First and foremost, this is not a Bush album and I know that bothers a lot of people. I was taken aback by it a little at first --- not really in a "dislike" aspect but moreso in a "how does this make me feel sense of the world. I guess that happens when you have listened to something from the beginning and sort of expect a sound when you unwrap the security decals and hit the "play" button. As I listened to the album, I found this to be a good thing, though, surprising in some respects and simply touching in others. After the third "go", I think it became evident that this had potential to grow on me and grow on me it did.

As far as the album itself, it has a lot to offer but does so in a cleaner way than most Bush albums had forgotten how to do. I'm not sure that was a bad thing: when I purchased my last Bush album, I really loved some song, found some songs replayable, and found a pocket of outsiders that I really did not want to bother with. With this solo offering it is a tad different --- sometimes I was happily surprised by the melodic undertones of a song and sometimes I was outright impressed by what Gavin had managed to construct from this solo piece. I say that because solo pieces are oftentimes disappointing, brining to light what you liked about a band and then hoping this isn't the progression that the lead singer hopes to follow. And while I cannot say I want Bush albums to sound this way in the future, I can say I liked what I heard and it made me appreciate Gavin even more.

Some songs did sound a bit like Bush songs (understandably so), and I loved them. As far as potential singles, I liked "Can't Stop the World" for its beautiful composition of what love and life are, thought the slow thematic progression of The Skin I'm In had definitely repeatability, Future World had a message inside a message, and there was so much more. Aside for the differing beats and addition of instrumentation here and there, Rossdale's voice was like a beacon beckoning from my headphones and I found myself appreciating that time and again.

If you question the validity of people's comments, listen to the samples proved and check out other samples if you still are satiated. If you are a Bush fan you may like it PROVIDED you don't mind the cleaner sound it has, and if you are not a Bush Fan you still have a ballpark to play in. Reviews are simply symptoms of people's inner thoughts playing and, sadly, they re sometimes bias by many shades of randomness. If you are in doubt, check out the samples and see what you think.

Recommended.

Reading the reviews, it strikes me that a lot of people are disappointed that this album isn't more like Distort Yourself (by Institute, Gavin's fleeting band of almost 3 years ago), however that album was not terribly popular, as is shown in its very low sales, so the comments are surprising.

Most of us mid 90's grunge lovers who hung on Bush's every word have a more mature outlook on life now, over ten years later, and Gavin Rossdale has grown right along with us.

Not Bush, not even similar in sound, this album is more melodious and heartfelt. It's deep and soulful, the lyrics are meaningful and the gravelly sexy voice combined with Rossdales upper class English accent just hits the nail on the head.

Don't put this on if you are having a freshman dorm room party but instead enjoy it over dinner with a glass of wine and mellow conversation.

I had to listen to it all the way through twice before the songs started to grow on me...but now i love it...i havent taken out of my cd player for a week now...of course love remains the same is my favorite so far, but the first track, cant stop the world is quickly becoming my new favorite!

"Wanderlust" is Gavin Rossdale's first solo album, although it's not his first album away from BUSH. In 2005, he formed a new band called Institute and put out a very under-rated album called "Distort Yourself." I honestly felt it was his best work since Bush's "Sixteen Stone." As good as the album was, it wasn't marketed very well and had poor sales. Bush as a band is still unofficially broken up, so I guess it made sense for Gavin to put together something on his own.

Traditionally, solo careers tend to be a bit lackluster compared to the bands they spawned from, but that doesn't mean they have to be bad. I already own all of Gavin's other CDs, so I thought I'd give this one a shot, though I wasn't expecting much. On my first listen of Wanderlust, I sort of shrugged and thought, "It's ok I suppose...nothing really great." After many more listens, I still wouldn't say the album is great, but it's definitly good. Many of the album's hooks have become stuck in my head throughout the day. Some of my favorites include "Can't Stop The World," "Frontline" and "Drive." They all have a memorable chorus that you can sing along to. So what do these songs sound like? Well, it's much more melodic than any of his previous bands, but it's not a bunch of quiet acoustic material. The songs are full of sound; lots of guitar effects, reverb on the vocals, and even some keyboards here and there. The music is atmospheric and kind of dreamy. The album has a couple of moments not unlike Institute or late Bush, such as "This Is Happiness" and "Another Night In The Hills." A couple of tunes have quite the pop-rock melody, like "Love Remains The Same" and "Forever May You Run." Then "Future World" has a reggae feel to it. I'm sure many people wanna know if this album sounds anything like "Adrenaline" (a great solo song Gavin did for the xXx soundtrack back in 2002). Well, nothing on here sounds just like it, yet if that song had appeared on this album, it wouldn't have been totally out of place. There's a lot of different stuff going on, yet all the songs maintain a very similar feel and mood. To me, this album is about self-discovery and reflecting on your own life. As the title of the album suggests, this is the kind of album you would put on when going on a roadtrip by yourself.

Is Wanderlust a bad album? No. Is it great or even remotely phenomenal. Um no. That's why the title for the review is Vanilla Music. To be honest the album deserves a 2.5 out of 5 because in the sense of semantics, middle of the road would be 2.5 out of 5. True there are actually some great tracks on this album, but it's hardly life changing or must have music. Basically if you like Gavin Rossdale's voice and were gracious enough to buy his equally lackluster Institute album, you're going to enjoy Wanderlust. It's as simple as that. You're not going to find some new progressive chords be it guitar or vocal and you won't be wowed by anything, but you will find an easily enjoyable rock pop album created by the ex-singer of Bush which will apparently be his calling card and his curse for a long time coming.

Just in case, wanderlust is defined as a strong desire for or impulse to wander, or, in modern usage, to travel and to explore the world and to be honest, I don't think there's no better antonym to wanderlust than the album with the same name. This isn't an adventure, it's straightforward vanilla rock... but hey, sometimes you're in the mood for vanilla.