Muse - LP7: "Drones" out June 8 - Two new songs in March!

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > No More Drake > Muse - LP7: "Drones" out June 8 - Two new songs in March!

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Sir Lemming: Jan 27, 2009; It's a piece of JUNK!

Yikes, this song really doesn't have a whole lot going for it, does it? Production-wise it has some of the trappings of a Muse song -- even the return of our beloved arpeggios -- but for the most part it's just standard pop chords with an indistinct melody crooned on top of it. (And terrible lyrics, but that's really not worth mentioning at this point.)

I can easily picture it with some sort of dubstep fusion and/or four-on-the-floor dance beat behind it instead, sort of like "Follow Me" -- and sadly, it would probably be a lot better that way.

I still have a hard time believing the band really wants to "go back to their roots" and isn't just trying to please fans. This album is sounding more and more like the kind of half-hearted compromise between old and new that most aging rock bands end up falling into, once they've chosen to live in fear of backlash.

EDIT: Also, the very first thing the song reminded me of was when Luigi is trapped in a bubble in New Super Mario Bros. "Help-a meeee!"

Sir Lemming fucked around with this message at 02:48 on May 19, 2015

# ? May 18, 2015 22:51

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# ? May 24, 2024 20:22

Hedrigall: Mar 27, 2008; by vyelkin

Mercy's great.

Here's the first track-by-track! http://www.ouest-france.fr/leditiondusoir/data/490/reader/reader.html?t=1431965772029#!preferred/1/package/490/pub/491/page/13

Here's a hilariously lovely Google translation:

quote:

What is the new album by Muse?
BY RICHARD PHILIPPE
"Drones", the seventh album from British trio comes June 8 Twelve tracks on the theme of freedom for a conceptual project registered in Canada.

"Drones" was recorded in Vancouver by producer Robert "Mutt" Lange (AC.DC, Def Leppard, Maroon 5 ...). It contains twelve tracks and this is the first Muse album to adopt the form of a conceptual disc, with a common thread from beginning to end.
Not surprisingly, the theme is the control, oppression, freedom, dehumanization, the great conspiracy obsessions of singer-guitarist Matthew Bellamy that gathers here paranoid themes scattered on previous albums. "We returned to the sound of our beginnings," says Matthew everywhere interview. Really?

Dead Inside. The first single, available since March 23. An electro-pop title with a low saturated fat and remarkably little guitar (well, with his recognizable guitar). Matthew takes his voice very Freddy 'Queen' Mercury.
It is thought to be in the presence of a love song, the narrator revering a disturbing female figure, being zombification ("Your skin is warm under the caress, I see magic in your eyes. From the outside you seem alive but you're dead inside "). At the end of song, the hero succumbs also processing ("You taught me to lie without a trace, to kill without remorse. From the outside, I'm great, but I'm dead inside" ). If he addresses a woman or an image personified power?

Drill Sergeant. As its title indicates, an interlude as sergeants vitup�rants instructors.

Psycho. The piece had been put online in March, during the announcement of the new album: "For me, drones are metaphorical psychopaths that allow a psychopathic behavior without remedy, wrote Matthew. The world is run by drones using drones in order to turn us all into drones. This album explores the journey of a human being, from abandonment and loss of hope to its indoctrination by the system to become a human drone, and its possible defection. "
Wholesale guitar riff to illustrate the packaging of human drones. On the chorus, his voice strangely went into a spin on the words "loving psycho."
The bass starts the guitar unison to a huge sound in a Seventies spirit. End piece of very "opera" as Muse loves.

Mercy. Piano and bass fuzz. The hero implores mercy, but the "men in mac trying to devour his soul." Gods absent and silent tyranny in the program while Matthew play hard with its arpeggiator effects, which generate arpeggios ... upset.

Reapers. A small demonstration of tapping (guitarist uses his two hands on the neck of the guitar to generate ultra fast solo) and a riff very inspired by Rage Against The Machine. The effects kind whammy from flowing properties are balanced in all directions.
The only title that deals with the drone war in the literal sense and present: "You kill with remote controls ..." This is the preferred piece of the author of these lines.

The Handler. Pachyderm slow and drums, guitar riff maousse. The hero begins to rebel. The voice from falsetto. One of the most "progressive rock" album titles. In the middle of the piece, a solo in the style of Angus Young (AC / DC). A nod to the producer? A note of humor? Apparently it was not voluntary.

