Muse - v. Will of the People (rel Aug 26, 2022)

[Bill Carson]

As a huge Muse fan and someone who really liked the Resistance (yes I know I'm in the minority)....i'm very very disappointed.
The problem for me is that it all seems like a joke, the album has its tongue planted firmly in the cheek.
Almost like Mr Bellamy is havin a laugh and he's gonna then go, actually here's the real new album.
The only song that sounded like it had any integrity was "Save Me" and that had Chris singing - maybe that says it all.
There are some class moments, but when you have been as good as Muse, then to be this ordinary is just not on.
What a let down. 

[EdenHazard]

Trying not to listen again until the release date, but Panic Station is far and away my favourite song first time through.

This was by far the most cringeworthy moment of the whole record for me. The ugly lovechild of Prince and Stevie Wonder married to INXS.

That's fair! I'd call it the maverick daughter of Franz Ferdinand and the Scissor Sisters, myself, but it's not like I can convince anyone to like it. Personally, though? Can't listen to it without hopping around the room. So much fun, but I can see how it'd be polarising. I'd definitely give Animals or Explorers a few more listens, though, if you're a bit of a traditionalist. They could slot right into Origin and Absolution, I'd say.

Ah well. Nothing new. Black Holes & Revelations shed half the fanbase a couple of years ago. Turnover's a shame, but absolutely inevitable. Progress marches on. On my third listen right now, and where I'm sat, Muse sound alive again. Loved them in all their flavours, and now they've got twelve brand new ones. Bliss.

Naw, that's cool, hope I didn't listen too much like "YOU'RE STUPID FOR LIKING IT!", it's just personal disappointment. In the end it's just a matter of taste, and I have to admit I really like Animals, although it got a little lost on the first listen and I was too harsh on it, it's indeed a nice song. But still other tracks kind of make me angry. 

I think I could also like Liquid State if it wasn't for the vocals. Chris singing isn't even the problem - it's not great but bearable. But the voice is so strangely mixed it turns me off completely.

Well, again, will give it a few more spins.

[Dark Castle]

Loving this album, like seriously it's pretty fucking sweet.

[Bill Carson]

When did Muse go from having Queen as an influence to actually thinking that they are Queen ?

[skydivingninja]

Nothing on this album really screams Queen the way USoE did

[robwebster]

Nothing on this album really screams Queen the way USoE did

Agreed! But I think it's a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy. As soon as people go "Ooh, there's a lot of Queen in this song," the confirmation bias lingers - anything Queenish, even something any other band might've got away with, adds fuel to the fire. So just as Dream Theater constantly copied Muse for about four years, Muse are now Queen wannabes. Can't wait to find out who Queen are ripping off.

Honestly? I can't hear much Queen at all on the new album. I quite like the comparison between Madness and I Want to Break Free, but it's a chord progression rather than invoking a vibe. Survival I think is probably the fairest, but I'd describe it less as a Queen-type song, and more like My Way slowly and painfully mutating into Flight of the Valkyries.

But - again, opinions! I'll admit to not being the most Queen-savvy music fan, so there might be loads of stuff that I'm missing.

[Cedar redaC]

I'm hopefully getting it on release day!

[faemir]

Is it just me or does Save Me sound very Oceansize/Porky Treeish?

It reminds me of significant other by steven wilson actually...

[skydivingninja]

I'm not hearing a similarity to PT or SW, especially Significant Other.  Don't know enough Oceansize to judge, but I agree with someone earlier that it kinda sounds like Anathema.  I mean, its way more interesting than most of the Anathema stuff I've heard but I see the resemblance. 

[cyberdrummer]

Is it just me or does Save Me sound very Oceansize/Porky Treeish?

That's the exact combination I thought of when I heard it. Probably the best on the album for me.

[robwebster]

Is it just me or does Save Me sound very Oceansize/Porky Treeish?

It reminds me of significant other by steven wilson actually...

Not just you! But I can't for the life of me work out what exactly about it there is that I'm getting the vibe from. It's not a particularly precise match, I wouldn't mistake it for either band, but there's something in there that invokes that kind of... feeling.

Listening for... oh, the fifth time or so, now? So much for trying not to play it too much. Up to Animals right now, such a cool song. Fills the room. Looking forward to Save Me again, as I always do.

[DarkLord_Lalinc]

This album is lacking a climax. Real hard.

I still have several mixed feelings about this, but the only thing that's probably not gonna chance is that is album lacks the excitement of previous Muse releases. Yeah, several styles, we get it, evolution...but damn, even The Resistance (which used to rank at the bottom of my list, and just got one step higher thanks to the 2nd Law) had a climax and some very exciting moments. This is not the case, and it's a shame.

