Muse Album: “The Resistance”

Especially the one about "old-man emo". That was pretty funny. I'm an "old man" that has just recently discovered Muse (after hearing "Knights of Cydonia" on Guitar Hero when it first came out) and finding a lot to enjoy here. Part of the reason that Muse gets a bad rap is because 1. they sound so much like Queen and U2 (listen to "Map of the Problematique" again if you don't agree with the U2 reference), and 2. most of their stuff never makes it onto radio, at least not enough for DJ's to tell listeners who they are. This is a crying shame. Back in my day, we had "emo" too, except we called it "glam", and the artists were considered ground-breaking. It's too bad that we have degenerated into a society where we don't appreciate songs on the basis of whether or not we actually enjoy them - we have to analyze the details of their construction and bash every artist who emulates one of their glam-heyday heroes.

So is Resistance Muse's way of getting onto the radio? There's nothing wrong with this Muse CD - it might even be my favorite one by them if I had never heard Black Hole and Revelations - but it certainly represents a shift in how they view themselves and how they want the public to view them. This is a step in the direction of being less serious, and being more fun, in my opinion. My advice for the first-time listener is to embrace Black Holes, give this CD a shot if you decide you like what you hear there, and not dig too deep on The Resistance, since Muse will be what they want to be, and we (as listeners) should appreciate them for what they create. Long time listeners will want to read Chris Billings' review (above) for track info and comments, although I would have to say I place this CD just slightly ahead of Absolution for listen-ability.

When I first put this album on my wish list, it was something I would have liked to have, but not something that I necessarily needed. When I first listened to it I said, "Oh this is good." I didnt listen to the whole album at once. I heard "Undisclosed Desires" and decided I really liked that song, but nothing else really stood out. Then when I listened further on in the album, I heard "Exogenesis Part I." I felt like I had been knocked to the floor and my soul had been ripped out; a sign of a really good song for me. I don't know how else to describe this piece of music. It's not a song, no not at all, it is a piece of music. The orchestration and the singing are so hauntingly beautiful and full of emotion I just want to put on headphones, crank up the volume and let the music wash over me, painting pictures in my head. This is what I like to do when I hear a great piece of music, song or album.

After hearing that piece, I decided to read the lyrics. When I read the 1984 themed-lyrics and listened to the album once again, I realized that "Resistence" is a Rock Opera. All of the songs align together in a common Totalitarian-Theme: when he meets the woman he is sneaking around with before the thought police can find them, the Exogenesis Cycle wondering how and when will this world end, "the United States of Euroasia" with its a "Queen-like" anthem in it with a Chopin Nocturne with bombs going off in the background. It is incredible, and even more incredible that Matthew Bellamy is playing the classical piano like a maestro, sticks a Saint Saens excerpt in the middle of "I belong to you", and can sing an impressive Falsetto in "Exogenis Part I." If you listen to the album as a whole, it will tell you a story, and you realize that you can't just listen to one song.

This album is not like any Radiohead that i have ever heard, and in fact that is why I didn't like Muse back around 1999-2000 when they were first coming out. I thought that they were trying to mimic Radiohead, and being a Rabbid Radiohead fan that I am, I didn't want to buy any of their albums. That is until I heard the song Supermassive Black Hole. This album doesn't sound like Radiohead, and I think this is Muse's new voice in the music world; it shows they are serious musicians and ready to come into their own. Screw it if it isn't radio-friendly. If that's what you care about then don't buy this cd because it is not just a Fluff listen while you are doing something else.

Listen to this album and read the lyrics. I love 1984, and this is about the best rendition or homage I have heard or seen. Crack open a bottle of wine, take out your headphones, light a candle and lay back and enjoy. I haven't stopped

I love this album. I normally gravitate towards heavier music but this is an amazing album. I can hear so many different bands when listening to The Resistance. I hear Queen, U2, Led Zepplin, and believe it or not System of a Down. The slower Exogenesis tracks are not something I really like but five stars for the rest of the tracks. I also like the meaning behind the lyrics in many of the songs. Almost an intellectual feel to them. Don't hesitate and download now!

Serious musicians often face with the dilemma of creating either the music that they truly want or marketable products. The opposing forces are at war on Muse's latest. The Resistance is, I think, an inspiring and genre bending piece of work that both preserves the band's daring artistic integrity and appeals to old and new fans.

The Resistance opens with 3 catchiest pop anthems. They are meant to be played on radio and TV. It then takes an abrupt turn at track 4 "United States of Eurasia." A sublime Chopin nocturne in the middle of it showcases band's Romantic classical music influence in full glory. Three more "straight" rock numbers later, a Samson and Delilah aria works itself in "I belong to you." To hear a rocker attempting tenor voice is worth the cost of the CD alone. The album concludes with a song cycle that is structurally similar to a mini-symphony or German lieder. The songs themselves are operatic in nature with rich orchestration and ethereal falsetto.

The fusion of classical music and rock is as old as the advent of progressive rock in 1970s. Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody is a prime example of it. Yet, Muse does it so well. They comfortably switch from hard rocking sound to dreamy nocturne with me hardly noticing it. The result is their most mature, heartfelt and epic album to date.

After I listened to the whole disc I had the idea to print the lyrics for all the songs. Then I read them in the order they appear on the disc. It's amazing how the story line comes alive. That's how operas are written. And this one would qualify to be labeled ART because it has a powerful message for our society and for our times and because it takes the musical shape, form and contrasting techniques of Queen and Scorpions to the next level, while incorporating elements of classical music, like an auditory collage. Wonderful work of art in my opinion!