Zombie. The reproduction of a speech by John Fizgerald Kennedy, a secret system of oppression and tyranny. He speaks of the CIA or a global conspiracy as Matthew loves? Not necessarily in the original speech, he evokes the USSR.

Defector. Very very choirs Queen. But then really Queen. Here, the hero is "free". "You can not brainwash me, he said. You can not control me. "Matthew accumulates images, er, colorful (" Your blood is blue, your mind turned to green and your belly is yellow. "
Explanatory, but for poetry, will require ironing.

Revolt. The hero cries of revolt as a power ballad ("Our freedom is only a usurious loan rates, controlled by madmen and drones") One of the most pop songs, not far from With or Without You by U2. The voice is strangely treated brutally and sometimes share in the treble. But here is the most catchy chorus of the disc.

Aftermath. A breath of wind desolation in the distance. Then a synth violins unfold. A guitar ballads in the style of Jimi Hendrix: "It's you and me against the world, we are free ... States flicker and walls rise higher still. "

The Globalist. A melody whistled like a Western Ennio Morricone (Muse of Morricone sometimes used to advertise its input stage), violins, a bolero rhythm, a long intro, a guitar in Floyd.
It is in the spirit of the great villain who controlled all drones. He threw all the bombs at its disposal, and nearly destroyed humanity. Title adopts an epic tone. In the end, the dictatorial entity ahead excuse: "I just wanted to be loved. "

Drones. Un as a cappella while voice superimposed layers and spiritual atmosphere. Matthew summarizes his point. And everything ends with an "Amen."

Conclusion: Musically, varied album with what is expected of grandiloquence. Muse fans can only be disappointed. But the scenario of this concept album is expected, even childish. As some of the booklets operas, the faithful will object. Unless there is a dose of irony in the words?

Not sure why the track "JFK" is called "Zombie" there. Really looking forward to "The Handler", and I hope "Aftermath" is a bit like "Blackout".

EDIT: Someone on Muse.mu who can actually read French has said: It doesn't say "Muse fans can only be disappointed" but "Muse fans cannot be disappointed", for what it's worth.

Hedrigall fucked around with this message at 23:50 on May 18, 2015

# ? May 18, 2015 23:39

Hedrigall: Mar 27, 2008; by vyelkin

Some embargo must have just been lifted, because here's another review (this one in English): https://classicrock.teamrock.com/reviews/2015-05-18/muse-drones

So you don't have to sign up to read it, here's the full text:

quote:

With �ber-producer Mutt Lange on board, have the Teignmouth trio made their own Back In Black?

It was perhaps inevitable, after more than a decade of intergalactic ambition and stadium-rocking space-metal spectacle, that Muse would eventually crash back down to Earth. Most big bands make their equivalent of Pink Floyd�s The Wall at some point, and Matthew Bellamy has now delivered his. A coldly impersonal concept album recorded in the depths of a personal crisis, Drones starts off uncomfortably numb, and finishes up apocalyptically bleak.

Based on the topical theme of military drones, both literally and metaphorically, the West Country trio�s seventh album was recorded just as Bellamy split from his long-term partner, Hollywood actress Kate Hudson. Just how much this private drama informed the music is obviously pure speculation, but the lyrics are bitterly cynical about love and empathy, drawing parallels between domestic emotional disconnection and remote-control techno-age warfare.

�The world is run by drones utilising drones to turn us into drones,� the Muse frontman claims. Like the Russell Brand of rock, Bellamy has returned from Hollywood exile to bash us around the ears with dark conspiracies and new-found political anger. Wake up and smell the Truth, sheeple!

Drones was co-produced by elder statesman Robert John �Mutt� Lange, famous for his multi-platinum collaborations with AC/DC, Def Leppard, Bryan Adams and more. It�s an unexpected choice for Muse, perhaps, suggesting a move away from their baroque-and-roll sci-fi overdrive towards rock�s centre ground. There are still Queen-sized fanfares, maximalist flourishes and striking sonic experiments here, notably a hymnal a cappella title track composed purely of overlapping vocals. But the overall sound is polished and conventional, as Bellamy sets aside his past flirtations with pounding dubstep and punky electronics. Shame.

The sleeve design is also � how can we put this politely? � laugh-out-loud awful. Muse have always favoured ostentatious album artwork in the Pink Floyd tradition, even working with Floydian legend Storm Thorgerson. This time they opted for photographer and video director Matt Mahurin, who has previously done great work with Tom Waits, Marilyn Manson, Bon Jovi and many others. But Mahurin�s image of a giant Orwellian hand operating a faceless human joystick just looks amateurish and adolescent. The figure�s resemblance to a Peperami sausage only adds to the air of unintended comedy. Not a promising start.

