Muse - The Resistance

Here's my review (edit: not for the Echo, just i guess in conciseness) for Muse's The Resistance

There was a point while listening to The Resistance's first track "Uprising" that I understood what being brainwashed was like. Here I was, bouncing my head to a sexy bass-line and few well-placed shouts of "Come On!", while missing forceful politically-charged lines like "They will not force us" and "We will be victorious". I was entirely missing the point while getting lost in the music, which sadly is how I ended up relating to the album as a whole.

Fans of Muse may recognize my qualms here, because Matt Bellamy and crew's previous album Black Holes and Revelations was ripe with beauty but admittedly a little cheesy on the lyrical end. The Resistance is no different, and therein lies my problem. There's very little content on the whole, mostly vague whining about governments having too much power and some unsupported notion of love being able to simply overcome all these options. If you consider yourself a hopeless romantic, you'll adore tracks like "I Belong to You," and "Undisclosed Desires". But if you're looking for something to really believe in, I suggest you try something else.

Musically however, I am astounded by this album. It feels like a hybrid of rock anthems with operatic symphonies, and when they're not channeling Queen like in "United States of Eurasia," they're improving on their previous efforts with songs like "MK Ultra" which reminds me of Origin of Symmetry's track "Plug In Baby". Personally, I think their best effort is the anthemic "Unnatural Selection", a sensational counter-cultural ride. And the finalé "Exogenesis" is a literal symphony of breathtaking stature, showing Muse has matured into a realm of their own.

So The Resistance has two very unique sides to it. Muse have shown themselves to be musical geniuses in their time, but still produce forgettable, uninspired attempts at revolutionary lyrics. You'd be a fool not to listen, but you don't have to pay attention.

Review: 3/5