Share your controversial Muse opinions II - More Radiohead talk

[Jobby]

I think Thom's grudge was mostly based off him mistakenly thinking they slagged Radiohead off during the early days (I say 'mistakenly' because tmk that never happened), in combination with feeling like they were yet another band of many copying that sound at the time. Probably didn't help that Muse went on to become a much poppier stadium rock band before long either, maybe making him feel like they copied RH and used them as a platform to jump off.

 

Last we heard of that beef was a fairly long time ago now though, so who knows how he feels now.

[frozenbanana]

I think Thom's grudge was mostly based off him mistakenly thinking they slagged Radiohead off during the early days (I say 'mistakenly' because tmk that never happened), in combination with feeling like they were yet another band of many copying that sound at the time. Probably didn't help that Muse went on to become a much poppier stadium rock band before long either, maybe making him feel like they copied RH and used them as a platform to jump off.

 

Last we heard of that beef was a fairly long time ago now though, so who knows how he feels now.

 

True that it hasn't been going for a while actually - there was an interview in 2010 in which Dom complains about Thom treating him like shit when they met, but it's all been quiet since then. The early 00's were pretty spiky - Thom made a several cutting comments here and there

[TheHappySpaceman]

Yep (and am fairly sure Thom Yorke is one of those people)

 

Hah! Oh man, that's too much.

 

Last we heard of that beef was a fairly long time ago now though, so who knows how he feels now.

 

True. It's mostly just the fans keeping it up now. Still, it reminds me of back in the early '70s, where every band from Led Zeppelin to Black Sabbath to even Queen was being called a Cream ripoff.

[rengar2106]

For me the music of Muse was very interesting. It makes me as being young again

[DifferentPerson]

We all know every band is just a Beatles ripoff anyway.

[LewisF]

Music everywhere is ripped off.

[forevermusic]

Yeah everyone's just ripping off the prehistoric societies that first put the noise of flutes into time and rhythm before 1500 BC.

[Hopix]

We all know every band is just a Beatles ripoff anyway.

 

Yep, even Mozart.

[Jobby]

Absolution is the most disappointing Muse record.

[Spectrum IV]

Also, opinion: The Micro Cuts outro is the worst part of the song.

 

Die a slow and painful death.

 

Outro riffs/solos are (almost) always the best part of Muse songs. I'm sure there are exceptions but I cbf thinking of them right now.

[Spectrum IV]

I love how people describe Radiohead's later work as "weird electronic shit" as if (the majority of) HTTT, IR and AMSP don't exist

 

I reckon a lot of Radiohead's best works are overshadowed by their extreme stylistic shift on Kid A. Since then they've been more restrained, electro-tinged rock rather than flat out electronica. Hell, AMSP is pretty close to early Radiohead in its instrumentation.

 

But what they've never brought back is the big dirty riffs and solos. Same point as Muse really, although Muse still have the occasional "let's go apeshit" riff, Radiohead have largely abandoned dark and heavy music as an artistic medium.

 

And this is the biggest waste of potential IMO. Muse have Fury, Radiohead have Climbing Up the Walls. These are two of my all-time favourite rock songs, and neither band has really written anything close to those slow-burning, sonic walls of distortion and existential dread since then.

 

But hey, I'd settle for a guitar-driven, multi-movement song along the veins of Paranoid Android or Citizen Erased. Muse tried to do this again with The Globalist, and for the most part it's awesome, but then they decided to see how many times they could pull off to the open A string and call it a riff.

[Spectrum IV]

Of all the songs I'd swap onto Showbiz, Agitated would be one of the last. Wouldn't fit at all imo. Spiral Static's a fairer shout though since it was originally supposed to be on the album iirc, even if I find it pretty boring.

 

I've always found Ashamed 100x better than Agitated, would've loved it to be included on Showbiz.

 

Twin is also pretty underrated, though it could've been left in the oven a touch longer.

[Spectrum IV]

Also, I just realised Muse have done away with the "every album must have a shitty ballad in C" rule. Aftermath was in A.

[Hat]

Right..

 

Personally I think the solo is easily the worst part of most songs.

[frozenbanana]

Absolution is the most disappointing Muse record.

 

More than T2L, given all that hype from the early E-Werk clips?

 

And this is the biggest waste of potential IMO. Muse have Fury, Radiohead have Climbing Up the Walls. These are two of my all-time favourite rock songs, and neither band has really written anything close to those slow-burning, sonic walls of distortion and existential dread since then.

 

But hey, I'd settle for a guitar-driven, multi-movement song along the veins of Paranoid Android or Citizen Erased.