The tracks loosely follow a fall-and-rise arc in which the narrator descends into totalitarian mind-control hell, before finally breaking free and fighting back. His journey begins with the U2-ish sparkle-rock shimmer of Dead Inside and the walloping fuzz-bass glam-rock groove of Psycho, a crudely effective workout for the band�s powerhouse rhythm section Chris Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard. The latter tune is prefixed by the short spoken-word track Drill Sergeant, which shares some of the same lyrics, and plays on stale movie stereotypes of the cruel military taskmaster: �your rear end belongs to me now... your mind is just a program and I�m the virus.� Subtle as a punch in the testicles.

Lyrics are admittedly not Bellamy�s strongest point, but he has never crammed quite so many ungainly, clich�d and po-faced lines onto a single album before. Over the fluid, Coldplay-ish ripples of Mercy he envisages �men in cloaks trying to devour my soul�. On the fightback anthem Revolt, he claims �we live in a toxic jungle, truth is suppressed to a mumble.� Ouch. At least Russell Brand would throw in a few knob gags to keep it interesting.

Midway through the album sits JFK, a long extract of John F. Kennedy�s landmark 1961 speech in which he warned about a �monolithic and ruthless conspiracy� against democratic freedoms. He was talking about the Soviet Union, of course, though Muse believe this Cold War relic will resonate in our new mass-brainwashed Dark Ages. It�s a bold ambition, albeit fuzzy in intent, the rockstar equivalent of posting inspirational Morgan Freeman quotes on Facebook.

Bellamy concedes there is �not a lot of love� on Drones. He�s right, but two stirring power ballads in the album�s closing stages warm up the overall emotional temperature. Aftermath begins very much like U2�s One, a slow-burn lament with a gently imploring circular guitar hook and a lyric full of battle-scarred, world-weary tenderness. Lovely.

But Muse save their full 1812 Overture arsenal for The Globalist, a majestic finale which begins with whistles and twangs worthy of Ennio Morricone, erupts into a tumescent speed-metal riff monster midway through, then ends on a soaring Lloyd Webber-sized show-stopper about the imminent death of mankind: �A trillion memories lost in time forever!� Bellamy howls as planets collide and stars implode. This is the way the world ends: with a bang and a whimper. And a symphony orchestra.

Epic melancholy romanticism has always been one of Muse�s saving graces, a glorious rebuttal to snooty critics who hear only bombast and bluster in their music. But there is too little of it on this album, and too much middling Muse-by-numbers.

Great in parts, but flat and clumsy in others, Bellamy�s bid to become more serious appears to have stunted what he does best, which is operatic excess fuelled by volcanic emotion. To stretch a metaphor, Drones sometimes feels like it is flying on autopilot, and too often misses the target.

FINAL VERDICT: 6/10

# ? May 19, 2015 02:42

Hedrigall: Mar 27, 2008; by vyelkin

Do you guys want to know the official lyrics to the Reapers chorus?

Do you really want to know?

You kill by remote control
The world is on your side
You've got the CIA, babe
Now I am radicalized

:laugh:

Source: The newest issue of NME's cover story about Drones (http://www.nme.com/features/muse-interview-on-modern-warfare-the-conspiracies-that-drive-new-album-drones-and-matt-bellamys-nigh)

Hedrigall fucked around with this message at 10:14 on May 20, 2015

# ? May 20, 2015 09:54

henpod: Mar 7, 2008; Sir, we have located the Bioweapon.; College Slice

Mercy seems really lazy. I still like it, but I know its a big rehash.

# ? May 20, 2015 14:19

electricHyena: Sep 12, 2005; oh no not again

Mercy is really growing on me - I actually didn't like it much the first few listens. Too upbeat and poppy I guess. My favorite so far is still Dead Inside.

KillerMojo posted:

I was at both the NYC/LA gigs the past couple weeks. Trip report from a guy in the double digits for shows:

Psycho gets the crowd moving better than any opener I've seen.

Dead Inside is alright, my least favorite of the three new ones I've caught in person. It just lacks the energy that psycho and reapers force on you.

Reapers is fantastic live, and that outro annihilates in person. Shook me to my core, I think the sound guys cranked up the volume for it.

