Review and Photos by Rebecca Clark

Bush assembled fans into their kingdom at their sold-out show at The Vine at del Lago in Waterloo on Feb. 11.

Warming up the crowd for Bush was female artist Devora. Devora has an alt-rock sound with a country twist intertwined with her lyrics. Her sound and vibe make her unique in the rock music scene. Devora’s sound is a mix of rock, country, emo, and pop all rolled into her music.

After Devora’s rocking set, Bush dove in headfirst, bringing full-speed energy with their song “Identify” off their latest album The Art of Survival. Lead vocalist Gavin Rossdale is such a force as a performer and his energy immediately captivated fans when he came out on stage. Rossdale bounced and danced around and was in his element onstage.

Rossdale’s spirit really elevated fans during the entire show. One of the highlights was during “Bullet Holes” In true Rossdale form, he jumped from the stage and made his way through the audience on the floor, hopped up to the elevated seats, and sang to fans out in the crowd. This is something Rossdale is known for doing and their fans love catching a closer glimpse of him as he makes his rounds.

Drummer Nik Hughes is an absolute animal behind the drum kit. Hughes went wild getting the fans to go crazy by standing up, making intense faces, and pumping his arms in the air. Lead guitarist Chris Traynor really vibed musically with Rossdale during their set. Watching Rossdale and Traynor playing off each other was magical to see. Bassist Corey Britz made a point to interact and connect with all band members during their set. Because Britz connects with each member he does his job well as a bassist, being the heartbeat of the band.

Bush is a well-seasoned band, but they still know how to rock and give their fans a show they won’t forget. They do a fantastic job picking a set list and gave the fans a mixture of classic Bush songs through their newer songs. They ended their set with “Comedown” from their 16 Stone album, which was fitting because after seeing Bush perform live, their fans don’t want to ever “Comedown” from the cloud of Bush’s performance.

Setlist:
Identity
Machine Head
Blood River
Chemicals
Bullet Holes
Sound of Winter
Flowers
Zen
1000 Years
Quicksand
Heavy is the Ocean
More Than Machines
Little Things
Kingdom
Glycerine
Comedown