Album review
5 minute review read
Why I listened to this album
I haven’t been listening to Muse as long as a lot of my favourite artists, but a combination of friends insisting I listen to them and finding their CDs cheap in charity shops has recently resulted in my getting to know them a bit. I like a lot of odd tracks off various albums, but am yet to go on what I call a ‘discography campaign’ when I’ll listen to all the albums I’ve not yet heard (which is quite a few – they have a massive discography) in a short space of time. So, although I’m not a complete Muse novice, I’m still familiarising myself with their sound. (Apparently Nightshift Superstar is a return to their dance era, which I didn’t know existed) Yet, it’s a new album by an artist I like, why not listen to it? Enough about me, lets get onto the album!
The Album
To start, I find it interesting how many singles were released for this album. I think the average is 3, and there were 6 singles for The Wow! Signal: Unravelling, Be With You, Cryogen, Hexagons, Nightshift Superstar and Hush. This would strike me as a bit odd if there were, say, 15 tracks, even odder since there’s actually only 10, so where’s the hype in an album you’ve already heard more than half the songs off? Anyway, its still epic – Unravelling signalled a return to sound that was still brilliantly original and so catchy, Be With You took a few listens for me to like it, but it is definitely a good track, Cryogen and Hexagons are just bangers, metaphorical full stop, Nightshift Superstar we’ll get to later, and I was super taken aback by Hush, and I have a lot to say, so onto my standouts!
I’m gonna start with Nightshift Superstar, as unlike the rest of my standout tracks, the comments on this one might not be all positive (and chronologically by track listing, its the first). On my first listen of this song, I was, shall we say, confused. Since most of what I’ve heard of Muse is their first few albums and the hits off the others, I was not expecting what is essentially a straight-out-the-80s dance track. But, now that I’ve heard it in the context of the album, its super fun and seems to fit in its place after The Dark Forest and before Shimmering Scars. It creates great juxtaposition between the tracks either side of it, its bouncy, upbeat feel making The Dark Forest and Shimmering Scars seem even more dark and impactful beside it. Though I’m still not a fan of the use of gang vocals on some of the last choruses, overall this song has converted me with time!
I’m gonna talk about Cryogen and Hexagons as a kind of single entity, since they both really take us back to the classic Muse sound I’m aware of, and also came out quite close together and are close on the album, so are just intrinsically connected in my head. In Cryogen the breakdown-style bridge at about 4 minutes is absolutely extraordinary and gives all the guitar and bass parts a very satisfying payoff (also the riffs and basslines throughout this song are just so perfect and heavy, I love it). And the chorus variation with build is great, starting still rock but a bit layed back, and growing and growing until its got a massive feeling with great showing off of Matt Bellamy’s classic unique tone. Hexagons picks the pace back up after Be With You with a minute long intro, then dropping down for two short, whispered and pained-sounding lines, then settling into a pattern of build, softer sections and a driving force behind the vocals. There is a theme of dystopian love and rebellion that is as Muse a topic as the distinctive riffs, but still feels original enough, at least this time. It has a feel of symmetry as there is also a longish outro which transitions beautifully like nobody’s business into The Sickness In You & I
Unravelling was my favourite Muse track for a long time, and it might still be. But that’s just it – I’ve had a long time for it to be my favourite before this album. Like For I Am Death from the album Dear God by The Pretty Reckless (which I also did a review on – do I have to tell you to go read it when you’re finished here? Dear God Album Review) It has been so long since it was released it feels too familiar and not fresh enough for this album – and yet, it still fits perfectly within the futuristic, dystopian feel of this album, and how can you not love that pre-chorus transition?
My last standout is Hush, with Ellie Goulding, but I have to admit I really struggled to pick my standout tracks for this album – I just wanted to write about all of them! The chorus on this song is really catchy, and I love the little vocal breaks on the first one! Then it drops straight back down to introduce another chorus like movement of a repeated echo of the word ‘Hush’. Ellie Goulding’s chorus and the one that’s both of them are very pleasing on the ear and their voices really compliment each other. I feel like I could listen to that song ten times and still find something different to love each time – which is honestly how I feel about this whole album!
What do you guys think? The comment box is located below!
(And stay tuned for reviews of Dehumanized by Bring Me The Horizon and Puberty 2 by Mitski, as well as the book The Bookseller Of Inverness by S. G. MacLean!)
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