They busted out hyper music on request in LA, which was impressive given how rehearsed/scripted their shows have been the past few years. It's a great live song and should be in their regular set. The crowd chanted for dead star following it. Matt laughed and said gently caress no.

Assassin is a monster live, my god. I can't describe how massive the GOB outro sounds. It's just so meaty.

Matt is on his game. He's playing everything he can on guitar, save the parts he shouldn't- New Born gets the proper piano intro. Awesome falsetto in bliss. Less false bravado and more genuine rocking, at least from my view. He just seems to be way tighter overall.

Madness is a good breather in between heavier songs and is infinitely better without the gimmicks (visuals, glasses).

Dom plays the double tempo parts of Apocalypse Please I first noticed at Wembley, it's really hard not to dance to. So good.

Stockholm Syndrome + the outro riffs are worth the price of admission alone.

Starlight still sucks.

I'm glad plug in baby has been missing from the sets. It was getting beyond tired, though not as bad as feeling good.

All said the two shows have totally rekindled what was a dwindling interest in their live show.

Nice. I was also at both small gigs and was just blown away. Psycho was absolutely loving insane. I was so pumped up just in anticipation - the crowd just went nuts when it started - I'm surprised the roof didn't come off the place. The crowd in NYC was better, but the Mayan gig had Assassin and Hyper Music - basically two of the top songs on my "probably will never hear live" list. Could have done without Madness, tbh.

# ? May 20, 2015 21:05

Paperback Writer: May 1, 2006

I just realized, the Weenie Roast gig had no songs from The 2nd Law. Pretty cool.

No Madness/Time Is Running Out is pretty big. Besides Starlight, definitely their biggest radio hits here.

# ? May 20, 2015 21:13

KillerMojo: Mar 30, 2007; The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.
- Douglas Adams

electricHyena posted:

Mercy is really growing on me - I actually didn't like it much the first few listens. Too upbeat and poppy I guess. My favorite so far is still Dead Inside.

Nice. I was also at both small gigs and was just blown away. Psycho was absolutely loving insane. I was so pumped up just in anticipation - the crowd just went nuts when it started - I'm surprised the roof didn't come off the place. The crowd in NYC was better, but the Mayan gig had Assassin and Hyper Music - basically two of the top songs on my "probably will never hear live" list. Could have done without Madness, tbh.

Hey that's awesome! I only ran into one other person who did both, he was the Toronto dude asking the Mayan line for a ticket (looked like he got one). Yeah totally agreed on Psycho, the anticipation translated 1:1 to energy when that riff hit, everyone started jumping. In NYC I was in one of the crazier parts of the crowd off to the right, in front of Chris. In LA I was in what looked like the only energetic part to the left in front of Matt.

I was super happy to see The Groove but I would've taken Fury over that in a heartbeat. There's also no beating the version you can see in that Absolution Tour DVD extra.

I remember what sounded like the amps giving out at the end of Assassin, it was so low and growly that they sounded as if they were struggling. Insane.

One notable song I forgot to mention was Animals, I actually really like that song when it's part of the setlists we got. I found during the 2nd Law tour I was just so deflated for most of the set that Animals didn't do much for me, but in NYC/LA it worked great. I'd take anything pre-2nd law over madness for sure.

Sidenote on NYC, it sounds like a bunch of people got mono from a shared water bottle that got sprayed onto the crowd. Rough.

KillerMojo fucked around with this message at 21:22 on May 20, 2015

# ? May 20, 2015 21:20

Hedrigall: Mar 27, 2008; by vyelkin

Track times for those who are as obsessive as me:

Dead Inside - 4:23
[Drill Sergeant] - 0:21
Psycho - 5:16
Mercy - 3:51
Reapers - 5:59
The Handler - 4:33
[JFK] - 0:54
Defector - 4:32
Revolt - 4:05
Aftermath - 5:48
The Globalist - 10:07
Drones - 2:51

Total - 52:40

Source: http://tower.jp/item/3895959/%E3%83...%A7%98%EF%BC%9E

This is Muse's third longest album!

# ? May 21, 2015 03:49

KillerMojo: Mar 30, 2007; The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.
- Douglas Adams

gently caress I'm really digging Mercy, egh.

# ? May 21, 2015 08:45

The Mash: Feb 17, 2007; You have to say I can open my presents

Mercy is officially tolerable and I say that as someone who thinks Muse peaked on Absolution with one solid album either side of it (OoS clearly superior to BHaR though) and complete garbage the whole way through since then. Resistance was so bad I only gave 2nd Law one listen-through before giving up on it entirely. I used to fly to other countries for Muse gigs, now I'm having trouble building up excitement for a concert I'll be catching "for free" as they're playing at a festival I'm going to.

