Razorblade Suitcase

Infobox Album |
Name = Razorblade Suitcase
Type = Album
Artist = Bush


Released = November 19, 1996
Recorded = Sarm Hook End, Berks, England and Abbey Road Studios, London, England
Genre = Post-grunge
Length = 61:43
Label = Trauma/Interscope
Producer = Steve Albini
Reviews =
*Allmusic Rating|2.5|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:xycibkr9jakn link]
*"Rolling Stone" Rating|2|5 [http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/_/id/242869 link]
Last album = "Sixteen Stone"
(1994)
This album = "Razorblade Suitcase"
(1996)
Next album = "Deconstructed"
(1997)

"Razorblade Suitcase" is an album by the British post-grunge band Bush, released in 1996. The album has a slightly darker tone than Bush's previous album, "Sixteen Stone", which led to comparisons between "Razorblade Suitcase" and Nirvana's album "In Utero", because Bush sounded similar to Nirvana and Steve Albini recorded both albums. In actuality, the band was at the time more trying to emulate the Pixies than Nirvana. Albini had also recorded the Pixies' breakthrough LP Surfer Rosa, and the artwork was done by Vaughan Oliver and V23, who had also done the artwork for "Surfer Rosa". Gavin Rossdale made statements around the time of the release that he only hoped that Bush would be one day as successful as the Pixies were in England.

The album's working title was "Ghost Medicine" but was changed for unknown reasons. The title is a line from the lyrics of the song "Synapse".

"Sixteen Stone" was a radio-friendly grunge rock album that sold millions of copies. "Razorblade Suitcase", however, was more abrasive than the past album and as a result did not sell as well. However, "Razorblade Suitcase" reached the number-one spot on the U.S. Billboard 200, while "Sixteen Stone" peaked at the number-four spot.

Despite the album selling fewer copies than "Sixteen Stone" in the US, it marked a commercial peak for the band in their native Britain - it reached number 4 on the UK Album Chart, whilst "Swallowed" and "Greedy Fly" both peaked in the top 20 of the UK Singles Chart.

ingles

Bush released the first single from the album, "Swallowed," in mid 1997, and it was a big hit in America, poising the band for a successful album. "Swallowed" was number one on the Modern Rock Tracks chart for 7 weeks, the band's longest charting number 1 single. The second single, "Greedy Fly", was released after the 2 week long number 1 stay for "Razorblade Suitcase" in America, and reached the number 3 spot. "Bonedriven" and "Cold Contagious" followed and did not make an impact on the charts. "Mouth" was remixed and released on the album "Deconstructed" and reached the top 5 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart. However, in spite of (or perhaps due to) the success of the remix of "Mouth," the original album version was not very popular.

Track listing

# "Personal Holloway" – 3:23
# "Greedy Fly" – 4:29
# "Swallowed" – 4:53
# "Insect Kin" – 4:27
# "Cold Contagious" – 6:01
# "A Tendency to Start Fires" – 4:04
# "Mouth" – 5:46
# "Straight No Chaser" – 4:02
# "History" – 4:17
# "Synapse" – 4:52
# "Communicator" – 4:25
# "Bonedriven" – 4:32
# "Distant Voices" – 6:20

Chart positions