Album Eight: Simulation Theory

[fuesch]

Also, in an interview Matt said:

 

“If you spend a few hours watching American news, well, that’s were the first part of the song came from really. It’s kinda like some strange bubble where they’re all living up Trump’s bum, basically … It gets inside your mind. I think that’s where the song came from really. You start walking round worrying about things that you wouldn’t normally think about and so the song came from that. How other people’s ideas can kinda take over your own if you’re not careful.”

 

Oh, so that's why "final solution" isn't mention with the appropriate seriousness . And I still wouldn't put it past Trump to do something like that. After all he's showing clear dictatorial tendencies and praised Duterte for killing drug users.

 

In one way I understand what Matt means, generally life with its chores and whatnot goes on, and a different administration doesn't make that much of a difference. On the other hand it's ignorant as hell. Just because something doesn't affect you, doesn't mean that nobody is affected, dammit! Now how do we help Matt get his head out of his ass?

 

 

'Algorithm' sounds interesting from Matt's description

 

I know, right?! But I'm trying really hard not to get my hopes up, just in case.

[Roryj02]

I think we worry too much about offending people in this world. The majority of people with common sense know that Matt wasn't being anti- semetic, and the line was meant in the context of all the otehr song lyrics, so although that line does sound a bit suspect, I think we can calm down.

[MartianSpaghettiRider]

I think we worry too much about offending people in this world. The majority of people with common sense know that Matt wasn't being anti- semetic, and the line was meant in the context of all the otehr song lyrics, so although that line does sound a bit suspect, I think we can calm down.

 

Yeah, also by implying that Matt implies (sorry for the pun) that you can avoid seeing the atrocities of modern world by closing your eyes and cut mediatically yourself off from the world maybe we're laying down too much on the guy.

I think it could be because some people are triggered by the fact he's rich and wealthy, but he's trying to talk about the problems of American society: it's like they think because he's sheltered and doesn't have it hard in his everyday life, he is not entitled to put his two cents into crucial social matters due to him being necessarily blind and naïve about all of that. That's such an assuming and unhealthy way of thinking, iny opinion: I am extremely far from being economically rich myself, and I experience many typical everyday problems, but that shouldn't provoke prejudice and resentment in me against wealthier people a priori, otherwise I'm just projecting whatever beef I have against the reality I live in on points of view that didn't intend what we thought they would.

[Hopix]

Yeah, also by implying that Matt implies (sorry for the pun) that you can avoid seeing the atrocities of modern world by closing your eyes and cut mediatically yourself off from the world maybe we're laying down too much on the guy.

I think it could be because some people are triggered by the fact he's rich and wealthy, but he's trying to talk about the problems of American society: it's like they think because he's sheltered and doesn't have it hard in his everyday life, he is not entitled to put his two cents into crucial social matters due to him being necessarily blind and naïve about all of that. That's such an assuming and unhealthy way of thinking, iny opinion: I am extremely far from being economically rich myself, and I experience many typical everyday problems, but that shouldn't provoke prejudice and resentment in me against wealthier people a priori, otherwise I'm just projecting whatever beef I have against the reality I live in on points of view that didn't intend what we thought they would.

 

I agree on one hand it shouldn't be your background or upbringing that permits you to speak about anything, but on the other hand, the damage celebrities can do by publicly making ignorant or misinformed comments is a problem, too.

 

Society needs to stop looking up to celebrities like idols so much in general. They're basically the new God to some people.

[Roryj02]

Yeah, also by implying that Matt implies (sorry for the pun) that you can avoid seeing the atrocities of modern world by closing your eyes and cut mediatically yourself off from the world maybe we're laying down too much on the guy.

I think it could be because some people are triggered by the fact he's rich and wealthy, but he's trying to talk about the problems of American society: it's like they think because he's sheltered and doesn't have it hard in his everyday life, he is not entitled to put his two cents into crucial social matters due to him being necessarily blind and naïve about all of that. That's such an assuming and unhealthy way of thinking, iny opinion: I am extremely far from being economically rich myself, and I experience many typical everyday problems, but that shouldn't provoke prejudice and resentment in me against wealthier people a priori, otherwise I'm just projecting whatever beef I have against the reality I live in on points of view that didn't intend what we thought they would.

 

I second that! Good point.

[Stephanie Kaoss]

I personally love Thought Contagion... this comes from a hardcore Muse fan and a 'old muse fan'... I grew up listening to and adoring Showbiz, Origins and Absolution. I fell in love with the band because of those albums and still do.

