Your reviews of Drones

[musekiddo]

Drones is an album that includes Psycho, Reapers, The Handler, Defector and The Globalist.

 

How someone can dislike the album is beyond me.

 

So half the album is good then..

[LewisF]

Dead Inside - 9/10

[Drill Sergeant] + Psycho - 8.5/10

Mercy - 8.5/10

Reapers - 10/10

The Handler - 10/10

[JFK] + Defector - 10/10

Revolt - 6.5/10

Aftermath - 8.5/10

The Globalist - 10/10

Drones - 8/10

 

Album Overall:

9/10

Edited June 4, 2015 by LewisF

[topo_musero]

I'm lazy to find my review, but I'm rising my score from a 7.5 to a 8.5. This is mainly because now I'm in love with The Globalist and I'm digging the concept

[TheLionSlicer]

1. Absolution

2. Drones

3. The Resistance

4. BH&R

5. Origin of Symmetry

6. T2L

7. Showbiz

 

Black Holes through T2L is really interchangeable depending on the day

[CountDracula]

Dead Inside - 5/10

[Drill Sergeant] + Psycho - 8/10

Mercy - 7/10

Reapers - 8/10

The Handler - 10/10

[JFK] + Defector - 7/10

Revolt - 4/10

Aftermath - 7/10

The Globalist - 8/10

Drones - 1/10

 

Album Overall: 6.5/10

 

Better than the 2nd Law, Worse than all others. The Handler though... Already in my top 10 Muse songs. Best Muse song after BH&R alongside with MK Ultra.

[Kartoffel]

1. Absolution

2. Drones

3. OoS

4. BH&R

5. Showbiz

6. The Resistance

7. 2nd Law

[Mr Problematique]

1. OoS

2. Absolution

3. BH&R

4. Drones

5. Showbiz

6. The Resistance

7. 2nd Law

 

It could overtake BH&R but I doubt it. Time will tell

[static shadows]

Dead Inside - 6/10

[Drill Sergeant] + Psycho - 6/10

Mercy - 6/10

Reapers - 8/10

The Handler - 9/10

[JFK] + Defector - 9/10

Revolt - 7.5/10

Aftermath - 3/10

The Globalist - 6.5/10

Drones - 4/10

 

6.5/10

 

OOS > Absolution >> BH&R > Showbiz / Drones > The Resistance >> The 2nd Law

[TheAlex]

Abso

Drones

Bhar

Oos

T2L

TR

Showbiz

 

But that's just me...

[forevermusic]

I want someone to vote Drill Sergeant or JFK as best track just for the lolz.

 

Anyway... still haven't heard Drones (the title track). But as for the rest, favourite was The Handler, followed by Reapers. Least favourite was Revolt.

 

Dead Inside - 7.5/10

Psycho - 7/10

Mercy - 6/10

Reapers - 9/10

The Handler - 9.5/10

Defector - 8/10

Revolt - 5/10

Aftermath - 5.5/10

The Globalist - 7.5/10

 

Rating:

1. Origin

2. Absolution

3. Black Holes

4. Showbiz/Drones (perhaps Drones slightly ahead, but not sure yet)

5. The 2nd Law

6. Resistance

[White Heat]

Dead Inside: 7/10

Psycho: 8/10

Mercy: 6/10

Reapers: 10/10

The Handler: 10/10

Defector: 5/10

Revolt: 5/10

Aftermath: 8/10

The Globalist: 7/10

Drones: 1/10

 

 

Ranking:

 

1. Absolution

2. Origin Of Symmetry

3. Black Holes

4. Drones

5. The Resistance

6. The 2nd Law

7. Showbiz

[Buckerss]

Showbiz

Drones = BHAR

Absolution

OOS

The Resistance

2nd Law

 

To be fair I'm counting b-sides in my head a little, which is part of the reason I'm such a Showbiz fanboy. The gap between Absolution and BHAR is really small though.

[Old Man Pigeon]

Dead Inside - 7/10

Drill Sargeant/Psycho - 6/10

Mercy - 5/10

Reapers - 9/10

The Handler - 10/10

JFK/Defector - 8/10

Revolt - 4/10

Aftermath - 7/10

The Globalist - 6/10

Drones - 3/10

 

Overall - 65/100 or 6.5/10

[sam_jk]

I'm gonna need way more listens to make a judgment, but the first half of the album is ace. These are just first impressions of course. Could easily change:

 

Dead Inside 8/10-Fantastic vocals and keeps growing on me surprisingly. Classic at this point.

