Muse - Black Holes and Revelations

ALBUM REVIEW

If you've read any of my blog, then you'll notice that I really dig these guys. This album is no different. I do my very best to be objective, and I'll call them when they make a bad song. It's just that they really don't make that many. This album is being slated as the sequel to "Absolution", but I think that if it is, then it's a sequel like Empire is to A New Hope.

This album has so many different influences and styles on it, it would seem scattegorical mounted by anyone else. Matthew Bellamy's vocals wail and soar above the very dense sound that this three-piece can create. Chris Wolstenholme's bass work is sometimes limited by the straight-forward rhythm of some of the songs, but he usually finds ways to shine throughout. Dominic Howard provides the framework for all of thundering and pounding of the hardest rocking songs, and the understated backbone to the stripped down softer tunes. Musically, they never cease to amaze me. Vocally, the leads and the harmonies all sound fantastic to me. Lyrically, they even manage to step above the typical "goth" and give real feeling to some of their bleaker themes, and true heart in their poignant moments as well. This is a very fine album, so let me get into telling you why I think so.

I know that I may give you another band as a reference of how someone sounds. Even though I try to avoid it, it seems almost inevitable, and a very effective way to let you know what to expect. "Take A Bow" is techno- tinged Emerson, Lake & Palmer. I'm not just saying that because that band has my last name in it - I'm saying it because it's true. From the spacey keyboards that start things off to the guitars that eventually come in, this is grand, sweeping strokes. There is almost always a touch of outer space in all of Muse's work, but this one clearly embraces that aesthetic. It's not my favorite way to open an album, but it's no throw-away track either.

"Starlight" was the first track I latched onto from this album, and it's still one of my favorites. Vocals to the fore on this romantic track, and keyboards in the front seat also. The chorus is simple, and yet very evocative to me. I count this as one of my favorite songs they do overall. This definitely has already made it's way onto several mix CD's.

There's a bit of Mr. Roboto hiding in the circuits of "Supermassive Black Hole". The title of the track is given in a electrified voice effect, and that suits the song just fine. This is danceable, fuzzy guitared funkiness with a slithering vocal track that would make Prince proud. It's got a lot going on, and a lot going for it, and it's hard not to get into the groove.

The new new wave is here. Echoing guitars that sound like they're reverberating off the rings of Saturn drench this complex and intoxicating song. This song is so thick with sonic goodies, I feel full when I'm done listening to it. I think that "Map of the Problematic" is a fantastic song, and it might be where I introduce people to Muse from now on.

"Soldier's Poem" is a short, somber funeral. It's whispered vocals show that there is a beauty to mourning. The words are haunting, and particularly powerful right now. I don't like political statements, but this is almost so touching that it goes beyond that.

Guitars come whistling by like the howling wind in "Invincible", which plays out like a loping love poem written while listening to Pink Floyd. It's strong, and seamless, and very good stuff.

If the last song had you drifting, "Assassin" gets you racing. From the middle-eastern maelstrom of the intro, we slip into a thrashing beat. This is disciplined chaos, or frantic symmetry. Fast and fierce and relentless, and I love that about it.

"Exo-Politics" is probably my least favorite song on the album. That being said, it struts in like a bully, daring you to ignore it, and then has the nerve to throw a theremin in there, just because it can. The only real problem I have with it is that it sounds a little too much like other Muse songs, and just doesn't resonate with me as it's own new creation like the rest of the album.

Typically, the addition of strings in rock tends to either fail miserably, and just sound odd, or make the entire track sound like an ELO throwback. "City of Delusion" doesn't do either of those. It begins understated, with acoustic guitar, and it makes that first verse something special when the strings come in. The strings weave through the song, like the thick plume of smoke from the Arabian hookah that they seem spawned from. As a bonus, if you listen closely, you can hear a great impersonation of a didgeridoo.

"Hoodoo" is, by definition, a magic spell. From the opening drunken flamenco, that leads to pleading vocals seeking solace, this song puts a mean whammy on you. Piano comes crashing in like the locomotive hinted at in the lyrics at that point, and just adds more layers of intensity. A sampling of why I do enjoy these songs lyrically can be found at the end of this song:

I've had recurring nightmares
that I was loved for who I am
and missed the opportunity
to be a better man

If you think they saved the best for last, then you may be right. "Knights of Cydonia" is a fantastic song. It's an electro-galloping epic that the Magnificent Seven wish they had ridden to. If you're familiar with Stephen King's The Dark Tower series, this song belongs with Roland, and his ka-tet. For those of you unfamiliar, imagine a world with medieval chivalry, magic of the arcane and the technological, and a cowboy leading the way. It's such a satisfying way to end this album.

All in all, this might be my favorite Muse album. I'm trying to weigh it against the others, and be sure that it's not just the newness talking, but I do believe it's filled with many wonderful new songs that have and will continue to be great with each listen. I believe I've said before that Muse definitely has a sound, and if you really don't like it, you might want to leave them alone. I think it would be a shame not to listen to this album, even if you have tried them in the past.

Rating = ****1/2 out of 5 stars