I last saw Muse in 2010 at Wembley Stadium from about 500 feet away alongside 90,000 other people, with Lilly Allen as a support act.
That’s when I realised: stadium gigs just aren’t for me. I’m just not okay with waiting around outside a venue an entire day in advance just to guarantee any kind of decent view. If I’m honest, I struggle to patiently wait for a microwave meal. That’s not to mention the worst punishment of arriving fashionably late – watching the entire performance via a big screen TV. Should I just have waited until the live DVD came out? The entire occasion only leaves you questioning your own integrity when you later tell people that you’ve ‘seen’ Muse.
But having learned my lesson after seeing Muse at Wembley Stadium (well, it could have been anyone considering how far away I was) I jumped at the chance to see them minus the binoculars at the otherwise cosy Manchester Academy. This was easily up there as one of the best decisions of my life, only second to the time that two chocolate bars came out of the vending machine at once. Yes readers, my life is rather blessed.
As Muse entered the stage and exploded into the monstrous riffs of ‘Psycho’, it became immediately clear that my ass was now property of Matt Bellamy (something which I don’t have any particular objections to). With Chris Wolstenholme‘s bass lit up like a Christmas tree and Dominic Howard slamming the skins as though he was still in Wembley Stadium, Muse’s setlist hosted a selection of tracks that gave even the most die-hard of Muse fans a run for their money.
In a move almost as unexpected as Kanye West headlining Glastonbury, Muse threw the ‘The Groove’ into the ring, a rare b-side that hasn’t had been played live since 2008. With circle pits now in full swing, the phenomenal classic ‘Bliss’ followed alongside massive confetti-filled-balloons which rebounded off the ceiling of Manchester Academy. Matt Bellamy of course couldn’t resist demolishing a few balloons himself with the headstock of his guitar, right before bursting into ‘Dead Star’, a track plucked straight from 2002. Nostalgia quickly leapt into the year 2003 (a year when wearing a tracksuit out in public was not only acceptable, but fashionable) as ‘Time Is Running Out’, ‘Interlude’, ‘Hysteria’ and ‘Stockholm Syndrome’ were consecutively ripped straight out of ‘Absolution’.
Fan favourite ‘Hyper Music’ was followed by the futuristic refrains of ‘Starlight’, ‘Supermassive Black Hole’ and ‘Uprising’, successfully cramming all the intensity of Wembley Stadium into a 2,600 person venue. After introducing Manchester to the exhilarating ‘Reapers’ from forthcoming album ‘Drones‘, Muse parted the stage before returning with the underdog anthem that is ‘Fury’.
After a journey back in time courtesy of the legendary ‘Plug In Baby’, complete with frantic improvised guitar solos, Chris Wolstenholme’s spooky harmonica intro of Ennio Morricone’s ‘Man With A Harmonica’ marked the beginning of the end. Muse finally pulled the trigger with the explosive refrains of ‘Knights Of Cydonia‘ that went out with several bangs.
It was a rare pleasure to see Muse up close and personal, without the gratuitous lighting, effects and bizarre floating UFOs to distract from their offensively epic musicianship. Heavily armed with an arsenal of songs from past and present, Muse demonstrated that even without their usual bag of tricks, they undoubtedly pack a punch that you won’t soon forget.
Muse’s setlist at Manchester Academy:
- The Groove (First full performance since 2004)
- Bliss (w/ Hullaballoons; Extended)
- Dead Star (Killing In The Name outro + Riff outro)
- Time Is Running Out (Jeff Buckley’s Grace intro;… more )
- Stockholm Syndrome (Micro Cuts Outro)
- Hyper Music (Come on you Reds/Voodoo Child riff outro)
- Supermassive Black Hole (Burning Bridges intro)
- Uprising (Extended outro)
- Knights of Cydonia (Ennio Morricone’s Man With a Harmonica Intro)
LIVE REVIEW: Muse - Manchester Academy - 22/03/2015
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