 

Psycho 7/10-Is a bit longer than it needs to be but it's so punchy and in your face that it's forgivable. That riff is the new Plug in Baby.

 

Mercy 7/10- A very straightforward song, a lot like Starlight but way better in my opinion.

 

Reapers 10/10- One of my favorite songs they've ever done, immense energy and incredible guitar. The chorus is catchy, the solo is fun to listen to and the outro is probably the heaviest thing they've ever recorded.

 

The Handler 9.5/10- Another great rocker. Recalls to the Absolution days and the reigning falsettos are really at show here.

 

(the rest of the songs are based off a single listen so to be taken with a grain of salt)

 

Defector 8.5/10- Heavy rocker that harkens back to Dragon Attack by Queen. The solo is one of the greatest they've done, the riff is a headbanger. Lyrics are a bit cheesy but I think it suits the song.

 

Revolt 4/10-Super generic song. Reminds me of American Pie. It's not the worst thing i've ever heard but....I probably wont listen to it again.

 

Aftermath 8/10- I love it. Matt's never sung a song in this fashion before and he plays it off so well. A solemn track with some awesome guitar work. Reminds me like a mix of Dark Side of the Moon and Achtung Baby style ballads.

 

The Globalist 7.5/10-Super disappointing, I felt like I would have loved it if it wasn't hyped as much as it was. The beginning is great, the heavy middle section is one of my favorite things on the album. Then it all goes wrong with the final 3 minutes, it's not bad at all but it just gets built up into USOE part 2. It's like if you're having sex with Scarlett Johansson and the foreplay goes all well, then you get naked and have 2 minutes of the most incredible sex you've ever had, and just as you're about to climax she hops off and transforms into that one ex you had 5 years ago that you never really liked but stayed with because you were comfortable with her, and she passes out immediately. Great song on it's own, but way overhyped.

 

Drones 6/10-I actually found it pretty interesting but I doubt i'll be listening to it often.

 

 

 

My album rankings:

 

Absolution

OOS

BHAR

Resistance/Drones

Showbiz

T2L

 

I agree with your ratings except would swap reapers and handler.

[kyo2004]

Dead Inside: 8/10

Psycho: 7/10

Mercy: 6.5/10

Reapers: 10/10

The Handler: 10/10

Defector: 8/10

Revolt: 2/10

Aftermath: 8/10

The Globalist: 8/10

Drones: 5/10 (This is a little special since I got the message, and the middle age composition type fits perfect as an epilogue)

 

BTW... My ranking:

 

1. Origin of Symmetry

2. Absolution

3. Showbiz

4. The Resistance

5. BHaR/Drones

6. (Any future Muse Album)...

7. The 2nd Law

Edited June 4, 2015 by L4N.kyo2004

[static shadows]

Revolt: This cancerous piece of vomit-inducing shit is just baffling to me. Why Muse? Just…why? I never thought they could write a song worse than Big Freeze, but here comes Revolt to prove me wrong. This is without a doubt my closest experience to an aural holocaust. Literally everything about this song is shit. There is not a single redeeming factor to be found here. I would be ashamed to introduce this to my fans.

 

It's ok. You can get through this. Reading between the lines, it's clear that you've got strength. You've got soul. You've felt pain. But you also feel love. Use this experience. You can grow. You can grow. And you can revolt against this song.

[Anonymoose]

This might cause some controversy knowing these forums but here we go

 

1. OoS

2. Absolution

3. T2L

4. Drones

5. Showbiz

6. BHaR

7. The Resistance

 

(The bottom 3 move around order-wise a lot)

[Old Man Pigeon]

This might cause some controversy knowing these forums but here we go

 

1. OoS

2. Absolution

3. T2L

4. Drones

5. Showbiz

6. BHaR

7. The Resistance

 

(The bottom 3 move around order-wise a lot)

 

That's the highest I've ever seen someone rank T2L and the lowest for BHaR

 

Every credit for going against the grain

[Citizen Erased 01]

This might cause some controversy knowing these forums but here we go

 

1. OoS

2. Absolution

3. T2L

4. Drones

5. Showbiz

6. BHaR

7. The Resistance

 

(The bottom 3 move around order-wise a lot)

 

Whatever floats your boat

[HannahG123]

Not going to rate songs out of 10 because I haven't listened to them enough and still yet to listen to the album in full without breaks between tracks plus my opinions always change.

