Our hopes and expectations

The new Muse record, Black Holes and Revelations, is out next week in the US. I have to say that even though I do like it quite a bit, it's the first album of theirs that doesn't have any "smack you in the face, that's incredible" songs. It's definitely solid because there are plenty of really good songs on there. I like 'Starlight' for beginning like Kraftwerk and then having the riff from 'We're Not Gonna Take It' on piano. I like the way 'Map of the Problematique' sounds like Depeche Mode but heavier. I really like 'Invincible' and 'Exo Politics', but there's nothing that sucks the wind right out of me the way 'New Born' did, or 'Micro Cuts' or 'Butterflies and Hurricanes' or even 'Showbiz'. The closest thing is the last track, 'Knights of Cydonia', which is mental and features horses and lasers and probably cannons and fireworks, and has a part that sounds like 'Atomic' by Blondie and is terrific. It's a pretty nice place for a band to be when their fourth album isn't quite as good as some of their others, but is still a towering inferno.



Like I said, it's out next week in America, and will come with a live DVD from their last tour. Can't recommend this highly enough. Onstage they're borderline live-changing. Don't believe me? Download some live videos here, including aforementioned 'Knights', the video projection for which even features horses.