Black Holes and Revelations

A great albums. I’ve never heard any of their music until now. Really enjoyed it

Been meaning to listen to Muse for a while, did not disappoint.

swear we’ve already had this

Fantasticly done

What are these sounds and why do I like them so much?! It’s space age and grungey at the same time and beautiful something emerges from the chaos. Very engaging start to finish

I see why some say it sounds like radiohead

Spectacular! A flawless album of otherworldly themes, it eschews all the heavy-handed snide emo bullshit that was prevalent at the time. It was a massive breath of fresh air then and it still is now. You can hear and feel the rock stardom yet to come for Bellamy. I love this wholeheartedly.

Una maravilla

A very important album in my history. I think Supermassive Black Hole was a turning point in music for me. I realized that sexy pop songs are cool.

Definitely a top played album on my iPod back in the day. Still holds up, a fantastic album

Already listened to it

Legal, acho que o album mais famoso do Muse Melhores músicas: Starlight, Invincible e Knights Of Cydonia

Fantastic album! Chalk full of hits, the B-sides are great.

I love the dystopian themes of this album, along with the cinematic touches to multiple tracks. Teleported me back to a decade ago for sure.

This album is okay. I'm not a big prog rock guy, though luckily this album is not as slow and ponderous as many prog rock albums (and I'm sure that plenty of folks would argue that this is not prog rock, and that is certainly a supportable position). Parts of this is really good, and other parts are trying to be epic in a way that I find really uninspiring. I like the approach that Muse employed for this album, I'm just not super into the execution 3/5

Smells like teen spirit

I find it hard to separate this album from my previous experience of it - which is to say, it sounds like my adolescence. At least part or that has to do with the sheer bombast and somewhat overwrought quality of the lyrics. That's not necessarily a knock on the album, either. It's a lot of fun, musically a rock solid piece of work from a band that had just gone stratospheric, with a whole load of elements of a Western-tinged space opera. I was never a hardcore Muse fan, but this album is perhaps the one I've had most history with of the ones I've listened to so far, and it holds up perhaps better than I expected: it's loud, varied, and weird in all the right places. In Supermassive Black Holes, Map of the Problematique, Starlight and Knights of Cydonia, the album has a respectable clutch of hits (the latter of which is good enough to retain some charm even despite a million drunken Rock Band failures).There are lots of elements to commend lesser played tracks such as Assasin, too. As an album, however, it feels slightly disjointed. Some tracks seem like they'd have been a better fit on earlier albums, while others, like Knights of Cydonia, are fully committed to that particular Southwesten Alpha Centauri theme. It's almost as if they didn't quite have the confidence in their newfound star status to fully commit to their concept across the whole album. Every musical decision on the album seems specifically designed to up the drama, which, given the requisite amount of weirdness, is exactly how stadium rock ought to be done. However, the lyrics also naturally tend towards the overblown, and sometimes struggle to convey their sentiments without veering into theatrical insincerity. Connecting with some of the songs emotionally can feel like a performance in and of itself.

Surprisingly good. Highly enjoyable. He gets a little whiney sounding.

Some cool tracks but pretty unimpressed overall

03/18/22

Kolejny bardzo wyspiarski piczek, bo Muse z jedynym albumem jaki od nich kojarze, wiec black holes and revelations z 2k06, muzyka popularno rokowa, ale w ciekawym kosmicznym klimacie, ktory tworzony jest przez synthy i elektryczne instrumenty, no i wykorzystanie modyfikowanych wokali rowniez ma w tym swoja zasluge, sama banda ma trzech czlonkow, gdzie mozgiem zespolu jest Matthew Bellamy, ktory jest spiewajacym frontmenem z gitara i tworca tekstow tego krazka, Dominic Howard gra na drumsach i perkusji, ostatnim czlonkiem jest Christopher Wolstenholme na basach, przewija sie rowniez kilku muzykow studyjnyuch dodajacych takich smaczkow jak trumpety czy skrzypkowe wiolonczele, gdyby wlasnie nie te male dodatki, to pewnie bym residentowalsliperowal podczas odsluchu, ale blendy syntha i klasycznych instrumentali przywodzace na mysl depeche mode w polaczeniu z galaktycznie epickimi motywami lirycznymi bronia krazka, takimi hajlajtowymi momentami byl dla mnie w pierwszej czesci plyty supermasive black hole, a w drugiej zamykajacy plyte knights of cydonia, ktory z czyms mi sie kojarzy, ale nie jestem w stanie skojarzyc z czym, moze to samo video tak mocno utkwilo mi w pamieci z czasow mtv, bo ponad 6 minut traka jest przepelnione referencjami, glownie filmowymi, przede wszystkim gwiezdnowojennymi, ale nie brakuje rowniez poczciwych biblijnych smaczkow, oba kawalki sa dobre na swoj sposob, bo pierwszy jest typowym dencingowym rokowym kawalkiem lirycznie opowiadajacym o milosci do zlej kobiety, wiec bardzo latwy i popularny temat, wiec nie dziwne ze jest to najbardziej klikany utwor na spotifaju w dyskgorafii bandy, a z drugiej strony mamy kosmiczna mini operetke, ktora jest przepelniona stopniowo narastajacym brzmieniem, ktore swietnie sie sprawdza jako zamkniecie krazka, ale nadal nie wiem skad ten sentyment do akurat tego utworu, wiec oba traki leca na plejke, a ja moge odchaczyc pierwsza odsluchana plyte od Muse bez niesmaku, bo pozytywnie sie zaskoczylem