 

Overall I am very happy with this album - I am actually a bit sad that it has blown the 2nd law out of the water for me for now at least and I have zero interest in any of those songs currently and probably for a while which is a shame but probably due to 'last album syndrome' like when you play a pop song form 10 years ago and love it but can't bear to hear the ones that were in the charts last year

 

Dead inside - always liked this one more than psycho - odd start to the album but very slick and trumps previous songs of it's type like madness and UD for me. 'leave me out in the cold' vocals will always make me shiver

 

psycho - absolutely knocked my socks off live, best sing along of a riff of my life - find the track itself gets a bit boring after a while but cannot wait to see it again live

 

Mercy - probably one of my least favourites. It's nice, very catchy, probably good fun live but nothing special, doesn't give me ermagawd emotions and it is very similar to starlight and could easily fall into a trilogy of error...

 

Reapers - currently I like the handler more than this track but I think over time it will change as reapers is so incredibly perfect - like oh my it's old school muse down to a T. It's exciting it's sexy and again it was BADASS LIVE

 

The Handler - ok so for the first time in my life I welled up listening to a muse song for the first time and it was surprisingly this one and not aftermath (which is more my kind of thing fabri pls explorers 4 lyfe <3) It's amazing. My new Hysteria. I loved it 100% from the first listen to hats off to you again Bellamy!

 

Defector - wasn't that fussed about this one at first but after hearing the JFK transition and outro it's pretty super. Love the riff, again going to be massive live, and can never get too much queeny vocals!

 

Revolt - I heard this after reading 'revolting' comments about it which was a shame but I don't think it's that bad - yeh it sounds like it was written for a musical or by Gerard Way but it's not boring, it's fun and weird and it doesnt kill me, I don't think I will skip it

 

Aftermath - this is so westlife it hurts all it needed was a keychange. Luckily I love westlife so this one is a guilty pleasure gem for me

 

The Globalist - favourite track on the album. This is the muse I love, its the reason I fell in love with them in the first place the way they can interpret classical music into their songs and make it their own . Yeh it may be branded as a rip off or a mess but I think it's a work of art and it works for me. Love a bit of nimrod choir

 

Drones - not sure how I feel about this one. It's nice that Matt has tried something new and a good end to the album but as a stand alone track it's a bit meh.

 

overall I think that lyrically muse are pretty crap at concept albums. Matt has hit us over the head with the story line he may as well not bother to explain it in interviews, used the word drones far too many times but on the other hand I think musically they have done a brilliant job and I have never been too fussed about lyrics so I am in conclusion very happy with album seven

 

YAY!

[Anonymoose]

That's the highest I've ever seen someone rank T2L and the lowest for BHaR

 

Every credit for going against the grain

 

I've always felt BHaR was overhyped a bit. Exo-Politics, MotP, SMBH never really did that much for me, KoC is great live but a bit weak on the album, same with Starlight imo... everyone is entitled to their own opinion though

[Tim59]

Not going to rate songs out of 10 because I haven't listened to them enough and still yet to listen to the album in full without breaks between tracks plus my opinions always change.

 

Overall I am very happy with this album - I am actually a bit sad that it has blown the 2nd law out of the water for me for now at least and I have zero interest in any of those songs currently and probably for a while which is a shame but probably due to 'last album syndrome' like when you play a pop song form 10 years ago and love it but can't bear to hear the ones that were in the charts last year

 

Dead inside - always liked this one more than psycho - odd start to the album but very slick and trumps previous songs of it's type like madness and UD for me. 'leave me out in the cold' vocals will always make me shiver

 

psycho - absolutely knocked my socks off live, best sing along of a riff of my life - find the track itself gets a bit boring after a while but cannot wait to see it again live

 

Mercy - probably one of my least favourites. It's nice, very catchy, probably good fun live but nothing special, doesn't give me ermagawd emotions and it is very similar to starlight and could easily fall into a trilogy of error...

 

Reapers - currently I like the handler more than this track but I think over time it will change as reapers is so incredibly perfect - like oh my it's old school muse down to a T. It's exciting it's sexy and again it was BADASS LIVE

 

The Handler - ok so for the first time in my life I welled up listening to a muse song for the first time and it was surprisingly this one and not aftermath (which is more my kind of thing fabri pls explorers 4 lyfe <3) It's amazing. My new Hysteria. I loved it 100% from the first listen to hats off to you again Bellamy!

