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Muse tour too much


Original Musely

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I don't think 3 year gaps in between music releases are long at all. :$

 

 

 

I agree.....for example U2 takes a lot longer than that to release new music! (4-5 years usually). So, I think 3 years is pretty good for Muse especially with all the work they put into their albums.

I'd be afraid they'd burn out if they released stuff more often than they do now.

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But both those albums were mostly written on the road.

 

:yesey: I don't think the problem is all the touring. Didn't they tour just as much in the early 2000s? they just seem more open to different genres now, including pop, and i think that's why the recent album wasn't as "focused" as say Absolution.

 

I love that they tour a lot. in fact I want more, even though LA already got 3 gigs this year (of which only one I attended...) what I'd like is for them to play their older stuff more often. I'll sit through anything as long as they play Hyper Music/Futurism/Dead Star/Agitated/etc. there's a lot to choose from :D

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It does affect what they write. You missed my point though, i just don't think it would necessarily be better music if they wrote it after a long break from touring.

 

I don't think it has jack shit to do with their music. When you're uninspired, you're uninspired whether you take 5 years off or tour for 5 years straight.

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As long as there are people paying to see them and as long as they love touring, then bring it on. Muse have provided me with some unforgettable nights and I would not want to see them go into the Cure style of touring - i.e a couple of monster gigs or festival gigs in a few major cities every few years. They make themselves accessible to as many fans as possible and as one of the best live bands on the planet that is great for all fans.

(Also, touring = $$$)

As far as their output goes on the other hand, it does seem that lately they write just enough to get by on. From both of the last 2 albums as far as I am aware there were no surplus tracks. There is always something nice about having a few awesome b-sides floating around which just make an occasional rare live appearance - that was a feature of their early years that I would like to see again. Personally I liked TR but I can't stand T2L. I mean I can't even listen to it all of the way through without getting bored and angry at the direction they have taken. However, I have a strong feeling (call it wishful thinking) that the next album will be a mighty colossus of awesome riffage and spine tingling stupendousness.

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As long as there are people paying to see them and as long as they love touring, then bring it on. Muse have provided me with some unforgettable nights and I would not want to see them go into the Cure style of touring - i.e a couple of monster gigs or festival gigs in a few major cities every few years. They make themselves accessible to as many fans as possible and as one of the best live bands on the planet that is great for all fans.

(Also, touring = $$$)

As far as their output goes on the other hand, it does seem that lately they write just enough to get by on. From both of the last 2 albums as far as I am aware there were no surplus tracks. There is always something nice about having a few awesome b-sides floating around which just make an occasional rare live appearance - that was a feature of their early years that I would like to see again. Personally I liked TR but I can't stand T2L. I mean I can't even listen to it all of the way through without getting bored and angry at the direction they have taken. However, I have a strong feeling (call it wishful thinking) that the next album will be a mighty colossus of awesome riffage and spine tingling stupendousness.

 

Let's hope so!:musesign:

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  • 2 months later...
Disclaimer: I won't be at all surprised if nobody reads or replies to this.

 

So I'm sat listening to latest Manics album 'Rewind the Film'. Yeah yeah I know lots of people aren't so keen on them. Whatever. But I have to say, as a long-time fan of that band, what really makes them so enduring for me is that I still feel thoroughly connected with them. Through their music, and the stream of records they make. Not through Q&As, or seeing them live more times than necessary, or any other kind of online gestures. They seem to have never stopped making records. Even when they promised a 2-year break, two of them ended up making solo albums! It seems there's an unshakable creative intent in that band that gives them the need to keep writing music. And while I might love some of their records more than others, I never stop wanting to here what they have to say next (..musically that is). And that's because they always seem to have something to say (or at least want to), otherwise they wouldn't bother writing anything.

 

So....Muse.

 

The band that completely had me by the balls from 1999 - 2007. That's a fairly large portion of me. And during that period, every album they released felt like a hugely exciting important event in my life. And yet, with the last couple of albums, I somehow feel increasingly indifferent about them. Yes I know lots of people love The Resistance and The 2nd Law, but I'm very certain that there are lots of fans out there who also feel like I do: that these two albums seemed like a step down/back. But if you don't agree with that, you may as well click away now!

 

For me, the problem is that they tour every single album so relentlessly that it has now just made every album-tour cycle feel totally monotonous. It's become harder to be a 'fan' of the band as there is no artistic momentum between their albums anymore. And hence, there's really nothing to be a fan of! For me, The 2nd Law felt more like 12 songs that enabled them to go out on the road again, rather than an album they desperately needed to get out of their system. The other problem is that by having to wait SO LONG for a few new songs, it adds a ridiculous pressure for you to absolutely love them as much as you did the previous ones. Three-and-a-half years is a long time; you enter a different stage in your life by then!

