Review Summary: 'You know I don't want you and I never did.
I don't want you and I never will.'
My feelings towards the Resistance. Bellamy is a prophet.
It is said, in ancient music folklore, that Matthew Bellamy is perhaps the most obnoxious musician to walk on our hallowed planet since James Hetfield. People used to murmur that as Muse’s fan-base extended, so did Bellamy’s head. Whispers turned into casual conversation, as the truth behind these tales became superficially clear with the ill-fated release of ‘The Resistance.’ Nevertheless, back in 2001, at the time of Origin of Symmetry’s release, these declarations were merely rumours, and frankly, after those who characterized Muse as ‘Radiohead wananbees,’ listened to Origin of Symmetry, they were left well and truly dumbstruck.
The raw persona Muse adopted in this record creates an aura of energy surrounding every track on the album. With just a single listen, it becomes blatantly coherent that when writing this record, Muse were restless and raring to go. This was before Bellamy decided to subliminally imply that everyone should be wearing tin-foil hats to deter government satellites that can read our minds in the track ‘Exo-Politics’.
This was before Muse veered right of the road.
This is the real Muse.
When we think of enthusiasm, many things instantly leap to our mind. http://www.iwatchstuff.com/images/2006/03/jack-black-diary.jpg may be one of them. This album, to those that enjoy it, would definitely be a contender. It was this vigour that was the driving force behind everything Muse once were – something they would lose in years to come. Whether it be the eerie distorted solo from ‘Citizen Erased,’ or the devastating riff from ‘Plug in Baby,’ in every corner of this album there is an essence of oomph. The piano, a common inclusion, is generally very loud and in your face. Bellamy plays the keys like a master at work, and it is this characteristic that really defined this album. In ‘Space Dementia’ and the chorus of ‘Darkshines,’ his dynamic strokes of the piano reveal themselves better than ever.
The overall atmosphere of this record comes off exactly the way Muse sought after. With the frequently raging synth, the dire tone of Bellamy’s falsetto vocals –on display in pretty much every track- and the fuzzily distorted bass create an ambient sensation of floating in outer space. However, the subtle callousness that works its way through the record makes the journey into the unknown much more adventurous. The outstanding album closer, ‘Megalomania,’ starts off soothingly, with an organ playing repeated arpeggios, and Dom’s typical simple yet fulfilling drum beat. However the song suddenly explodes as the chorus quickly changes the entire dynamic of the track. Muse’s knack for being unpredictable works much to their advantage this time around.
Musicianship has played such a vital part in all of the previous decades greatest albums. Although a seemingly messy album with all that is going on, ‘Origin of Symmetry,’ is actually a musically sound record that arrests the listener’s attention within seconds. The track placing is well implemented; the album flows efficiently and effectively. Bellamy’s vocals are just seamless for everything that Muse attempts to achieve with this album, the desperation that echoes from his voice when he sings throughout the album - especially apparent in the song 'Hyper Music'- is incredibly effective.
’Mmmmmmmmmmmm
Your golden skies feed my role
In this forgotten space race under my control
Who's returned from the dead?
Who remains?’
This is vocalised with such conviction it is hard not to rewind the record and play Hyper Music just that one more time.
There is no denying it, Muse have lost their mojo. ‘The Resistance,’ is everything we hoped Muse wouldn't come to be. Luckily, we have this enlightening album which lives up to and exceeds nearly all of the potential Bellamy and his troops had.
’ crucifie mes ennemis quand je suis fatigué de vivre.’
This is definitely and essential album.