 

Defector - wasn't that fussed about this one at first but after hearing the JFK transition and outro it's pretty super. Love the riff, again going to be massive live, and can never get too much queeny vocals!

 

Revolt - I heard this after reading 'revolting' comments about it which was a shame but I don't think it's that bad - yeh it sounds like it was written for a musical or by Gerard Way but it's not boring, it's fun and weird and it doesnt kill me, I don't think I will skip it

 

Aftermath - this is so westlife it hurts all it needed was a keychange. Luckily I love westlife so this one is a guilty pleasure gem for me

 

The Globalist - favourite track on the album. This is the muse I love, its the reason I fell in love with them in the first place the way they can interpret classical music into their songs and make it their own . Yeh it may be branded as a rip off or a mess but I think it's a work of art and it works for me. Love a bit of nimrod choir

 

Drones - not sure how I feel about this one. It's nice that Matt has tried something new and a good end to the album but as a stand alone track it's a bit meh.

 

overall I think that lyrically muse are pretty crap at concept albums. Matt has hit us over the head with the story line he may as well not bother to explain it in interviews, used the word drones far too many times but on the other hand I think musically they have done a brilliant job and I have never been too fussed about lyrics so I am in conclusion very happy with album seven

 

YAY!

 

I <3 the positivity. And I agree with most of this.

[HannahG123]

I <3 the positivity. And I agree with most of this.

 

Thanks timbo

[Tim59]

Lyrically, this is Muse's worst. It's hard to believe that it's the same Matt who wrote these, and those in Ruled by Secrecy and OOS. However, I'm not too fussed by this because Matt is still my favourite vocalist ever, and his delivery makes up for the poor lyrics for me. Also, for the people who were keen on Muse to go for a concept album, well, yeah. If this is what Matt comes up with then I'd rather they didn't. Even the half-arsed concept of TR was nice enough and didn't seem forced. But enough about lyrics and the concept. On to the music:

 

Dead Inside: As an individual track, I love it. As Tjet mentioned (iirc), it feels like the big brother of Madness. And Madness was great. Muse's pop songs are among my favourite, and DI is definitely the best poppier song on Drones. As an album opener though, it definitely does not stand up against the likes of TaB and NB. Yeah it defines the lyrical tone of the album and sets the scene before Psycho, but still. For this reason, 8/10

 

Drill Sergeant and Psycho: The riff has always been great, and the development of it in the pre-verse is very Muse-y. The guitar in the verse is also fun. The Drill Sergeant bits are annoying though and the song draaaags. Could've been better if cut shorter. But meh, fun live I suppose. 6/10

 

Mercy: Piano riff sounds too familiar and border-line cheesy, and the chorus feels lazy. It all seems very safe, and not something new for Muse like their best pop songs- SMBH, UD, Madness. It feels like Starlight's and Follow Me's unsuccessful brother. Still, it's not horrible. 5/10

 

Reapers: Probably my favourite track on the album. It feels like something Muse would have done in their earlier days, but with all the good things from the newer Muse. The distorted vocals are wonderful and the guitar tone is great. Solo is catchy as hell too, and the transitions work well. 10/10

 

The Handler: Hell yeah. It's all about the chorus. 9/10

 

JFK and Defector: There's something about this song that just resonates with me. Whether it's the eerie solo (which is really catchy too), the beefy riff, the cool harmonies that hark back to USoE (and Queen yeah) or the good placements of JFK, or all of them together, I love it. It feels like a natural progression for Muse, but also feels like something that could have been done in the Absolution or Black Holes era. Shame about the lyrics though. 10/10

 

Revolt: First impressions were horrible. But it seems to be a grower, as lots of others also seem to be saying. The verses are not bad at all, and the pulsating synth is quite cool. It's just that awful pre-chorus. And the "you can revolt" feels lazy, like Mercy's chorus. The sirens are nasty too. But the guitar is alright and there's some good vocals. Meh. It's still hard to rate this so soon. 6 or 7/10

 

Aftermath: Nice Gilmour-esque guitar work and chill atmosphere. The guitar develops nicely as the song goes on, and I dig the fuzz that gets added by the last chorus. The vocal interplay in said chorus is also quite nice and something a little different for them. And it comes down nicely right at the end. 8/10

 