Give me Matt Belemey desperate vocals and I'm just gone. It is _possible_ the lyrics aren't quite as deep as 14 year old me thought they were, but sonically just so dramatic and in tune with the lyrical styling, and so much fun. Sure muse have a formula, but it's the formula for me.

I was a bit taken by surprise by this one. Singing "You will burn in hell" to a Philip-Glass-sounding synthesizer caused me to short circuit. The more I listened, the more I got it. It's pretty operatic. I love all the amazing sounds on this album. I also realized that I bought Muse's song "Uprising" some years ago and have always been a fan of it without really hearing that those lyrics are also pretty over-the-top.

I didn't know any of these Muse tracks, although I do know a few of their singles from other albums. For me, I think this is a group I prefer in smaller doses as the album kind of lost my interest from time to time. It is rockin' and in that progressive- or alt-rock kind of way which maybe just isn't exactly my thing most days.

Ambitious. Epic. Spacey yet firmly grounded. A fine listen.

Muse’s BLACK HOLES AND REVELATIONS is an epic space rock album that plays like a soundtrack for encountering of the wonders of the deep space. The songs are unapologetically grandiose - like audio versions of Hubble Space Telescope images. It feels like It was created in some cosmic forge involving Radiohead, Yes, U2, Queen and Nine Inch Nails. The music is wildly and perfectly overblown. The vocals are off the hook soaring effortlessly through the maelstrom. A phenomenal album!

It was okay. I'm not a fan of the whiny/angsty rock lead singer voice...it becomes too much when listened to as a whole

I thought I didn’t like Muse. I think I was wrong. Their sound on the album varied a lot instrumentally which was cool

Pretty good, some great tunes here. Some of the slower songs stopped this from being higher rated.

Neither here nor there. Rather varied although there are some strong elements. The singer is not particularly strong but it does sometimes work. more often being almost mixed out.

OK. This is really a bombastic one, but I wonder about the purpose.  All over I can hear Radiohead, Queen, and U2. None of these bands I particularly like, but if I have to, I much rather listen to the original ones. Not that Muse are bad, they just don't catch my interest, my attention continually wanders in and out. Starlight has that synth pop thing going on and the distorted bass, which is okay until Bono comes in. Map Of The Problématique becomes a bit more interesting as it sounds like Depeche Mode (or like Paradise Lost when they were trying to sound like Depeche Mode, without, exceptionally, really sounding like a copycat) in parts, until Bono auditioning for Radiohead comes in. Some beautiful vocal harmonies on Soldier's Poem. I liked that at the beginning it sounds very 60s, somehow doo wop (many have mentioned Beach Boys but I couldn't agree less), but at the end it morphs into a Queen tribute. The last, proggy bit of Invincible was interesting., while its first part really sounds like U2, not only the singer this time around. In general the use of synths is interesting all over the record, but again, if I wanted to listen to some prog I would go for some 70s band, and this not only excludes Muse but all the post 90s new prog bands. Some NWOBHM on Assassins mixed with bits of System Of A Down, which is kind of surprising.  Liked also the bits where they incorporated some world elements in the last few songs.  All in all, a band that seems to wear its influences on their sleeves. Highly visible though. To the point where you wonder if it's just influence or they are actually mimicking.  A curious fact: although the edition I have is from 2011, my book doesn't feature this 2006 album, which probably means that the it was kind of an afterthought for the authors destined to be featured in some future edition. 

Pompous

It's got some of the biggest hits, and for the most part it's pretty solid alternative prog rock.

Rubbish. Couldn’t give it 0

One star album with one extra star for Starlight.

