Gavin Rossdale

Say what you will, but it can't be easy being Gavin Rossdale. As the frontman of breakthrough '90s rockers Bush, his enigmatic lyrics and rich hooks took a backseat to his heartthrob looks. Then he falls in love, gets married, and overnight he becomes subjugated to significant other status, forever rendered "Gwen Stefani's husband." Well, hats off to Rossdale, because on Wanderlust, his first full-fledged solo album, he not only embraces his role as husband and father, but also explores his role as an artist. There are moments where the album's compelling array of heady hooks takes a backseat to flirtatious runs of lyrical syrup, but the album's split is so extreme, you have to assume it's deliberate. Ultimately, that's what makes it so compelling.

Early-on, the songs seem heavily influenced by finding a sense of self amidst the selflessness of family, a weighty subject that Rossdale tackles capably. As adept at embracing irony as he is masking reality, the lyrics offer a sense of direction, but not an obvious path, and are light and poppy enough to get lost within while expansive enough to explore for deeper meaning. "Frontline" and "Forever May You Run" are perfect for radio, the first chugging along with a modern rock sway befitting of Adult Top 40, while the latter–like lead single "Love Remains the Same"–a seeping ballad that drifts along with passive restraint. If there's a piece that doesn't fit, it is "Future World," which offers subtle nods to Sting in his more world-flavored solo daze, but does little to bridge the album's more reluctant first half with the heavier, Bush-flavored timbre of "If You're Not With Us You Are Against Us," "This Is Happiness" and "Another Night In The Hills." Back in 1994, Rossdale asked, "should I fly to Los Angeles, find my asshole brother?" Fourteen years later the search isn't for a sibling, it's for a sense of self. While everything on Wanderlust isn't zen, life rarely is, and it's in that realization that Gavin Rossdale has found his musical identity.

I—Paul Gargano
06.19.08