A work of unrelenting brilliance from the Devonshire trio, most definitely due a ten out of ten, says Stuart Spicer
The previous two Muse albums, ‘Origin of Symmetry’ and ‘Absolution’, are regarded by many as sonic milestones in the world of music. Both were massive successes, and both met with huge critical acclaim, catapulting the band into the class of ‘contemporary classic’. While most guitar bands, particularly British ones, are focusing on indie minimalism (often with superb results), Muse have been crafting operatic rock masterpieces, filled with a sense of scope and grandeur, combining highly charged guitars with extraordinary vocals.
On this, their fourth album, they have managed to outshine everything in their back catalogue, which to be quite honest is an impressive feat. In many respects this is their most accessible album, but it is also their most ambitious. The extraordinary vocals are still there, but seem more appropriate than before, and Matt Bellamy’s voice no longer displays the tendency to become a little overpowering as it often did on previous albums. Another development in the band’s sound is the use of electronic samples and dance beats on many tracks, such as ‘Take a Bow’ and ‘Map of the Problematique’.
First single ‘Supermassive Black Hole’ achieved chart success with its crooned vocals, catchy beat and angular guitars. According to Bellamy they had been highly influenced by Franz Ferdinand while writing this song, and wanted to create a track that could be danced to in nightclubs. New single ‘Starlight’ is one of their most emotionally encapsulating to date, beautifully sung and including a very Cure-like piano loop. They also delve deeply into their melodic side on ‘Soldier’s poem’, with its Queen-esque vocal harmonies. ‘Assassin’, on the other hand, is a tightly energetic piece of opera metal. ‘Invincible’ sounds like it could be a lost Radiohead classic from their pre ‘Kid A’ era. ‘Exo-Politics’ is enormously catchy, and again is very Queen-esque. Yet despite this derivativeness in sound, all the tracks are unmistakeably Muse, and still retain a huge degree of distinctiveness in style. On the final three tracks the theme becomes very Spaghetti Western/Mexican in sound, starting with the orchestral ‘City Of Delusion’ (one of their best songs to date), moving on to the atmospheric ‘Hoodoo’, and ending on the prog-rock epic ‘Knights of Cydonia’, which sounds like a cross between a Sergio Leone ‘stand-off’, and a Zeppelin charged voyage into mystical lands.
‘Black Holes and Revelations’ will surely grow to become a classic. There isn’t a single weak track on it! It is dazzling, mind-blowing, and (of course) totally over the top. If you thought the Arctic Monkeys were the best guitar band of the year, then think again…