A good album. I’d listen to a couple of songs more than once.

fairly unbearable this. its just so synthetic and soulless and those singles have been played to fucking death. 16 year old me copied origin of symetry onto a minidisc and loved listening to it on the bus to school so much that he went to see muse at the apollo. he put blue hair gel in because he was wacky and totally different. that sums up what muse is for. wacky 16 year olds with blue hair gel.

Muse have always struck me as the kind of band who dye their pubes in place of a personality. I've just dyed my pubes red and it looks like I've murdered an octopus in the bath. The music sounds like one of the non-Chris Martin ones in Coldplay had a wild weekend listening to Radiohead and tried to pass it off as an original idea. The result is terminal ear cancer.

I've never liked Muse. Too polished for me. It's okay, but it's rock for an IT consultant with a tribal tattoo under his shirt. Not remotely cool.

Epic and delightful. Haven't listened to this a while but I can see myself entering a Muse phase.

Pretty great album overall. Not one I really loved but one I have big respect for. Very heavy at times and some of the song transitions were hard to spot. Throughout it's got some brilliant songs, with Knights of Cydonia being my favourite. Also enjoyed the singles Starlight, Supermassive Black Hole and the album cut Assassin.

Ostentatious opening! Starlight was dull at the time. Supermassive Black Hole sounds like Do Something by Britney Spears - this is a compliment! Map of the Problematique sounds like a Frankie Goes to Hollywood pastiche, but less fun than that sounds. Soldier's Poem is genuinely lovely, elements of Brian Wilson on there. Assassin is cool, melodic hard metal. Great fun. Invincible and Exo-Politics are a bit dull, and the conspiracies bits sit badly 15 odd years on, given the world we are now in! Knights of Cydonia is OTT fun. If Showbiz was a bit too derivative, and Origin of Symmetry was Muse finding their voice through spectacular bombast, this is where they maybe lean into it a bit too much. It has some great highs, but you can't have dessert for every meal.

Thicc riffs

Quite alright. I can see myself liking it more with more listens as it has pretty distinct sound I'd need to get my ears more used to.

Kinda good actually… surprised

Wasn't sure what to expect here. I'd heard of Muse but wasn't sure who they were. Felt like sort of a cross between Radiohead, U2, and some grunge thrown in. I enjoyed it. 3 stars.

Great

I really like Muse. Seen them live twice, this is a really good album, love the singles, the rest of the songs are ok. I do prefer Absolution to this album, but as a muse fan I’d rate this 4 stars. Can see why it’s been removed from the newer editions of the book, as it’s not an album I’d be telling people who have never heard of muse to go listen to, but my own personal preference is I really like this.

Modern prog for modern stadia. Rocking, thumping, operatic and powerful. Music for spaceship engines.

classic

A good album but not their best.

Singalong Pomp for stadiums.

gallops along like a spooked thoat

Not the best of Muse, though Knights of Cydonia is an outstanding track.

So this album came out when I was 16, and I remember being really disappointed with it then :( feels like their attempt at doing a Night At The Opera that just falls a bit flat. The lyrics aren't as clever as they think they are, and it's super overengineered. Forced myself to relisten to it this morning though. First track is really quite dire, don't want to sound too much like a grandpa but it's just noise, isn't it? Starlight is decent twinkly pop, Supermassive Black Hole is less good twinkly pop. Map of the Problematique is ok, but it'd still be one of the worse tracks on the previous albums. The next one is a floppy wander with no energy. I like Invincible at the very end, when it sounds more old school Muse, but it spends way too long getting there (and the lyrics are SO cheesy). Assassin sounds like a proper Muse song and is probably the second best song on the album. The next two I have no proper opinion on, they are in the old Muse style but just doesn't really get going at all and are in no way memorable. One after is half Muse, half theme tune to a Western and it is not a combination that works. Then Knights of Cydonia - the only song on this album that actually achieves the level of theatre that they're going for. Almost prog-rocky, I do like this. Should have left it at that, would've been a nice closer, but they added on another track at the end that is similar to the 8 and 9 in that I am utterly indifferent to it.

