 | Tracklist:
1. Uprising
2. Resistance
3. Undisclosed Desires
4. United States of Eurasia / Collateral Damage
5. Guiding Light
6. Unnatural Selection
7. MK Ultra
8. I Belong to You / Mon Cœur S'ouvre à ta Voix
9. Exogenesis: Symphony Part I (Overture)
10. Exogenesis: Symphony Part II (Cross Pollination)
11. Exogenesis: Symphony Part III (Redemption)
Release Date: 2009 | |
| | other reviews | TotoCoppola (5)
One of the greatest cd's of Muse... | erasedcitizen (4.5)
... | BenHeller (4)
An album that combines outrageous rock bombast with an operatic tragedy that can be both incredible ... | Ryan Munthe (4)
Waking up the out-of-touch hipsters, courtesy of Matt Bellamy.... | scyther (3.5)
... | alexfionda (3.5)
A solid pop album but where is my muse?... | red0 (3.5)
Epic, bombast, pure album rock straight from 1975; flaws and all, The Resistance is still a solid al... | Genrebender12 (3.5)
Muse-The Resistance... | Lachlan (3.5)
This is an album showing maturity but also the boring side-effects that plague maturity. It's a reve... | Mark3Kyungsoo (3)
If Muse is a new band to you, it's a good first album to listen to.
but to all you die hard Muse ... | David James Young (2.5)
Muse's biggest album by no means equates to their best.... | Alex Silveri STAFF (2.5)
Everywhere at once and nowhere at all, The Resistance is epically, gloriously and magnificently harm... | Lee Bradbury (2.5)
The Resistance is futile.... | Andrew B. (2.5)
A disjointed, disorganized mess that ends up imploding on itself.... | Skillbinator (2.5)
... | SowingSeason STAFF (2)
Amidst a sea of glamour and fame, Muse implodes with this directionless, self-indulgent record.... | Ross Delany (2)
"While Black Holes and Revelations took the pace down a couple of notches, The Resistance comes peri... |
On 91 Lists
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| Summary: Meandering and lengthy, Muse find themselves without direction or inspiration |
4 of 4 thought this review was well written
Muse – The Resistance. (Excréter la Prétention de Tous les Orifices)
Perhaps the most noticeable features of Muse newest LP would be: 1) The (over)production, and 2) the obscene amount of quality fluctuation. Lack of replay value and inspiration plague it throughout, resulting in a thoroughly uninteresting album with little exception.
Opening with Uprising, electronic beats and high strings abound, the album starts off poorly. With very little guitar, an inaudible bass and the most simplistic drums, Muse finds themselves succumbing to mediocrity, due to lack of direction. While the song is well produced, there’s little substance beneath the production. Resistance fares no better. It’s Bellamy and Co., with perhaps their most unmemorable appearance yet.
Disappointed, but hopeful, the listener is met by Undisclosed Desires. The poppy chorus, playful strings dancing behind Bellamy and linear electronic drum patterns proves effective, creating a solid, if drawn-out song.
Faux-Queen anthem United States of Eurasia closes out the opening section of the album with dramatic strings and Bellamy’s operatic falsetto. The symphony makes its first appearance here, with a choir repeating the last syllable in “Asia” over and over and over again. Muse yet again impresses with their deep, insightful lyrics. Oh, there’s a minute and a half piano interlude tacked on at the end.
Five minutes later, we’re a minute into Unnatural Selection, trying very hard to forget Guiding Light. A thoroughly forgettable seven minutes later…
Racing strings and guitar riffs bring us into MK Ultra. Arguably the strongest song on the album, MK Ultra is reminiscent of earlier records, with more stripped down instrumentation. While still sounding a bit like a B-side of Black Holes and Revelations, it’s a breath of fresh air.
A playful piano dances along, with the clapping of hands, occasional mutter from Matt, and a bliss down the keyboard, and we’re into I Belong To You. Staccato piano chords and backing vocals create a genuinely enjoyable pop song toward the end of the album. The lightheartedness fades quickly however. The song collapses into a minimalist piano piece, met by Needs-To-Be-Reminded-He’s-Not-Freddie-Mercury-Bellamy. We wait while Matt satiates his desire for attention, complete with his little vocal solo halfway through the song. The tempo picks up again, the refrain is sung again, and we’re back into the beginning of the song with a saxophone accompaniment.
Exogenesis – the very name spews pretentiousness. A minute of long tones from the strings, we’re met by arpeggios, electronically mixed drums, some subtle keyboard overlays behind the orchestra, and… Bellamy. Three minutes in, the guitar arrives. With a full orchestra at your disposal, almost unlimited possibilities, a chance to really wow his audience and Muse’s fan base ready to bask in the glory that is Matthew James Bellamy, what does the musical prodigy do? He has the orchestra play arpeggios for four minutes while he wails into the microphone nonsensically. Not to say that sounds bad, it’s all very well produced and is presented as a cohesive package. But really?
Ultimately, Muse have crafted a complex, yet forgettable album. Over-reaching their boundaries, Muse has flung themselves into open space with no musical or conceptual direction. The album becomes truly unlistenable in parts, and while having a few hints of genius, their occasional presence is not enough to save this piece of pretentious drivel.
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Album Rating: 2
Review my review?
Digging: The Flashbulb - Arboreal | | | Album Rating: 3.5
I dunno, the bass on Uprising is pretty damn audible to me.
| | | Album Rating: 2
disguised tbt. if you think MK ultra is the best song describe it more.
though you die la resistance lives on
Digging: Love American - Disquiet Digging: Love American - Disquiet | | | Album Rating: 3.5
With a full orchestra at your disposal, almost unlimited possibilities, a chance to really wow his audience and Muse’s fan base ready to bask in the glory that is Matthew James Bellamy
I think you're looking at the surface of the album too much.
| | | Album Rating: 2
surface of the album? and i'll work up a more detailed description of MK Ultra
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
Have you given any thought as to why Matt wrote all this shit?
| | | Album Rating: 2
not particularly. and while i acknowledge that "why" is an important question, the end result is unimaginative. i find exogenesis to a be thorough bore from start to finish.
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
You'll enjoy this record more if you forget about your expectations and think about why you even got the chance to review it.
| | | Album Rating: 2 | Sound Off
I'll pos. Not a bad first if I must say. I like how you played on how much of a pretentious shit heap parts of the album were
Digging: Suis La Lune - Riala | | | Album Rating: 2
i looked at this album as objectively as possible. i enjoy listening to sections of it, but ultimately, it's not up to par with their older stuff.
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
Look at it any way you want, just know that it wasn't written to compare with their older work even though it blows both Showbiz and Black Holes out of the water.
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it's kinda tied with Black Holes for their worst record.
| | | Album Rating: 2 | Sound Off
it blows both Showbiz and Black Holes out of the water
Wrong. And wrong.
Digging: Kate Miller-Heidke - Nightflight | | |
OMG AtavanHalen and I agree on a rating.
| | | Album Rating: 2 | Sound Off
im a big muse fan but havent given showbiz a proper listen....guessing i should
| | | Album Rating: 2 | Sound Off
This is a first
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if only it were for a better album.
| | | Album Rating: 2 | Sound Off
I'm sure there's more to come
| | | Album Rating: 1.5
im a big muse fan but havent given showbiz a proper listen....guessing i should
I probably prefer Showbiz over BH&R
Digging: Sigur Ros - Valtari Digging: Sigur Ros - Valtari | | | Album Rating: 2.5
Absolution > Origin > BlackHoles > Showbiz > Resistance imo
Digging: The Walkmen - Heaven | | | |
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