It seems Bush has moved further along in its quest for world domination in accordance with the groundwork that was laid down by Nirvana — a band that, unfortunately, isn't still around to play these songs themselves with a bit more subtlety. Following the release of Bush's massive major-label debut, which sounds uncannily like Nirvana's Nevermind, Bush lead singer Gavin Rossdale spent some time dating Courtney Love and even complained of a mysterious and undiagnosable chronic stomach ailment during the recording of the group's follow-up album, Razorblade Suitcase, with In Utero producer Steve Albini. Bush also loaded the album with not-so-unfamiliar lines about feeling "swallowed" and "contagious." The band's work was almost complete. Then, it must have occurred to Rossdale that the Nirvana guys were fans of and had played with the Chicago band Jesus Lizard, and... guess who's coming on board to help Bush fulfill its mimicry requirements? That's right, the Jesus Lizard. These longtime underground stalwarts of the Chicago Touch & Go scene... still have a level of critical cachet that has thus far eluded Bush, but which the band is rumored to desperately want. It is whispered that Bush is still holding out for some writer, any writer, to come to its defense. In other Bush news, the band's relationship with previous tour opener Veruca Salt took on a noticeable chill after Dave Grohl (who is dating Veruca Salt's Louise Post) spoke his mind to the English press about the Nirvana-like tendencies of Bush. Grohl, who quietly and gracefully kept quiet while Bush mined his previous band's work, was finally moved to refer to them as "the Tribute Band," and allegedly wore a shirt reading "BU$H" onstage in Nottingham, England, Gavin's old stomping grounds. Gavin, who in actuality adores Dave and can't see how offensive Bush's emulation of Nirvana is to the rest of the rock world, was upset by Dave's shirt, as it had been worn in his old hometown in front of friends and family. Apparently, he felt that Louise, as Dave's girlfriend, should have interceded and stopped him from wearing the shirt. Perhaps this can all be resolved peacefully: Dave could refrain from turning the name of Gavin's band into a dollar sign, and Gavin could refrain from turning everything about Dave's previous band into a dollar sign. —Curtis Plank