 

I love how they evolve, experiment with different styles and genres but still sound like MUSE. (Yeah I'm one of those fans) Matt has called TC as being Fury 2, I can actually hear this... certain elements of Fury, I've yet to see anyone agree with this. I also adore Fury, one of my favourite Muse tracks.

 

As with all their songs, I don't really have a problem with the lyrics, especially in the last few albums where everyone has bi**hed about them, yes their 'wild' and 'out there' and a little 'over the top', but I don't take those lyrics in the same way as everyone else does. I use them and connect to them in different ways, I interpret them in a different way. (Not sure if that makes sense to anyone...) But yeah, I take my own personal interpretation from the lyrics.

I completely agree with you, on pretty much everything you've said.

[That Little Animal]

Yeah, also by implying that Matt implies (sorry for the pun) that you can avoid seeing the atrocities of modern world by closing your eyes and cut mediatically yourself off from the world maybe we're laying down too much on the guy.

I think it could be because some people are triggered by the fact he's rich and wealthy, but he's trying to talk about the problems of American society: it's like they think because he's sheltered and doesn't have it hard in his everyday life, he is not entitled to put his two cents into crucial social matters due to him being necessarily blind and naïve about all of that. That's such an assuming and unhealthy way of thinking, iny opinion: I am extremely far from being economically rich myself, and I experience many typical everyday problems, but that shouldn't provoke prejudice and resentment in me against wealthier people a priori, otherwise I'm just projecting whatever beef I have against the reality I live in on points of view that didn't intend what we thought they would.

 

No one is 'triggered' by the fact that he's rich and wealthy. No one is saying that the rich shouldn't have an opinion. We're merely responding to Matt's very own observation that if you turn off the news, things aren't so bad. Which is only an observation that people from a position of privilege can make.

 

Let me break it down.

 

Matt explains the lyrics to his song are a result of his thought process that the media are constantly broadcasting their viewpoints about Trump. And if you turn off the tv, it turns out things aren't so bad.

 

For many people living in America, this is not true. They can't close their eyes and realize that suddenly things aren't so bad, because they still can't afford to go to the doctor to get their cancer sorted out, or they're still facing deportation despite having lived in the US since they were a baby, or their kids are still dead after being shot in a school shooting, or they still see the social security they have paid for all their life taken away from them, leaving them unable to pay for basic needs at an old age, or they still see an increase in racist verbal and physical - occasionally lethal- attacks on people of a non-white background, etc, etc, etc.

 

If we say that Matt is out of touch it's not out of hatred for the rich and famous. He is, however, like many others who aren't rich and famous, privileged in a sense that he is not negatively affected by the horrors that Trump inflicts on the American people. Not just on the news, but in real life. Many can close their eyes to the news and feel better. But that doesn't change the reality that many don't have that option. These horrible stories are reality to them, they don't see it on the news, they see it in their lives. Their story needs to be told and heard, not silenced by urging people to just turn off the tv and pretend like the bad things don't exist.

[MartianSpaghettiRider]

I agree on one hand it shouldn't be your background or upbringing that permits you to speak about anything, but on the other hand, the damage celebrities can do by publicly making ignorant or misinformed comments is a problem, too.

 

Society needs to stop looking up to celebrities like idols so much in general. They're basically the new God to some people.

 

It's been decades people do so, and I actually agree about the need of changing this perspective. The recent Hollywood scandals proved how much celebrities must be held accountable for every crime or infraction of theirs, like every man.

I'm not defending Matt because I believe he can do no wrong as a man (the biggest falsity ever) or I idolize him, but because I just think he didn't mean what many people assume he did by saying those things.

[Claudia O]

I understand what Matt said differently (or maybe my english isn't good enough..)

 

When I read his explanation about turning the tv off and the world isn't that bad anymore, I thought "yes! That's what I was thinking for a long time!" I understand it not with Trump, cause I don't live in the US, but with the refuge-"crisis" in Europe. If you read certain newspapers here in Austria or read too much about it on social media, you get infected by it. There are many people who believe all the things they read about, and this is a big problem. You read it everery day, and in the end you either think "Bullshit" or you make their opinions your own.

There were reports (from the US) that you shouldn't go on holidays to Europe, it is too dangerous on the streets, you can't go out on the street as a woman. I read an article about Vienna, about certain districts you can't go to because of all the violence, even during the day! Ha! Been there, nothing.