 

[haze015]

I reckon a lot of Radiohead's best works are overshadowed by their extreme stylistic shift on Kid A. Since then they've been more restrained, electro-tinged rock rather than flat out electronica. Hell, AMSP is pretty close to early Radiohead in its instrumentation.

 

Kid A is hardly flat out electronica beyond a few tracks. The shift was not to hide it like they did on OK Computer, which is 'electro-tinged rock'. Which would sound a million miles away from Radiohead.

Airbag features chopped up drums and bass, exactly the same as Hip Hop, Breakbeat, D&B etc production, yet stick a distorted guitar riff over the top and somehow its still 'acceptable' as rock music. Climbing Up The Walls especially wouldn't sound anything like it does without all the electronica, could so easily fit onto Kid A.

This particularly frustrated Yorke, especially with bands namedropping them as an influence, who were all fairly tame, ordinary rock music, which really wasn't what Radiohead were trying to do with OK Computer. So the only reasonable response was to make an album where it couldn't be ignored.

 

The actual major shift on Kid A was to incorporate Jazz, this aspect has largely disappeared on recent albums. Although often ignored as people still freak out about synthesisers and electronic manipulation (Which ironically, everyone is up to. The better a record sounds, the more fake it is)

[Jobby]

Die a slow and painful death.

 

Outro riffs/solos are (almost) always the best part of Muse songs. I'm sure there are exceptions but I cbf thinking of them right now.

 

Yeeeah, I'm pretty much the exact opposite

 

The exceptions for me are the songs where those aren't my least favourite part.

 

More than T2L, given all that hype from the early E-Werk clips?

 

T2L's an easy second but we knew they were fallible after TR and that tour, so expectations were pretty low going in. Abso came off OOS and one of the best tours I've ever seen from any artist (just a shame I was 5 when it took place ).

 

I wasn't a fan at the time but, if I was, I can imagine being pretty gutted by the change. Can't help but think what could've been when listening back to those 2 albums and watching all the OOS live footage.

[FabriPav]

Hell, AMSP is pretty close to early Radiohead in its instrumentation.

 

It's not though.

[TheHappySpaceman]

Absolution is the least disappointing Muse record.

 

Fixed.

 

Also, I just realised Muse have done away with the "every album must have a shitty ballad in C" rule. Aftermath was in A.

 

But wait, I was unaware that that was a rule. Showbiz had Unintended, which was in E. Origin of Symmetry had... okay, I can't think of any straight-up ballads on that album. Absolution had Ruled by Secrecy, which was in F minor, and Blackout, which was in B flat. Black Holes and Revelations had Soldier's Poem, which was in D. Only The Resistance and The 2nd Law had ballads in C. Don't you think you're being a little unrealistic?

 

...or maybe I'm overthinking a silly, probably only half-serious comment on an online message board. That could be it.

[Jobby]

Fixed.

 

You can't 'fixed' someone and then say Ruled By Secrecy is a ballad in the same post.

 

There are rules to these things.

[Hat]

Fixed.

 

 

 

But wait, I was unaware that that was a rule. Showbiz had Unintended, which was in E. Origin of Symmetry had... okay, I can't think of any straight-up ballads on that album. Absolution had Ruled by Secrecy, which was in F minor, and Blackout, which was in B flat. Black Holes and Revelations had Soldier's Poem, which was in D. Only The Resistance and The 2nd Law had ballads in C. Don't you think you're being a little unrealistic?

 

...or maybe I'm overthinking a silly, probably only half-serious comment on an online message board. That could be it.

No you're not overthinking it, probably the opposite.

 

FAWY, Invincible, Guiding Light and Explorers.

[forevermusic]

Absolution is the most disappointing Muse record.

Respectfully disagree. For me, the production is a bit too dense and muddy, hence why its no longer my favourite Muse album, but as a bridge between Origin and Black Holes it works well and has excellent material.

[Hat]

I feel like Showbiz->Absolution was a perfect album sequence where every album developed certain aspects of the last one and brought something fresh to the table. Then it seemed like they went "okay what do we do now? Let's try everything" and they made an album simply trying out different things. That's when it should have ended. That's where they should have gone "Okay lets go in this direction". Instead they make two MORE albums just experimenting, but never actually moving forward.

 

Sorry, I've said this almost as many times as Clunge has mentioned 2004.

[FabriPav]

Then they do try to go in one somewhat focused direction, but it's too late and it sucks.

[Hat]

Yeah because not only is it a bit too late, but they're also trying to go backwards. They say they don't but it's obvious that they were trying to get back to something.