On The Subject Of #musefail At The Galaxie Mega Hall In Amneville, France On November 1st 2009
Galaxie Mega Hall
Host: The Resistance – Muse
Type: Music/Arts – Concert
Network: Global
Date: Sunday, November 1, 2009
Time: 12:00am – 11:55pm
Location: Galaxie Mega Hall, Amneville-les-Thermes, France
Description: Part of The Resistance Tour
Supported by The Horrors
Muse setlist:
Uprising
Resistance
New Born
Unnatural Selection
Supermassive Black Hole
Guiding Light
Interlude + Hysteria
United States of Eurasia
Cave
Undisclosed Desires
Starlight
Time Is Running Out
Stockholm Syndrome
Encore:
Exogenesis Symphony: Part 1 (Overture)
Plug In Baby
Man With Harmonica
Knights of Cydonia
1. Symphonic Tribute to Muse’s ‘Knights Of Cydonia’ — Arranged by MuseLive Member Ian Cologne (This is the best one I have ever heard, I kid you not!)
From Erato1:
I am not sure where to begin… This is something that’s almost impossible to explain to a casual or a new Muse fan, so I will do the best I can (I am fully expecting to be showered with negative comments from all sides, btw, regardless of my opinion on the above-mentioned topic. Unfortunately this seems to be the hottest Muse-subject at the moment, and as much as I want to avoid it — I simply can not).
I shall start at the top, I guess.
Muse, currently, are one of the best known Alternative-Rock British bands in the world. They are known and loved in the Muser-community as the band whose live performances are unrivalled. ‘Epic’ is the term of choice among many fans. ‘The Best Live Band’ title is indeed a heavy burden to bear for any band, yet Muse have carried it with casual grace for many years. In fact, it is not uncommon to hear Muse being talked about as ‘The Best Live Band’ even in the midst of non-fans. With 5 studio albums under their belt and numerous fan-favourite B-Sides, Muse are in the possession of the most varied back catalogue I have ever heard. Their musical creations are quite mind-boggling on so many levels; this band is truly made of geniuses, and they don’t even know it. My personal Muse collection takes up 2.5 GB on my iPod (that’s just AUDIO, mind you!). Album tracks, remixes, covers, b-sides, instrumentals, symphonic tributes (like the one above), bootlegs, tracks broken down into their digital components… you get the picture, — and it’s ALL GOOD!
All the above needed to be said in order to create a picture of the band that is ‘Epic’ in every sense of the word. And the fans, especially old-timers and hard-core fans, expect a lot from their favourite band. We expect a lot, because we know without a shadow of a doubt that Muse can deliver. We expect a lot, because after all these years we still have not had enough; we still want more of one thing only — we want more music from Muse!
There has been a lot of discontent in the fan community lately. That discontent is reaching epic proportions on the official Muse Forum and on Twitter. I won’t be surprised if after tonight’s gig in Amneville France, #musefail tag starts trending on Twitter. I won’t even be surprised if @muse Twitter comments give Muse members a headache due to their negativity… I have never seen anything like this. I really haven’t. Sure, there have been ‘weird’ setlists before, but this….. Many Musers don’t even feel angry anymore, they just feel tired and indifferent. There is talk that either something has gone terribly wrong or Muse have simply gone lazy. I have been encouraged to speak out with the rest, yet I have refused to join the negative choir.
Because of my refusal to complain I am now left speechless, — how can I defend a 16-song setlist geared primarily towards the new fan-base who know very little about the band? I don’t know. How can I defend a rock-show that lasted south of 80 minutes and ended before 10:00 p.m. local time? I don’t know. I cringe inside every time I hear the words ‘epic fail’ directed at Muse. I’ve said nothing on the Forum, I can’t find the words. It depresses me to just read the threads dedicated to individual gigs of The Resistance European Tour. It scares me to even think that trying to ‘break America’ will shape Muse into an average mainstream band, and that Muse will never be the same again…
Certainly, I am a fanatical-fan variety and I make no excuses for myself. Muse’s music enables my day-to-day survival, literally. When a serious health issue came up I didn’t even blink, — I just wanted to live long enough to hear (and play) more music. I will forgive Muse anything, absolutely anything, including a really terrible setlist, unrehearsed shows, lazyness, the lack of b-sides on the new album, pre-recorded vocals, their refusal to play the majority of my favourite tracks from the ‘Origin of Symmetry’ and, of course — Twilight.