 

I don't say there is no violence here, but I think you know what I mean.

[serpentsatellite]

TLA said it better than I ever could, but I'd like to add that "not paying attention" and pretending everything is fine, or will be fine, is EXACTLY what got the US in this situation in the first place.

We didn't pay attention, and we allowed people with fringe beliefs to seize power.

 

If anything, being aware of what's going in is what we SHOULD be doing. We should be getting involved, getting upset, and trying to fix the world around us.

 

And it's absolutely not some sort of dumb jealousy against the rich... Unless one truly believes on the rich and famous should be able to live safe, full lives.

 

I think we worry too much about offending people in this world. The majority of people with common sense know that Matt wasn't being anti- semetic, and the line was meant in the context of all the otehr song lyrics, so although that line does sound a bit suspect, I think we can calm down.

 

Case in point, a song themed around "shut off the news and be happy" also throwing out a Holocaust joke? Seriously?

That sounds like some news that was pretty important to pay attention to...

[Hat]

Yeah, also by implying that Matt implies (sorry for the pun) that you can avoid seeing the atrocities of modern world by closing your eyes and cut mediatically yourself off from the world maybe we're laying down too much on the guy.

I think it could be because some people are triggered by the fact he's rich and wealthy, but he's trying to talk about the problems of American society: it's like they think because he's sheltered and doesn't have it hard in his everyday life, he is not entitled to put his two cents into crucial social matters due to him being necessarily blind and naïve about all of that. That's such an assuming and unhealthy way of thinking, iny opinion: I am extremely far from being economically rich myself, and I experience many typical everyday problems, but that shouldn't provoke prejudice and resentment in me against wealthier people a priori, otherwise I'm just projecting whatever beef I have against the reality I live in on points of view that didn't intend what we thought they would.

I’m drunk and I can still see you’re a talking nonsense. Matt literally talked about how things aren’t so bad if you just turn off the news, meaning Matt simply isn’t affected by everyday issues, which is because he’s rich. No one is saying he can’t have an opinion, but it becomes obvious he’s out of touch when he talks about working class and middle class issues as non-existent just because he doesn’t experince them.

[forevermusic]

I think its possible to be on the fence with both. Its easy to feel apocalyptic if you watch too much news at the moment, given its consistently bleak and there is so much of it coming through so many different places, and then when you step away from it for a little while, a lot of the basics of day-to-day life is the same as it ever was.

 

But at the same time, a not-insubstantial quantity of people will have already been affected by the whole Trump thing in a severely negative fashion, where the luxury of turning it off and being able to see problems as not being so bad is not an option, and you can't really dismiss it so easily. I don't really want to go straight to "out of touch celebrity", but its close enough to justify the comparison.

 

I get how the idea influences the lyrics, both in the sense of conventional news and the weird cavalcade of social media-appropriated bullshit, which gets one stuck in a sort of feedback loop that increases and increases to the point where contradiction is rejected. But at the same time, its hard to justify tuning out when that probably lead to the current mess going on.

 

Anyway, is it a controversial opinion to say I prefer Dig Down to Thought Contagion?

[Roryj02]

TLA said it better than I ever could, but I'd like to add that "not paying attention" and pretending everything is fine, or will be fine, is EXACTLY what got the US in this situation in the first place.

We didn't pay attention, and we allowed people with fringe beliefs to seize power.

 

If anything, being aware of what's going in is what we SHOULD be doing. We should be getting involved, getting upset, and trying to fix the world around us.

 

And it's absolutely not some sort of dumb jealousy against the rich... Unless one truly believes on the rich and famous should be able to live safe, full lives.

 

 

 

Case in point, a song themed around "shut off the news and be happy" also throwing out a Holocaust joke? Seriously?

That sounds like some news that was pretty important to pay attention to...

 

I don't think what Matt is saying is "Shut off the news and be happy", I think he's trying to say the large majority of the population are forming their political and social and beliefs on what they're told by someone else, or what is on the news, which could for all we know be a biased source. He trying to say that people should form their own beliefs on the facts they find rather than being told what to believe by someone else. And come on, do you really think that Matt was making a holocaust joke?

[LewisF]

At the end of the day, the news is a platform for scaremongering.