What are the odds they have collective strokes and just play all Absolution songs plus Citizen Erased, Plug in Baby and Knights? I will also allow Feeling Good.

# ? May 21, 2015 12:59

Riot Bimbo: Dec 28, 2006

Resistance is not that bad. Uprising, Unnatural Selection, Exogenesis, MK Ultra, all good songs. The rest of it's kind of bad I guess.

The 2nd law is the biggest stinker they have, I think. I only really like Panic Station off that album.

# ? May 21, 2015 19:54

avantgardener: Sep 16, 2003

hemophilia posted:

The 2nd law is the biggest stinker they have, I think.

True for the next couple of weeks at least.

The problem I have with their recent material is:

1) There is no subtlety to any of the lyrics, they just tell a very simple and un-nuanced story. Songs like plug in baby were basically nonsense lyrics but strangely better for it. Others like take a bow or apocalypse please were political but at least felt a little more subtle. Their don't seem to have an emotional connection in the same way as before - I can't think of a recent comparison to 'unintended' or 'absolution'.

2) They have mostly ditched the classic bass guitar driven arpeggiated guitar + synth sound and now sound like U2 mixed with Queen.

So, basically, the words and the music.

I will still see them live though and the most recent time (2nd law tour) was probably the most enjoyable of the 6-7 times I've seen them live).

# ? May 22, 2015 08:43

Sir Lemming: Jan 27, 2009; It's a piece of JUNK!

GTO posted:

2) They have mostly ditched the classic bass guitar driven arpeggiated guitar + synth sound and now sound like U2 mixed with Queen.

Personally I feel they've reached the point of diminishing returns with their "classic sound" -- that was The Resistance. Really a fine album in its own right, but it was also clear that they'd gone back to that same well too many times. As I've probably said way too many times in this thread alone, I wish they'd complete their arc of imitating Radiohead and ditch the pretense of being a "rock band" since their heart doesn't seem to be in that anymore. Their electronica-driven songs have been stealing the show lately; "Madness" was the best song on The 2nd Law and it sounds to me like "Dead Inside" will be the best song Drones. And their "rock" songs are starting to sound like overly ProTooled imitations of their former selves (see album version of "Supremacy"). Might as well be done with it and go all-in on the electronic thing. 5 albums of their old sound is enough.

Speaking of The 2nd Law, all this talk has gotten me to look into an idea I had (and/or stole from some other guy on the internet, possibly on this forum) a while ago; making a better track sequence for the album. In particular, the ending sequence of the album has always seemed weird. 2 songs by the bassist followed by 2 instrumentals? Yeah, that just has "skippable" written all over it. I was thinking something like:

1. The 2nd Law: Unsustainable
2. Supremacy
3. Madness
4. Panic Station
5. Animals
6-7. Survival (w/ Prelude)
8. Explorers
9. Save Me
10. Liquid State
11. Follow Me
12. Big Freeze
13. The 2nd Law: Isolated System

I've been listening to it like this on an iTunes playlist and I've seen a few advantages so far, although I'd eventually want to actually edit the files to tighten some of the gaps.
First off, splitting up the instrumentals just seems obvious. "Unsustainable" also feels like a very natural intro, and it's in the same key as "Supremacy" so it goes into it perfectly. It also hypes up the drama of "Supremacy" a little more -- it feels more like there's an actual reason for all the overdramatic grandstanding! It's like "Unsustainable" introduces the whole theme of the album and what they're fighting against, and then here comes Muse to introduce their side of the story.
I tried playing with the sequence of the next few tracks (even putting "Liquid State" at track 3) but ultimately I think they got this part right originally. I mean, where else are you gonna put "Panic Station"? But I stuck "Animals" in there because I've always felt like it actually is a really good song, but it just fails to command much attention when it's snuck in there after "Survival" and "Follow Me". It feels better to me in this album's analogue to the "Map of the Problematique" spot.
Then we have "Survival", moved a bit later because it's so drat bombastic. It doesn't really need to be in the first stretch of the album; it excites enough on its own.
The 3 tracks after that I pretty much couldn't find a better place for, but I think they flow well. Next, I think "Follow Me" is a pretty "big" song and earns a place near the end of the album. It also transitions perfectly into "Big Freeze". I know that's not high on a lot of people's lists of favorite Muse songs, but I like it quite a bit, and I also think it's the closest thing this album has to a good finale.

