stated that some of the songs on the album could have easily been on the record Nirvana never made (due to Kurt Cobain's suicide). Andy Gill from The Independent also stated that portions of the album are very reminiscent of Nirvana, citing songs such as "Swallowed" and "Bonedriven" as irresistible reminders of Nirvana.[11] Rolling Stone's Matt Diehl criticized the album at the time of its release, giving the album two out of five stars.[24] Johnny Cigarettes from NME gave the album an extremely negative review, rating it 1/10 "for spelling their name right on the top of the record".[25] However, Razorblade Suitcase was not criticized by all critics. Select magazine gave the effort three out of five stars.[26]

AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine stated:

"The problem is that Gavin Rossdale has not come up with any hooks, which means that while Razorblade Suitcase is more pleasing and visceral on the surface, it offers no hooks to make it memorable, unlike the hit singles from Sixteen Stone."[5]

Packaging

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The album's working title was Ghost Medicine but was changed for unknown reasons. The title Razorblade Suitcase comes from the lyrics of the song "Synapse" and is lead singer Gavin Rossdale's interpretation of "emotional baggage." The album artwork was by Vaughan Oliver and Adrian Philpott. Oliver had previously created the artwork for the Pixies' Surfer Rosa, which was also produced by Steve Albini.[5]

Track listing

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All songs written by Gavin Rossdale[28]

No.TitleLength
1."Personal Holloway"3:23
2."Greedy Fly"4:30
3."Swallowed"4:51
4."Insect Kin"4:27
5."Cold Contagious"6:00
6."A Tendency to Start Fires" ([note 1])4:04
7."Mouth"5:45
8."Straight No Chaser" ([note 2])4:02
9."History"4:17
10."Synapse" ([note 3])4:52
11."Communicator"4:25
12."Bonedriven"4:32
13."Distant Voices" (ends at 5:16; includes hidden track "Whatever/History Reprise")6:39
Total length:61:43
Japanese Edition
No.TitleLength
14."Broken TV"4:28
20th Anniversary Reissue
No.TitleLength
14."Old"2:50
15."Broken TV"4:26
16."Sleeper"4:19
17."Bubbles"3:02
Notes
  1. ^ "A Tendency to Start Fires" does not appear on the LP version due to time constraints
  2. ^ "Straight No Chaser" does not appear on the LP version due to time constraints
  3. ^ Synapse" does not appear on the LP version due to time constraints

Personnel

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Charts

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[49] Gold 35,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[50] 5× Platinum 500,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[51] Gold 7,500^
United Kingdom (BPI)[52] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[53] 3× Platinum 3,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ "Billboard". 16 November 1996.
  2. ^ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4 ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 122. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  3. ^ a b c Browne, David (22 November 1996). "Review: Razorblade Suitcase (1996) – Bush". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 3 August 2009.
  4. ^ a b SPIN – Google Books. December 1996. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  5. ^ a b c d Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Razorblade Suitcase – Bush". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  6. ^ a b c "Bush's Razorblade Suitcase cuts to top". Jam!. Archived from the original on 15 June 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  7. ^ "Bush – Chart history – Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  8. ^ a b c Roffman, Michael (18 November 2016). "Bush share never-before-released Razorblade Suitcase track "Sleeper" – listen". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  9. ^ a b c Bauder, David (2 January 1997). "CRITICS MAY BASH BUSH, BUT BAND'S A REAL HIT WITH BUYERS". Deseret News. Archived from the original on 13 May 2014. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  10. ^ a b SPIN – Google Books. December 1996. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  11. ^ a b c Gill, Andy (17 January 1997). "Review: Razorblade Suitcase". The Independent. Retrieved 3 August 2009.
  12. ^ Ryan, Kyle (19 March 2013). "Bush had fame, but with Razorblade Suitcase, it wanted credibility". A.V. Club. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  13. ^ a b c d Slayton, Nicholas (6 June 2014). "Hell Is Where The Heart Is". Medium.
  14. ^ a b c Nine, Jennifer (1999). Bush: Twenty-seventh Letter : the Official History. Virgin. ISBN 9780753501894. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  15. ^ Trednell, Andrew (1 March 2017). "Gavin Rossdale explains how he wrote Bush's 'Swallowed'". NME. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  16. ^ Morse, Steve (17 September 2005). "Bush Heartthrob taking a beating". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 31 August 2020.
  17. ^ "Bush Hits The Road – MTV". MTV. 16 January 1997. Archived from the original on 9 May 2014. Retrieved 7 May 2014.
  18. ^ "1997–1998 at OneSecondBush.com – A Comprehensive Fan Site For The Band Bush". OneSecondBush.com. Retrieved 7 May 2014.
  19. ^ a b "Bush – Artist – Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  20. ^ a b c d "Bush – Chart history – Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  21. ^ "Julie Delpy – Other works". IMDb. Retrieved 14 May 2014.
  22. ^ "Bush: Razorblade Suitcase (In Addition): Music". ASIN B01MQT9GSU. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
  23. ^ "Bush: Razorblade Suitcase (In Addition): Music". ASIN B01N4DYUA3. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
  24. ^ a b Diehl, Matt (13 November 1996). "Review: Bush – Razorblade Suitcase". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 16 February 2007. Retrieved 3 August 2009.
  25. ^ a b Cigarettes, Johnny (18 January 1997). "Review: Bush – Razorblade Suitcase". NME. Archived from the original on 17 August 2000. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  26. ^ a b Lawrence, Eddy. "Review: Bush – Razorblade Suitcase, Trauma Records". Select (March 1997). EMAP Metro: 102.
  27. ^ Powers, Ann (January 1997). "Review: Bush – Razorblade Suitcase". Spin (January 1997): 84.
  28. ^ "Razorblade Suitcase – Bush – Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 May 2014. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  29. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Bush – Razorblade Suitcase". Hung Medien.
  30. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Bush – Razorblade Suitcase" (in German). Hung Medien.
  31. ^ "Ultratop.be – Bush – Razorblade Suitcase" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
  32. ^ "Ultratop.be – Bush – Razorblade Suitcase" (in French). Hung Medien.
  33. ^ "Bush Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard.
  34. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Bush – Razorblade Suitcase" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
  35. ^ "Eurochart Top 100 Albums - February 8, 1997" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 16, no. 49. 8 February 1997. p. 14. Retrieved 8 December 2021.
  36. ^ "Bush: Razorblade Suitcase" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.
  37. ^ "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH.
  38. ^ "Tonlist Top 30". Dagblaðið Vísir. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  39. ^ "Charts.nz – Bush – Razorblade Suitcase". Hung Medien.
  40. ^ "Top National Sellers - February 15, 1997" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 16, no. 49. 15 February 1997. p. 14. Retrieved 8 December 2021.
  41. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
  42. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Bush – Razorblade Suitcase". Hung Medien.
  43. ^ "Top National Sellers - February 8, 1997" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 16, no. 49. 8 February 1997. p. 14. Retrieved 8 December 2021.
  44. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
  45. ^ "Bush Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  46. ^ "The RPM Top 100 Albums of 1996". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Archived from the original on 21 October 2012. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  47. ^ "Dutchcharts – End of Year 1996". Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 February 2012.
  48. ^ "Billboard.BIZ – Year-end Charts – Billboard 200 – 1997". Billboard. Archived from the original on 25 October 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  49. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1996 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  50. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Bush – Razorblade Suitcase". Music Canada. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  51. ^ "New Zealand album certifications – Bush – Razorblade Suitcase". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  52. ^ "British album certifications – Bush – Razorblade Suitcase". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  53. ^ "American album certifications – Bush – Razorblade Suitcase". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
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