[MAurelia]

I definitely like Thought Contagion. It like the piano in the first 'you've bitten by' verse. It reminds me of SS (I always liked this part of SS). The song is catchy and better than Dig Down. Dig Down is good but too slow, it is like you wait for an epic part to start, but it doesn't. Thought contagion is a movement to a good direction.

I read some positives comments about TC on this board and on You Tube, which is strange due to the usual negativity of this forum. Muse fans are too demanding. That's good! But if someone does not like this band anymore, there are other forums where you can write.

I think we are all here because we like Muse. We like some songs more than others and we love watching them live.

Well, it's my opinion.

[Hat]

I definitely like Thought Contagion. It like the piano in the first 'you've bitten by' verse. It reminds me of SS (I always liked this part of SS). The song is catchy and better than Dig Down. Dig Down is good but too slow, it is like you wait for an epic part to start, but it doesn't. Thought contagion is a movement to a good direction.

I read some positives comments about TC on this board and on You Tube, which is strange due to the usual negativity of this forum. Muse fans are too demanding. That's good! But if someone does not like this band anymore, there are other forums where you can write.

I think we are all here because we like Muse. We like some songs more than others and we love watching them live.

Well, it's my opinion.

This is a very confusing post.

 

People are more positive than you'd expect, but we're still too demanding. And if we don't like the band anymore we should leave, but we're all here because we like Muse.

 

And like you say, we like some songs more than others. You realise that that includes disliking some songs? I love the majority of their output, but certainly not all of it. Still a fan.

[MAurelia]

This is a very confusing post.

 

People are more positive than you'd expect, but we're still too demanding. And if we don't like the band anymore we should leave, but we're all here because we like Muse.

 

And like you say, we like some songs more than others. You realise that that includes disliking some songs? I love the majority of their output, but certainly not all of it. Still a fan.

 

I'm glad to read you are a fan! I know most of us here are fans, but there are others that only criticize negatively and it seems they don't like Muse anymore. Fortunately, they are very few, but they are very active here. It's a bit disgusting...

[Duk3 Fluk3m]

Can people really not see how similar to Fury this new song? I saw the connection as soon as the bass started.

 

As for the lyrics, who the fuck listens to Muse for the lyrics? It would be like going to see a Die Hard film for the romantic story.

 

I love this new song. Its classic Muse with a pop twist.

[Hopix]

Can people really not see how similar to Fury this new song? I saw the connection as soon as the bass started.

 

As for the lyrics, who the fuck listens to Muse for the lyrics? It would be like going to see a Die Hard film for the romantic story.

 

I love this new song. Its classic Muse with a pop twist.

 

I do.

[s3ker]

It has been growing on me, for sure.

 

I think what I appreciate the most is the way they blended the genres in a way that is very much theirs. Despite some of the most clear influences or incorporation of specific trends, the song as a whole has a very particular vibe/direction. And even if perhaps it lacks depth as a consequence of being evidently tailored to be a single, I actually think it's a really interesting choice given how much it would/will stand out in comparison to much of the stuff I hear on the radio.

 

I guess Dig Down felt awfully derivative to me. With Thought Contagion, despite fan reaction to the song's quality itself, it makes me think that the band are stil hungry to try out different things, expanding their range and throwing out there their interpretation of where music is at, in the present moment. These days I think that's what keeps me interested in Muse, and I'm glad they still have that.

 

 

I also appreciate the irony of a lot of people disliking the song but recognising how it got stuck in their heads

[FabriPav]

As for the lyrics, who the fuck listens to Muse for the lyrics?

 

Does this mean one can't comment on how awful the lyrics are?

[Hat]

I don’t get why it’s so difficult to understand that bad lyrics that are in your face can be an issue no matter how little you care about lyrics in general. Actually I’m pretty sure Tuck Norris understands this, he’s just pretending not to so his post seems more logical.

[Rustyy]

One of the songs I really like by The 1975 has a line “you look shit and you smell a bit”, and it’s put me off the whole song even though I really like the rest of it. Thankfully none of Muse ones have done this yet

[Jobby]

Matt might never have been Leonard Cohen in that department but a hell of a lot of my favourites from the first 4 records are up there because I’m attached to at least some of the lyrics.

 

Hate This, Screenager, Megalomania, Shine (Acoustic), Dead Star, New Born, Bliss, Darkshines, Endlessly, Fury, COD, Hoodoo, TAB, Map, Invincible, Glorious, just off the top of my head.

[Hat]

I really like Ruled By Secrecy.