Rises Again Muse

Matthew Bellamy is unstoppable. By now, even he must know it. Of course, we're not living in Europe, so our faithful readers might not yet be familiar with the name. Key word: yet. The cyrrent release of The Resistance means that Bellamy is on the fast track to becoming a household name or perhaps we should be referring to him with his more recognized moniker: Muse. I don't mean to take away from the other two thirds of the English rock band, bassist Christopher Wolstenholme and drummer Dominic Howard. Both are masterful musicians in their own right who are not (entirely) dispensable. But let's face it: Bellamy, with his powerful pipes, fluid piano and guitar work, and, most importantly, writing credits (that's right…on every single song) should feel free to lay claim to any praise bestowed on the name of Muse.The previous two albums, Absolution and Black Holes and Revelations, quite firmly established their style within the realm of progressive rock so that upon hearing that passionate vocal range, pounding beats, and dramatic compositions, there was no doubt that we were experiencing Muse. The Resistance does not offer much more in the way of style. Although I would have liked for them to tread some slightly more radical grounds, fortunately there is no disappointingly jarring shift we see too often in artists trying to experiment with sounds (see Chris Cornell's Timbaland-produced 2009 album, Scream).The Resistance makes up for this possible repetitiveness in pure ambition. Muse has always been nothing short of what can only be called epic. The last album obviously didn't cut it for them, because Muse ups the drama and widens their scope, bringing us an album worthy of singing Beowulf to. As if to show off his cultured knowledge of music, Bellamy features an excerpt from Frederic Chopin's Nocturne in E-Flat, Op. 9 No. 2 in the track titled "United States of Eurasia/Collateral Damage." He also rearranged parts of "Mon coeur s'ouvre à ta voix" from Camille Saint-Saens opera "Samson and Delilah" for the track "I Belong to You." Yeah, I don't know what those are either, but they sure sound sophisticated.

'The Resistance' Muse, Album review

This over the top English trio has long played to smaller audiences in the United States than it does throughout Europe, where Muse is considered among the biggest rock bands on Earth. (In 2007 it played two sold out shows at London's 75,000 capacity Wembley Stadium.Yet singer-guitarist Matt Bellamy, bassist Chris Wolstenholme and drummer Dominic Howard received a considerable encouragement on these shores last year when their song "Supermassive Black Hole" was featured conspicuously in the hit movie "Twilight." And last week came news that "Uprising," the lead single from the band's fifth full length, had topped the U.S. alternative rock radio chart.In some ways, "The Resistance" seems designed for an American breakthrough: "Undisclosed Desires" rides a lithe R&B groove that could've come from a song by Nelly Furtado, while "Uprising" finds Bellamy sympathizing with folks who consider themselves victims of Wall Street greed. Over a thumping disco glam beat he sneers, "It's time the fat cats had a heart attack," a line that's probable to draw a huge reaction later this month when Muse opens a string of U2 shows on the East Coast and in Texas.On the other hand, much of "The Resistance" reflects how uninterested the members of Muse are in dialing down their appealing flamboyance to attract Daughtry and Nickelback fans. That arty intransigence often improves the band's music, as in "United States of Eurasia," which proceeds from a pretty piano ballad intro to an Arabian accented orchestral rock climax.Occasionally, though, it can make Bellamy and his bandmates sound like the world's most successful sourpusses. You don't have to make it all the way through "Exogenesis," the three part symphony that closes the new album, before you start hankering for a Nickelback style chorus.
Mikael Wood
Muse "The Resistance" Warner Bros. Two and a half stars