 

NIN got away with this - but largely because there was always different reasons for the long gaps. And when he did finally get clean and back in flow, what happened: With Teeth/Year Zero/Saul Williams/Ghosts/The Slip/How To Destroy Angels/Two Film Scores/ More NIN. A plethora of creativity.

 

Don't get me wrong. It's nice that Muse want to tour and make sure everyone gets a chance to see them. Most artists with good intentions would feel that way. But most artists have stories about having to sacrifice touring certain places (or doing a tour altogether) sometimes. I can also understand why Muse have ended up thinking the way they do. Since they are the kind of band that originally had success through relentless touring, they obviously still feel that it's fundamental for enduring success. Maybe in terms of new fans, they're right. But for older fans like me that still care deeply about their music, it's a different story.

 

What do I think they should do? Take time out from touring. Re-evaluate the band. Make some bloody music! Usher in a new era of Muse (since the last million years have all felt like one gigantic blur). Focus on being a record-making band for a while. Make me care again. And furthermore, from listening to Butterflies and Hurricanes, I know Matt Bellamy has it in him to do that.

 

I was curious if there's any old-school fans like me who feel the same way? And just in case anyone thinks this is a Muse-bashing thread, let me say I've written this because I do like Muse. Would be great to know what you all think!

 

 

 

PS. I've purposely avoided talking musically about TR or T2L since everyone's going to have different opinions away. Let's just say I personally thought they were less focused. And I used to love Muse for their diversity and their musical sense of humour, but I also think both of those things have backfired lately.

I must say I agree, and I do love T2L. The reason I can't rate it as highly as their other stuff is because like you say, it felt more like an excuse to get an album out to "shake things up". It's essentially a more focused version of The Resistance

 

The only band I can know that got away with this is Iron Maiden, because they balance things out with how they tour, since 1999:

 

1999: Ed Huntour (tour where Bruce and Adrian rejoined the band, greatest hits tour)

2000-2001: Brave New World (or Metal 2000 in Europe- new album tour)

2003: Give Me Ed... Till I'm Dead (Greatest Hits tour) and Dance of Death (new album tour)

2005: The Early Days (or Eddie Rips Up The World to some fans- greatest hits tour focused on 1979-1983)

2006-2007: A Matter of Life and Death (new album tour)

2008-2009: Somewhere Back in Time (greatest hits tour focused on 1984-1988)

2010-2011: The Final Frontier (two in one: 2010 a greatest hits tour focused entirely on post-2000 material with a brand new song and 2011 a new album tour)

2012-2014: Maiden England (Greatest hits tour focused on the entire 80s but predominantly on 1988)

 

You make a similar point with NIN and strangely the two are similar, except Trent released new stuff every year since 2007 with two albums in 2008. Plus with Maiden, they don't recycle stuff. Some of their "trademarks" such as dual guitars with little focus on power chords are there but they try something different every album, and so therefore that's why it's refreshing to hear an effective blend of some new songs mixed in with the classics (though I will say Maiden have been killing it with their new album tours by making back catalogue setlist selections more post-2000 stuff. And NIN plays almost the whole album too, thus making his set not predictable and it allows you to experience the show a lot more too.

 

Muse's problem is that they ride too long on the hype surrounding a new album, and take too long to give a new album. An arena tour plus some festivals is fine enough but a stadium tour with not much new to offer except a longer set and more bombastic theatrics is pushing it. Which is sort of what makes it hard for me to get excited about a new Muse album, strangely enough. And even as good as the album may be. It's hard to care about new material that the majority of the crowd won't care about being shunted into a set that this point, a deaf mute can predict. Time gaps between albums isn't a problem but when you're touring for too long for a new album, that becomes a problem.

 

I do think Muse needs to cut back on the touring. It's understandably why they tour so much with their current popularity level, but it's resulting in albums that don't really feel like albums anymore and just collections of songs.

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  • 2 months later...

I don't think they tour too much, it's just that they don't put enough content out fast enough. I'd really like to see an album that's mostly finished while they're still touring, seeing what they like and don't like, what should be explored and abandoned. Think that could be really interesting.

 

Also I'm hoping they start enjoying the tours more. Must be tedious going from city to city. They should stay two nights in every city, two gigs, one intimate one arena/stadium. Slow the pace down a bit but I'm sure it'd be much more pleasant for everyone involved. It'd also give the arena crew time to work at a slower pace.

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