My favorite song is still Madness, which is a shame because when that got out it actually got me extremely pumped for this shit.

[ZKX-2099]

Holy fuck I love Survival.

[abydos]

Supremacy is definitely the best song I've heard from Muse.

[Nel]

This album is lacking a climax. Real hard.

There is nothing worse than getting real hard and then lacking a climax. What a waste. 

[faemir]

The song order feels way off - Survival is totally out of place - an anthem rock song in the middle of electronic stuff... but then I think it's also easily the worst song on the album.

As a whole, the album feels massively inconsistent, due to their experimentation. Some worked really well... others not so much. Why can't they just latch on to one of these experimentations, and make a whole album of it? This way, we'll never have a consistent album because that's way too much to ask for any band when so much is just style upon style change and experimenting.

[KevShmev]

My immediate reaction to this after one listen was:

They pulled a dredg on us. Uh oh.

I pray subsequent listens indicate otherwise.

[skydivingninja]

I don't think its anywhere near as bad as Chuckles.  For one, Muse didn't build up our hopes with a really cool-sounding "dark pop" concept and then totally butcher it.  Plus, songs like Panic Station, Survival, Save Me, Liquid State, and Isolated System are actually very good, though they still have their faults (stupid vocal extras in Panic Station, stupid samples in Isolated System, not letting something more than the cool fuzz bass drive a song).

[Bill Carson]

The song order feels way off - Survival is totally out of place - an anthem rock song in the middle of electronic stuff... but then I think it's also easily the worst song on the album.

As a whole, the album feels massively inconsistent, due to their experimentation. Some worked really well... others not so much. Why can't they just latch on to one of these experimentations, and make a whole album of it? This way, we'll never have a consistent album because that's way too much to ask for any band when so much is just style upon style change and experimenting.

 

[Rob]

The song order feels way off - Survival is totally out of place - an anthem rock song in the middle of electronic stuff... but then I think it's also easily the worst song on the album.

As a whole, the album feels massively inconsistent, due to their experimentation. Some worked really well... others not so much. Why can't they just latch on to one of these experimentations, and make a whole album of it? This way, we'll never have a consistent album because that's way too much to ask for any band when so much is just style upon style change and experimenting.

"In the middle of electronic stuff" is just not true. That's probably a false vibe that you get from this album, but actually there isn't that much electronic stuff going on, at all. Supremacy is not electronic, Panic Station is not electronic, Animals isn't, Explorers isn't, Big Freeze isn't, Save me and Liquid State aren't electronic neither.

I like the fact that is album is so unconventional and experimental (2 instrumental songs, 2 songs with a different lead singer, etc.) In my opinion it still does have a golden thread and it really feels like a whole.

[cookienut]

Save Me totally has a PT vibe...it's like those long drawn out Steve Wilson'esque vocal harmonies.

[faemir]

"In the middle of electronic stuff" is just not true. That's probably a false vibe that you get from this album, but actually there isn't that much electronic stuff going on, at all. Supremacy is not electronic, Panic Station is not electronic, Animals isn't, Explorers isn't, Big Freeze isn't, Save me and Liquid State aren't electronic neither.

Alright perhaps not, but it still feels massively out of place to me - Would have worked better somewhere else.

[robwebster]

The song order feels way off - Survival is totally out of place - an anthem rock song in the middle of electronic stuff... but then I think it's also easily the worst song on the album.

As a whole, the album feels massively inconsistent, due to their experimentation. Some worked really well... others not so much. Why can't they just latch on to one of these experimentations, and make a whole album of it? This way, we'll never have a consistent album because that's way too much to ask for any band when so much is just style upon style change and experimenting.

"In the middle of electronic stuff" is just not true. That's probably a false vibe that you get from this album, but actually there isn't that much electronic stuff going on, at all. Supremacy is not electronic, Panic Station is not electronic, Animals isn't, Explorers isn't, Big Freeze isn't, Save me and Liquid State aren't electronic neither.

I like the fact that is album is so unconventional and experimental (2 instrumental songs, 2 songs with a different lead singer, etc.) In my opinion it still does have a golden thread and it really feels like a whole.

How many Robs is this board gonna have?! We're a plague!! An infestation!!

From now onwards, everybody start calling me Cornelius. To offset the balance.

But, completely agreed. You're doing the name proud, sir.

[ariich]

On my first listen of the online stream, will post thoughts as they arise!

Supremacy - pretty damn cool. Very James Bond. Nice buildup and great rocking section towards the end. Unusual structure, nice to see them continuing to branch out a bit and do unusual things.

Madness - heard this before, but I really like it. It starts pretty standard, but the buildup is immense and the vocal harmonies later on are gorgeous.

Panic Station - not what I was expecting at all, but this is AWESOME! So groovy. Love it.

