Showcasing Muse’s musicianship

[lurkinglurkerlurksagain]

Obligatory "What musicianship?" joke

[Jobby]

Maybe should’ve given Assassin a shout for guitar as well actually. Hardly insane but the chorus has some awkward stretches/movement and getting the picking + hammer-on timings during the riffs right and clean is easy to underestimate.

 

Knights’ tremolo picking section on the high E before the vocals come in is a bitch to keep 100% clean as well. Matt’s trem picking is pretty fucking decent tbf to him, swear he never hits a bum note or clashes with another string.

[kueller]

Ngl that “breaking through” section does weirdly muddle your brain. It’s so simple but I struggle to do both unless I keep tempo by hitting muted strings between the notes (which sounds sloppy tbh).

 

I kinda figured that out back in high school without much experience and Matt is and was way better than me at the singing/playing thing. I'd offer to play it for him next time but we know there will be no next time for MK Ultra.

[Roryj02]

Gotta say no matter how many people hate it, Madness is a massive demonstration of Matt's vocal ability. To be able to hold such a high note, without faltering for around 5 seconds twice is insane, and yes he does sing a whole or half a step down, or do falsetto on the second LOOOOVE when they're playing live, but remember that's after singing a ton of other pretty difficult songs to any ordinary singer.

[Hat]

Gotta say no matter how many people hate it, Madness is a massive demonstration of Matt's vocal ability. To be able to hold such a high note, without faltering for around 5 seconds twice is insane, and yes he does sing a whole or half a step down, or do falsetto on the second LOOOOVE when they're playing live, but remember that's after singing a ton of other pretty difficult songs to any ordinary singer.

While I agree that Madness is a great demonstration of Matt's vocal ability (along with most of T2L in general), I'm pretty doubtful that Matt could ever sing the whole thing properly in the original key. Even the earliest performances where they ONLY played that song (Skalvan in Stockholm for example) they did it in a lower key, and Matt was REALLY pushing himself for that ending.

[Bohemian-Cygnus-Running-Out]

Gotta say no matter how many people hate it, Madness is a massive demonstration of Matt's vocal ability. To be able to hold such a high note, without faltering for around 5 seconds twice is insane, and yes he does sing a whole or half a step down, or do falsetto on the second LOOOOVE when they're playing live, but remember that's after singing a ton of other pretty difficult songs to any ordinary singer.

 

Matt's a talented and unique singer for sure. But being able to hold out that note isn't as insane as it is just solid. If you want insane, listen to opera or Mariah Carey's whistle register. That's legit insane.

[Bohemian-Cygnus-Running-Out]

While I agree that Madness is a great demonstration of Matt's vocal ability (along with most of T2L in general), I'm pretty doubtful that Matt could ever sing the whole thing properly in the original key. Even the earliest performances where they ONLY played that song (Skalvan in Stockholm for example) they did it in a lower key, and Matt was REALLY pushing himself for that ending.

 

T2L does have some great vocals. Much as I don't care for Follow Me, I find myself singing that intro from time to time cuz it's just soothing and fun to sing.

 

Also Supremacy exists, the reason I first bought the album. That falsetto is one of my favorite things about Muse.

[s3ker]

While I agree that Madness is a great demonstration of Matt's vocal ability (along with most of T2L in general), I'm pretty doubtful that Matt could ever sing the whole thing properly in the original key. Even the earliest performances where they ONLY played that song (Skalvan in Stockholm for example) they did it in a lower key, and Matt was REALLY pushing himself for that ending.

 

Do you reckon Matt had a hard time recording those parts in the studio, or would he only struggle with it in the context of a longer performance (as in a gig)? Do you imagine Matt lowers keys/avoid playing particular songs purely to avoid vocal fatigue, or is it possibly a part of his range that he can't access consistently/at all times?

 

Sorry if these are dumb questions, but I'd be keen on hearing what you think about that

[Hat]

Do you reckon Matt had a hard time recording those parts in the studio, or would he only struggle with it in the context of a longer performance (as in a gig)? Do you imagine Matt lowers keys/avoid playing particular songs purely to avoid vocal fatigue, or is it possibly a part of his range that he can't access consistently/at all times?

 

Sorry if these are dumb questions, but I'd be keen on hearing what you think about that

I am definitely no authority on the matter, but here are my thoughts anyway.

 

In the studio he's definitely gonna be more relaxed. It's very possible he could do the whole song in the original key all the way through, although I honestly kinda doubt it. If there's any song I wonder if Matt could ever sing properly, it's Madness. Especially considering how much he struggled with the song in a lower key even when they only had that one song to perform.

 

I definitely don't think think it's a part of his range that he could access consistently either.