# ? May 22, 2015 11:51

Hedrigall: Mar 27, 2008; by vyelkin

Like many people I've also tried resequencing T2L, because it's such a slapdash order on the CD. Your order looks pretty good, I might try it out!

Edit: I'm thinking I'd swap Big Freeze and Follow Me on yours. FM seems like more of a set-closer, and the heartbeat links it to Isolated System.

Hedrigall fucked around with this message at 12:10 on May 22, 2015

# ? May 22, 2015 12:07

avantgardener: Sep 16, 2003

Sir Lemming posted:

Personally I feel they've reached the point of diminishing returns with their "classic sound" -- that was The Resistance.

Nah, I want songs that sound like the first half of OOS. The only songs on The Resistance that I'd put in that category is MK Ultra and maybe Unnatural Selection. I do like the more instrumental stuff too, like Exogenesis.

Uprising and Resistance are tolerable live but the musical sound is too polished and produced on the album and the lyric structures are too simplistic. Those 2 songs are pretty much when Muse started going downhill for me.

# ? May 22, 2015 12:17

Rev. Bleech_: Oct 19, 2004; ~OKAY, WE'LL DRINK TO OUR LEGS!~

SKIIIIP MEEE

# ? May 22, 2015 17:40

The Mash: Feb 17, 2007; You have to say I can open my presents

In my opinion, Uprising is the worst Muse song because that's the most blatant point at which they became a Muse satire band. That whole chorus is the dumbest thing.

E: And also, I am loving loving the second half of Dead Inside like I haven't loved anything Muse have done since BHaR

The Mash fucked around with this message at 17:44 on May 22, 2015

# ? May 22, 2015 17:41

Sir Lemming: Jan 27, 2009; It's a piece of JUNK!

GTO posted:

Nah, I want songs that sound like the first half of OOS. The only songs on The Resistance that I'd put in that category is MK Ultra and maybe Unnatural Selection. I do like the more instrumental stuff too, like Exogenesis.

Well to be clear, I didn't mean Resistance was "the classic sound", but rather the furthest they could possibly go without abandoning that sound completely. It's unfortunate that they seem to think the problem with 2nd Law was that they strayed too far from their trademark sound. The real problem was that they only half committed to doing something radically different (which is what they need now) and it ended up a jumbled mess. Backtracking even further is not the way to fix this, even though it'll probably be more palatable to the fan base, until a few months pass and we inevitably declare it their worst album anyway.

I know mentioning this band always takes away any street cred the poster may have ever had, but... Korn did a dubstep fusion album a few years ago, and despite the obvious initial backlash, it's pretty much universally regarded as the most interesting thing they've put out in over a decade (though not without its own massively embarrassing low points). They actually committed to the new sound pretty well. Of course, their next album was a disappointing retreat into predictable, overproduced nü-metal by numbers. I hate when that happens.

The Mash posted:

In my opinion, Uprising is the worst Muse song because that's the most blatant point at which they became a Muse satire band. That whole chorus is the dumbest thing.

Until "Psycho" of course! :black101:

Sir Lemming fucked around with this message at 18:12 on May 22, 2015

# ? May 22, 2015 18:05

Popcorn: May 25, 2004; You're both fuckin' banned!

What's the appeal of Dead Inside?

It's Undisclosed Desires again, but even more underwritten. The bit that really bakes my noodle is the drum break at 2.27. It's the blandest, driest drum beat in the world. It sounds like the backing track for a guitar practice DVD.

# ? May 22, 2015 18:07

The Mash: Feb 17, 2007; You have to say I can open my presents

I dislike everything up to and including the drum break and love everything after it. I can't really explain why.

# ? May 22, 2015 18:15

Popcorn: May 25, 2004; You're both fuckin' banned!

I listened to The 2nd Law again yesterday.

You know what, I like Supremacy. The lyrics are still godawful but I like the riff, and the way the choruses alternate the riff and the chugging staccato from the intro is smart. It's like they actually wrote a loving song with a beginning, middle and end. It's still far too glossy and overproduced, of course, particularly in the verses.

Madness, again, has a sensible structure, and the solo is cute, but I can't get with it, daddy-o, because the outro is just too lame-rear end U2 and I can't deal with the "ma-ma-ma-ma-ma". The outro ends way too suddenly and the lyrics are, again, the worst thing possible.