Prelude - Rachmaninoff rip off. It's pretty nice though, and this is hardly a new thing for Muse, they've been ripping of Rach since the beginning.

Survival - Heard this a few times as well. Definitely a grower, I somewhat liked it first time around, but it just seems to get more and more epic with subsequent listens, especially the use of choirs.

more to come...

[ariich]

Follow Me - As seems to be the case a lot with this album so far, the song starts pretty standard, nothing very exciting (although the arpeggios are a nice classic Muse touch), but then the massive chorus comes in and suddenly I'm grabbed.

Animals - Mostly pretty straightforward Muse really, and nicely reminiscent of their early stuff without just being a copy. Great buildup once again though, they've really got that nailed on this album!

Explorers - Pleasant enough song, with a pretty nice final chorus, but generally I find it the least interesting song so far. Pretty standard, and not much to it. Not bad by any means though.

[ariich]

Big Freeze - Another somewhat less exciting song, although as keeps being the case on this album, something takes me by surprise. In this case it's the surprisingly cool, rocking chorus, which I really dig! So overall a pretty decent but not amazing song.

Save Me - Chris has a really nice voice. Definite PT/Anathema vibe here throughout the whole song, love it!

Liquid State - Pretty cool song, and good chorus again. I don't think Chris really has a strong (or rather, big) enough voice for such a rocking song though, just doesn't quite feel right. I like the idea of him singing the songs, but while he worked perfectly on Save Me, I think it doesn't work here quite so well.

Unsustainable - Still love this track so much. Experiemental, groovy, headbanging, and epic.

Isolated System - More of that Anathema vibe at the start. This is a very "prog" way to close the album - atmospheric instrumental music with various samples playing throughout. It works nicely though, the music is quite haunting and creates a great mood.

[Mladen]

I'm REALLY digging the new album so far, I was honestly prepared for a disappointment but I needn't have worried. We'll still have to see about how it ranks among the rest of their works...

[KevShmev]

Several listens later, I am still not sure what I think of this.  It's like there are moments of greatness here and there, but I am not sure it all comes together enough.  So far, there isn't a single song that makes me think, "Wow, this is awesome."  Every other Muse record so far has had at least several songs that did that right away.

The Queen influences are more than obvious in a handful of places. 

Just...not sure...yet.

[Implode]

I just picked up the album, and I think Madness meets that amazing song expectation for me. I'm only halfway through the album.

Edit: So Save Me and Liquid State...I had to check to make sure I was still listening to Muse. 

[Shine]

Favorites got to be Panic Station for me, at least for now, just because it's so groovy. Complete surprise and I love it. Though I gotta say Madness seems to be the one sticking in my head right now.

[Bill Carson]

Several listens later, I am still not sure what I think of this.  It's like there are moments of greatness here and there, but I am not sure it all comes together enough.  So far, there isn't a single song that makes me think, "Wow, this is awesome."  Every other Muse record so far has had at least several songs that did that right away.

The Queen influences are more than obvious in a handful of places. 

Just...not sure...yet.

I've listened to it a few times now and I still feel like this.

[Implode]

After more listens I've determined that I like it about as much as any other Muse album. There are a few songs that are amazing, but the rest just don't excite me.

[Mladen]

OK, I'm just gonna say it...

I'm ranking The 2nd Law right behind Origin of symmetry and Absolution. It's not like it's perfect, but man, I'm still can't believe it's this good. I admire them for having the guts to release this, and although the experiment has failed on a couple of songs, it's still better than recording Absolution-wannabee albums till they kick the bucket.

Favorites: Panic station, Animals, Supremacy, Madness

[robwebster]

I'll second a lot of that. No idea where it comes in my rankings, but I'm not a massive fan of Origin of Symmetry so it'll probably be ahead of that. Like you, I can't quite believe it's this good. The Resistance was good enough, with lots of cool stuff, but this is the album TR could've been. The risks, the excitement, the sheer drama of it all. And there is no experience that Survival cannot improve. I don't think I've ever listened to it without turning up a volume dial.

Favourites: Panic Station, Explorers, Survival, Save Me... and, Madness. Although five songs in this is starting to defy the point of picking favourites.

[skydivingninja]

I agree there's a lot of experimentation and it is what the Resistance really should have been, but I wouldn't say there's much real excitement or drama like an experimental album like Black Holes.  A lot of it is pretty tame by Muse standards, most of it falling under 'we're a rock band doing pop stuff' which isn't really all that new.  The stuff that really is out there, and is really unapologetic for being out there, really shines.  I may just be really bitter because a fantastic closing track was ruined by stupid samples, but I'll stop beating the dead horse.

Favorites: Panic Station, Survival, Save Me, Liquid State, Unsustainable