[Jobby]

Do you reckon Matt had a hard time recording those parts in the studio, or would he only struggle with it in the context of a longer performance (as in a gig)? Do you imagine Matt lowers keys/avoid playing particular songs purely to avoid vocal fatigue, or is it possibly a part of his range that he can't access consistently/at all times?

 

Sorry if these are dumb questions, but I'd be keen on hearing what you think about that

 

Almost definitely, I’d think. It’s pretty much the very top of Matt’s range and he says in the T2L making of that he feels comfortable with falsetto but struggles when he goes that high with chest.

 

As for the second question - bit of both. Sometimes, I imagine it’s just what he feels comfortable with. Invincible’s a good example imo, I can’t think of any performances in it’s original key where he actively struggled to access the notes, but there are some where you can hear his voice wavering a bit as he concentrates to keep it on track, and occasionally crack towards the end. So he could do it consistently but I’d assume he lowered it just to make it a bit easier/smoother. More recent performances of stuff like Showbiz, Futurism, Muscle Museum and even older stuff like S4A were more likely due to not being able to reliably reach the notes though, might’ve outright admitted it for Showbiz actually.

 

I’m sure he considers fatigue as well, particularly as he’s gotten older and more experienced, but we’ve seen now that he’ll actually just go off-stage and rest for that.

 

Edit: Like Tjet says though, it’s hard to say with authority unless you ask Matt himself.

Edited February 18, 2018 by Jobby

[Hat]

Starlight is probably an even better example than Invincible.

[s3ker]

Thanks for the replies, I had similar opinions to you guys but was curious to see what others thought

[EveryToilet]

My favorite bit of vocal work is that moan Matt does in Dig Down. I like to think Matt had a brief moment of realization and for a second considered ending the song right there.

 

Either that, or he was trying to turn on the listeners and, I can only speak for myself here but, it worked!

[JimmyP117]

As a bass player, these are the ones that stick out for me:

 

New Born: Those verses are a great workout on the fretting hand, especially when you have small hands like myself

Stockholm Syndrome: a simple line note-wise but the constant 16s are really tough on the fingers.

Hysteria: maintaining the rhythm and a clear tone i.e. not just hiding behind the fuzz can be a challenge when first learning it. Same goes for Liquid State in this regard. He's always been great at those beefy, busy lines that revolve around hammer ons on an open string.

Reapers: Very varied and fun to play, love those little fills before the whammy section of the guitar solo kicks in.

Resistance: Really varied bass part, the pre-chorus has lots of great hammer-on/pull-offs.

 

Honourable mention to Darkshines too.

 

 

Chris may not be overly flashy but he's an excellent, inventive player. I'm sure he's capable of more 'advanced' techniques but I guess the band has never really been about that style of playing. His stamina is outstanding and I've always appreciated how he often plays busy lines whilst also providing backing vocals.

Edited February 24, 2018 by cyborgninja117

[Gemsy]

Gotta say no matter how many people hate it, Madness is a massive demonstration of Matt's vocal ability. To be able to hold such a high note, without faltering for around 5 seconds twice is insane, and yes he does sing a whole or half a step down, or do falsetto on the second LOOOOVE when they're playing live, but remember that's after singing a ton of other pretty difficult songs to any ordinary singer.

 

^^

 

I glossed over it for SO many years, but in my last Muse phase I realised Damn them's some vocals.

[Gemsy]

My favorite bit of vocal work is that moan Matt does in Dig Down. I like to think Matt had a brief moment of realization and for a second considered ending the song right there.

 

Either that, or he was trying to turn on the listeners and, I can only speak for myself here but, it worked!

 

plz no

[tormund]

Matt's a talented and unique singer for sure. But being able to hold out that note isn't as insane as it is just solid. If you want insane, listen to opera or Mariah Carey's whistle register. That's legit insane.

 

Yeah, I agree. But that was Mariah of 20 years ago. Nowadays? Hmm... I doubt,

[Bohemian-Cygnus-Running-Out]

Yeah, I agree. But that was Mariah of 20 years ago. Nowadays? Hmm... I doubt,

 

idk how she sings today, tbh one of the few times I've listened to her was on tv at the new years things this past new years, and I thought she showed some serious integrity letting people hear her not sound very good in the freezing cold after they all complained about her lip-synching the past year.

 

That's all besides the point though, the point being that Matt's a fine singer, one of my favorites in fact, but he's not insanely talented or skilled, he just does what he does and I think he does it very well.

[Jobby]

Comparing a man and woman’s vocal ability using range/register is pretty redundant tbh.

[heyjackk]

Comparing a man and woman’s vocal ability using range/register is completely redundant tbh.

 

fixed.