Panic Station could have been cool, maybe, if it didn't have the production values of a Sonic Adventure soundtrack and Matt didn't try to improvise "waoooo!" singing tics exactly like your mum would.

Survival sounds like The Most Unwanted Song - that is, the song a gang of sadistic (or masochistic) musicians created in response to running a poll of the musical elements people find most irritating.

Follow Me is I Will Survive with the production of the Worms Armageddon title music, and Muse's worst song.

Animals is probably the album's best song, because it most resembles something from Absolution and because it exercises a tiny degree of restraint. Loses points for lyrics (in fact just subtract a hundred points from the entire album for this reason), cliched bluesy noodling between every line in the verse, and the shouting over the outro, which is otherwise an uncharacteristically smart polyrhythmic riff.

Every time I listen to Explorers I fall into a sickly coma.

Big Freeze is U2 and who cares.

Save Me is the lead single off a some britrock band's debut album from like 2000, Vex Redd or someone like that, which no one cares about.

Liquid State has a cool super-Musey bass riff and I find the piano pleasingly funny in a silent-movie-melodrama sort of way, but the production kills any anger and urgency it might have had, the singing is forgettable and the whole thing builds to an anticlimax without anyone noticing.

The last two tracks are both dreadful.

# ? May 22, 2015 18:26

KillerMojo: Mar 30, 2007; The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.
- Douglas Adams

Popcorn posted:

I listened to The 2nd Law again yesterday.

Aside from the avatar, I can always identify your posts through that seething repugnance for the band you've been brooding for a while now. While I don't disagree with your points (after stripping away a bit of the hyperbole anyway), the amplitude of your disdain has me wondering why you even bother at this point. I'd love to hear what redeeming qualities the band retains that keeps Popcorn checking the SA Muse thread.

# ? May 22, 2015 19:16

Sir Lemming: Jan 27, 2009; It's a piece of JUNK!

Popcorn posted:

Panic Station could have been cool, maybe, if it didn't have the production values of a Sonic Adventure soundtrack and Matt didn't try to improvise "waoooo!" singing tics exactly like your mum would.

I'm still miffed that they apparently hired the same brass section from Stevie Wonder's "Superstition", and then buried them so deep in the mix that they're indistinguishable from a Casio keyboard.

# ? May 22, 2015 19:37

avantgardener: Sep 16, 2003

I empathise with everything popcorn said. I like Animals and the instrumentals from the 2nd Law and that's about it. I listened to Absolution on the way home from work today and I like every single song, still.

The reason I still follow the thread is that Muse are overall one of the all time bands I've enjoyed the most and I am still excited about seeing them live. The whole thing is a bit like watching Bob Dylan live these days, it's a bit rubbish but still interesting and it doesn't diminish what they did before.

I am a bit disappointed that Drones sounds a bit duff though, as, recorded off the back of a couple of poorly received albums and a breakup, it had the potential to be Muse's 'Blood on the Tracks', but doesn't sound like it is.

# ? May 22, 2015 19:41

Popcorn: May 25, 2004; You're both fuckin' banned!

KillerMojo posted:

Aside from the avatar, I can always identify your posts through that seething repugnance for the band you've been brooding for a while now. While I don't disagree with your points (after stripping away a bit of the hyperbole anyway), the amplitude of your disdain has me wondering why you even bother at this point. I'd love to hear what redeeming qualities the band retains that keeps Popcorn checking the SA Muse thread.

Discussing stuff is fun even when the stuff you're discussing isn't.

# ? May 22, 2015 22:44

Hedrigall: Mar 27, 2008; by vyelkin

Sir Lemming posted:

I know mentioning this band always takes away any street cred the poster may have ever had, but... Korn did a dubstep fusion album a few years ago,

You don't bring Korn to a Muse fight

# ? May 23, 2015 00:23

Hedrigall: Mar 27, 2008; by vyelkin

Popcorn posted:

Liquid State has a cool super-Musey bass riff and I find the piano pleasingly funny in a silent-movie-melodrama sort of way, but the production kills any anger and urgency it might have had, the singing is forgettable and the whole thing builds to an anticlimax without anyone noticing.

Hmm, I've never heard any piano in that song before. I just listened to the instrumental and it actually sounds like a synth keyboard, so, almost.

GTO posted:

I am a bit disappointed that Drones sounds a bit duff though, as, recorded off the back of a couple of poorly received albums and a breakup, it had the potential to be Muse's 'Blood on the Tracks', but doesn't sound like it is.

Huh? Muse have never broken up.

edit: Oh, unless you're talking about between Matt and Kate Hudson!