To make a long story short, do I understand that Muse are not currently performing up to their true potential? Yes, I do. Does it bother me? Yes, but only because I am worried that a portion of the fan-base will be lost. I want the best for Muse regardless of whether or not I agree with what that ‘best’ is. And if they want to conquer America, I wish I could deliver the U.S. of A. on a silver platter to them.
I love this band, what else can I say?
(The pictures below are taken by L. from the Muse Messageboards on the 31st of October 2009 in Lievin, France)
(Matt Bellamy Muse in Lievin France, October 31st 2009)
November 5, 2009 at 03:46
Why the *ell is everybody complaining about them? I´ve only heard positive responses on this tour and music until I read this. You really must have had bad luck or something when u only get information like this… I´m absolutely not mad at you, I´m mad at people, their fans out there. People should just really shut up, it´s not up to them what kind of music Muse writes or what they do. They´ve made a choice; to love the music or not. IF not: beat it. And my god, they cannot make music that EVERYBODY totally loves. End of story// I Love Muse
November 5, 2009 at 12:57
You are right. Plus, Muse don’t really care about pleasing everyone.
I’ve posted this entry after reading the “General Grievances” thread regarding the Fall tour on the official Muse Forum, — it depressed the sh*t out of me then. I love Muse as well, it’s the end of story for me too.
November 5, 2009 at 09:31
NAAAAIS BLOG =)
November 5, 2009 at 16:26
Yes, you are right. Thanks for your respond! Again, I really like your blog. Keep it up! Love to express my feelings about this group to someone who understands me
Sadly I cannot find pages like this in Sweden. Have you been to many of Muse concerts? Have a nice evening// Maria
November 12, 2009 at 15:31
Guys, do you realy like The Resistance? It’s awesome,isn’t it? I’m sure Muse are still great,and they are still MUSE. But I’ve seen only bad receptions like “they can’t rock any more”, “there music now is cheesy”, “they have lost there drive and now they are just overblown and that’s funny” etc. such things make me depressed. It looks like i’m not objective. May be. In any way, i still adore them. Am I the one?
P.S. Blog’s super! Thank you for it very very much)
November 12, 2009 at 16:04
Thanks Alexandra!
I am not very objective either, I am afraid — I love Muse regardless of what they do or don’t do. The good news is, you are not the only one who still adores them (there is a bunch of us crazy kids!
).
What is happening now has happened many times before, albeit it never used to be as bad. There have been weird setlists before. There have been songs that the old Musers didn’t like (Starlight, for example). Every new thing Muse have made since Origin has been criticized by those Musers who consider themselves a sort of ‘Muse-elite’ — fans who have been here from the start and who know quite a bit about the band. And I understand them all too well, it’s easy to be thinking about ‘the good old days’ if you actually remember what those days were!
What I personally try to do is to keep an open mind where Muse are concerned. Muse are constantly changing, they’ve grown up and we can’t change that. They will never make another Origin again – they don’t want to!
Let’s keep an open mind everybody! Muse are still wonderful!
Cheers,
Natalia.
November 14, 2009 at 11:10
Thanks Natalia! You’ve actually saved my mind) I realy thought i’d become paranoid.
Yeah, they have grown up, but, i think, it doesn’t mean that they’ve become worse. Sure, like a band they are involved in eternal changing, they are in dynamics but they’re always true to themselves. Whatever fans or critics say they just continue to perfect and express themselves. As for me that’s kind of majority, you know. Love them for it.
Thanks one more time, that’s nice to understand that someone feel in the same way. ^_^