The Globalist: It's no CE2 but it's pretty great man. The heavy part feels the right length, but the tremolo solo could have been longer for sure. The final section maybe could have been a tad shorter. I like the piano work though. Very reminiscent of I Belong to You, NSC and possibly B&H. The strings also blend very effectively with the band throughout the song. 9/10

 

Drones: Hmm. I respect it more than I enjoy it. It's nice that they've done something they've never done before- like, in hindsight the next logical step after the bombast of Survival and Unsustainable would be to go back to the Middle Ages- and that Matt is doing something other than Queen harmonies (as someone else mentioned). As a closing track though, it is in very tough company with RBS, Megalomania, IS, pretty much all of them in fact. So it was a little disappointing. 5 or 6/10

 

As a whole, the concept is forced and at times feels like a child could have written the narrative. But musically, it's a step in the right direction, especially with tracks like Reapers, Handler, Defector and Globalist. But there are disappointments and it doesn't even reach the same level as The Resistance for me, despite having some very strong songs. Meh. It has only been like 2 days. Much better than T2L though. A pretty solid 7/10.

[OriginOfAbso]

Dead Inside: 7.5/10 - Not really what I want from Muse, but I've liked this track from the beginning and still do. I enjoy the solo, and Matt's vocals are top notch. I can feel conviction in his voice. I just really wish the album could have opened with something more impactful.

 

Drill Sergeant + Psycho: 6/10 - Two things really bring down this song: repetition and the drill sergeant. Having to listen to those exchanges always bothers me and immediately takes me out of the song. And yeah, the riff is played way too many times. Should be much shorter.

 

Mercy: 6.5/10 - Very forgettable, but I find myself enjoying it more than Psycho. I don't like the chorus very much, too many "Mercy!"'s. Though, it is catchy and doesn't have much to dislike. I'm glad there is some heaviness to it.

 

Reapers: 9/10 - Really pleased with how this song turned out on the album. The main riff has a ton of punch. I enjoy almost every element of the song, and I like the technological feel to it. They successfully brought their live sound into the studio for the outro. Was my favorite song since BH&R other than Exogenesis. Until this next one.

 

The Handler: 10/10 - After hearing Reapers I didn't know how much better Muse could do at this point. With this song they proved they can still make music as good as the best from any earlier album. This song does not have a single thing lacking for me. I'm surprised so many people feel the bridge is too long. I think the length works perfectly and I love the slow, subtle build of the drums. I can't stop listening to this song. Definitely in my top 10 ever, probably top 5.

 

JFK + Defector: 8/10 - The JFK interlude works really well, blending the sinister guitar of The Handler before it with the uplifting Defector melody. Defector sounds too good for me to not enjoy it. The guitar and bass are very punchy and the riff is fun. The Queen-style vocals are too much, hopefully will sound better live. I also don't like the vocals or lyrics during the breakdowns. The higher guitar parts are one of my favorite things on the album. The song could be a little less repetitive.

 

Revolt: 3.5/10 - I just don't understand how a song that sounds like this could make it onto the album. The verses and guitar solo have grown on me, so that brings it up to a 4. But my god, the pre-chorus is the single worst thing I've ever heard in a Muse song. It will probably stop me from ever wanting to listen to this. It's a shame that The Handler has to share such embarrassing company.

 

Aftermath: 7/10 - This song is hard to rate. It has parts I really enjoy and parts that are just too cheesy. The chorus and ending sound like they should be in a Disney movie. I really like the guitar bits and some of the vocals, there is some beauty there.

 

The Globalist: 8/10 - This is overall a good song, but a major disappointment, and not just because it was hyped as Citizen Erased's sequel. I love the first two thirds of the song. The slide guitar section is new for a Muse song and works really well. I wish more had been done with the main riff in the middle. The piano ballad at the end brings the whole song down and is far too long. My biggest disappointment in the whole song, however, is that they made one of the best parts ever in a Muse song when that Egyptian-sounding riff kicks in... but it only lasts like 15 seconds. Not even a single repetition. Then disjointedly goes into the tinkly piano. Come on Muse.

 

Drones: 4.5/10 - Vocally impressive, but just doesn't really work on a rock album. There is too much going on throughout the entire song for my ears. The worst of any of Muse's closers by a long shot. The last 3 songs of the album all have parts that feel churchy to me, and I really don't like to hear that on a Muse album. Or in general really. Just makes for some boring music.

 

Overall: 7/10 - Drones comfortably sits at 4th for me.

Edited June 4, 2015 by Matthz