Anyway, Q Magazine's review leaked early. They gave it 4/5 stars and said the best songs are Reapers and The Globalist.

Hedrigall fucked around with this message at 00:33 on May 23, 2015

# ? May 23, 2015 00:30

Popcorn: May 25, 2004; You're both fuckin' banned!

Hedrigall posted:

Hmm, I've never heard any piano in that song before. I just listened to the instrumental and it actually sounds like a synth keyboard, so, almost.

It's 100% there - staccato piano chords entering at 0.07. Very, very Muse.

# ? May 23, 2015 00:53

Popcorn: May 25, 2004; You're both fuckin' banned!

Sir Lemming posted:

As I've probably said way too many times in this thread alone, I wish they'd complete their arc of imitating Radiohead and ditch the pretense of being a "rock band" since their heart doesn't seem to be in that anymore.

I don't think they've made a truly great predominantly electronic track yet (unless you count Map of the Problematique, which I don't, really). Supermassive is fun, but marked the start of the current age of rubbish Muse bridges and ends up feeling like half a song.

Strangely, I always thought Justice's debut album had something in common with Muse, but I've yet to figure out what. They could have gone in that direction and made it work. Maybe.

# ? May 23, 2015 14:20

Popcorn: May 25, 2004; You're both fuckin' banned!

If Muse wants to do camp and electronic, and actually make it good at the same time, they should do a new jack swing song. Here's a recent J-pop/new jack swing fusion example:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhbq65WcH3o

I'm not kidding. I think it would work.

Popcorn fucked around with this message at 17:35 on May 23, 2015

# ? May 23, 2015 17:31

Hedrigall: Mar 27, 2008; by vyelkin

Reapers studio version is imminent!

This page has gone live: https://redeem.warnerartists.com/html/muse/reapersmp3

But nowhere to enter the code yet. Expect it in the next 24 hours I guess! :neckbeard:

Edit: OKAY now there's some weird ARG going on at http://drones.muse.mu
I can't get it to load on my phone though :\

Hedrigall fucked around with this message at 14:36 on May 29, 2015

# ? May 29, 2015 14:07

Hedrigall: Mar 27, 2008; by vyelkin

REAPERS LEAKED

Vocoders are amazing

Guitar & bass tone are amazing

The full outro from the live version is intact, and dissolves into noise and creepy voices saying "follow the yellow brick road"

gently caress YES

# ? May 29, 2015 15:20

electricHyena: Sep 12, 2005; oh no not again

Arrgh I want to hear it so bad but I think I'm going to hold off.

I tried that site on my phone and it says the nearest lever is 694726 meters away -- seriously? I can't even move around/zoom in on the map.

# ? May 29, 2015 16:23

TheSteelCurtain: Aug 4, 2011; "There's a big difference between being hurt and being injured. You get hurt, you shake it off and come back the next series or the next game. I try to hurt people."

Oh my gently caress Reapers is so good.

# ? May 29, 2015 16:37

Rev. Bleech_: Oct 19, 2004; ~OKAY, WE'LL DRINK TO OUR LEGS!~

Reapers will be forever ruined as "that song where you can easily sing Madonna's 'Express Yourself' over the chorus" for me.

# ? May 29, 2015 17:26

auzdark: Aug 29, 2005; Mercy is the cry of the soul that stirred,
Mercy is the cry and it's never heard.

Rev. Bleech_ posted:

Reapers will be forever ruined as "that song where you can easily sing Madonna's 'Express Yourself' over the chorus" for me.

Kind of like "I want to break free" by Queen over Madness?

# ? May 29, 2015 18:25

Admoon: Oct 29, 2009

Reapers does indeed own bones and it's made me more excited for the album now.

e: Official lyrics video out now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcNEC9NaJuE

Admoon fucked around with this message at 19:47 on May 29, 2015

# ? May 29, 2015 19:14

Paperback Writer: May 1, 2006

Rev. Bleech_ posted:

Reapers will be forever ruined as "that song where you can easily sing Madonna's 'Express Yourself' over the chorus" for me.

Yep chorus ruins it for me.

# ? May 29, 2015 19:54

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# ? May 24, 2024 20:22

massive spider: Dec 6, 2006

I just realised that on top of the hook being totally RATMs bombtrack the outro is "freedom...yeah right..."

# ? May 29, 2015 21:07

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > No More Drake > Muse - LP7: "Drones" out June 8 - Two new songs in March!

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