DJ Clever Girl

Muse's "The Resistance" brings occasionally over-the-top political frustration littered with moments of perfection.

Blogiraptor must-have #1: the regular promotion of songs that are stuck in my head. Don’t worry, I will only grace you with tracks that pass the lame filter. Mostly.

Without further ado, the song you should listen to immediately is Undisclosed Desires by Muse, off of their new album titled The Resistance, released in September 2009. The track is somewhat of a departure from Muse’s regular style, pounding out its percussive string hooks atop a house-like bass canopy. The musical beat that persists throughout the song possesses a truly electronic feel, and is catchy enough that the drums need only accent their rhythm, all setting the stage for a few ambient overtones and Matthew Bellamy’s vocal drive. It is the kind of song you can’t help but tap your foot to, the kind you catch yourself singing despite its easily learned and somewhat shallow lyrics. If I was a DJ, I would probably spin it.

This song came to mind as I was listening through my Muse albums in an effort to get stoked for their approaching concert at the Saddledome on March 30th. As a long-time Muse fan who has been denied seeing their legendary performance in the past (Turns out that U2 thinks Muse and the Black Eyed Peas are equal in calibre as opening bands), I am extremely excited. That said, I do hope that they play a sufficient amount of material from their older albums, namely Absolution and Black Holes & Revelations. While The Resistance has its defining moments, including a soaring 3-part rock symphony (Part 2 is definitely worth a listen), those past two full-length albums represent the band at their finest, in my humble opinion.

In conclusion, go buy tickets to Muse’s show. Supposedly they are one of the best live acts you’ll ever see. And try not to sing “tease me / show me how it’s done” too loudly around that cute girl in lecture before you get to know her a little better.

Edit: By “strings” I meant “keytar.” Seems like that’s the tone Matt was going for, though.

Edit 2: After review, I recall how disjointed The Resistance is. Regardless of its triumphant moments, it feels a bit like it’s having an identity crisis; stylistically, the songs vary greatly between each other and from the band’s past direction, not to mention how tacked-on the 3 part symphony at the end feels. That said, listen to this album for its scattered gem tracks, not as a whole. I truly hope that Muse is not afraid to delve back into its older material at their show!

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