REVIEWS:
(reviewed by Alex Wilson)
Muse were one of those bands that I'd always liked since their arrival around 1999, but for some reason I'd always neglected their albums. So I made a point to buy Absolution, and let me tell you, I'm so glad I did. I don't know if this is one of the best modern rock albums I've heard, but it's certainly one of the most enjoyable. For me, having such a theatrical, bombastic rock and roll record released 2003 (of all years) is a total blessing. What Muse has done is taken a whole lot of seemingly incompatible influences (Queen's baroque histrionics, Nirvana's energetic, chaotic rock and Radiohead's affection for classic 70s prog) and turned it all into a gloriously over-the-top quasi-concept album about the end of the world. Why this slightly dorky and obviously revisionist approach wasn't commercial suicide for a mainstream rock band is totally beyond me, but hell, I'm not complaining when I have such a great album on my hands.
Having just opened with an introduction of military marching sounds, Muse launch into "Apocalypse Please," a song complete with a trademark Freddie Mercury piano hook, synthesizer lines that sound stolen from Keith Emerson or Rick Wakeman and more Thom Yorke-esque vocal tricks than you can nasally wail at. But it's all just so grandiose that what is seemingly campy also comes across as quite sincere. The album is full of similarly awesome epic moments: "Sing For Absolution" the 'heartfelt' "Falling Away With You" and the string filled pomposity of "Blackout " that works so well despite itself. One of the things I always liked about Muse was their talent for great rockers, and they thankfully haven't abandoned those either. "Time Is Running Out" contrasts sedate keyboard pop and a great bass hook with a big rock chorus and "Stockholm Syndrome" is an uptempo thrasher with a great gothic vibe and more gloriously silly neo-classical synth lines.
Throughout the record, the band sound great. Dom Howard does a solid job on the drums and bassist Chris Wolstenholme is indispensable. Check out his awesome line in "Hysteria," it's catchy in its own right by itself and basically carries the song. However, the real heavyweight of the band is vocalist/guitarist/keyboardist Matt Bellamy. His Cobain and Greenwood influenced guitar is powerful and ever-present and his precocious, dramatic vocals and falsetto are a great assets. However, he is also a fantastic piano player! The classical piano interlude to "Butterflies and Hurricanes" as an amazing display of virtuosity and is one of the finest moments on the record. Incidentally, the aforementioned song is easily the album's best, a monolithic combination of Bellamy's impassioned vocals, pounding piano and a rocking rhythm section.
To put it simply, an album so well crafted and executed is a rarity nowadays, and even despite wearing it's influences so openly on its sleeve, Absolution never really sounds dated at all. For a record that's so fantastically theatrical and pretentious, it's also remarkably mature and shows the immense potent ional of Muse. They have really shown themselves to be one of the best mainstream rock bands around at the moment. I really can't wait to see what they do next..
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