The first track is ok. A bit nothing really. I'm trying to remember some lyrics, or the basic tune, but I've got nothing. Sums it up quite well. The second track I'd heard before. Quite decent tbh, memorable tune, I can remember the basic lyrics for the chorusy part. It's fine. I may have heard the third track before as well. Seems kind of familiar, but not enough that I remember any lyrics or anything. Fourth track I have no memory of at all. The fifth track had me scrambling. Had I downloaded a dodgy copy of the album and someone had mixed up the tracks with another band? No, apparently not. That is the intended fifth track. Doesn't fit, at all, and isn't very good tbh. Sixth track. I've had enough now. All I'm hearing is loud noises. Seventh track is worse than the sixth. Louder and more annoying. Eighth track is a bit better. Less noise, more of an actual song. Again though, not one that's stuck in the memory. For the ninth track we've gone acoustic. Nice. Oh hang on, it doesn't last. They threw some trumpets in towards the end. Then scrapped them for more LOUD GUITAR AND SHOUTING! Tenth track. Tarantino. Not sure why he's popped into my head. Maybe there's a bit of Pulp Fiction similarity at the start? How long before we get back to the shouting and the guitars on this one? Not bad, just over half way. They've thrown in some piano on this one, just to mix it up. At last, the final track. Thank God. Oooh, more Tarantino. Long intro on this one. Hang on, this bit rings a bell, "no-one's gonna take me aliiiiiiiiive". Was this a single as well? This is alright. And it's over. Good.

Muse claramente tem influências de Bach, isso ninguém pode negar ! Hahah

What is it with the mid 2000s and bombast? Muse clearly think of themselves as ultra-important, and this album has all the nobs turned up to 11. The production on this album is superb, and Muse at least have the chops to not settle into the grim post-Britpop trough-of-nothing that Arcade Fire, Interpol and Elbow wallowed in. This album is overindulgent, self-important and actually not that bad. There's enough variety to keep your attention, and while the pomp and indulgence means that I'll not be playing it again, I'm not reaching for the skip button. 3 stars. If it was less balls out, it'd be far more appealing.

Conhecia e gostava. Música do basebol dos vampiros.

Some pretty beautiful classically inspired parts on here but they still rock out. They pull from several genres and lean heavily into "nu-metal" territory with Rage Against The Machine sounding riffs and runs. Really a cool mix throughout the entire album. I really don't like the newest Muse records, though, so I have to separate that in my mind when I go back and listen to the good ones.

I definitely like Muse, but there is just something about them that feels lacking. In the moment I’m enjoying it, but it never seems to stick or satisfy. They are like musical empty calories.

Big sounds on this one. I particularly enjoy sexy vamp baseball.

Anthemic and epic in scascale. Very Queen, if Queen had written a space western opera. The few times it slams the breaks really break up the flow. When it's going fast, it's killer. Favorite tracks: "Assassin", "Supermassive Black Hole", "Starlight"

The hits are still great.

No mamen no voy a oír esta mierda.

Disco divertido y pues una que otra canción es pegadora, tiene punch. Sólo no sé si suene avejentado acaso, en el sentido de que es muy de su momento, pero hoy ya suena un poco insustancial. 7/10

Take a Bow - sounds like an intro track Starlight - sounds like a really good actual first track; the production makes the introductory bass riff and sprawling synth lines hit like a ton of bricks. Matt Bellamy's emotion-heavy performance drives the lyrics of frayed-relationship issues home. Supermassive Black Hole - i like how the dark synths juxtapose with the cocky whining guitars and vocal performances. there's a lot of different sounds and ideas being toyed with that come together really well. Map of the Problematique - sports a catchy repetitive motif that's built upon with unique synths, guitar tones, and layering vocal lines. it feels more vibey than the other tracks without the engaging rhythmic and melodic switch-ups. Soldier's Poem - a stripped-back acoustic piece that isn't long enough to leave much of an impact, but the Beach Boys-esque harmonies are interesting Invincible - the track only gets interesting during the bridge, with warbling sound effects, wailing guitar lines, and that really cool bass line at the beginning of it; the rest of the song is an unimpressive slow burn. Assassin - the repetition-heavy nature of the song structures throughout the album start to lose their luster, even though this song still works. the opening lines don't grab as well as earlier tracks like "Starlight" but there's still enough aggression and space-rock inspired sounds to give the song the drive it needs. Exo-Politics - the track is punchy from the opening drum pattern, topped with haunting theremins and fuzzy, distorted guitars. City of Delusion - constantly morphing into different sonic palettes, with Spanish guitars and trumpets sprinkled into an epic piece. Hoodoo - I haven't been clicking with the more ballad-ish tracks so far, but this one works better than the previous. The crescendo near the middle of the track paired with meaningful lyrics creates a decent deep cut for the record. Knights of Cydonia - Goddamn, this one's good. It's such an epic way to finish the track list with so many interesting qualities, like the piercing acapella section and its overall sense of scope. Overall, I enjoyed this record a lot more than I thought I would. Most of the deep cuts don't hit as hard as the singles, but the space-rock/prog-rock/alternative-dance sounds sound great with the powerfully unique vocals and staggering musicianship. BEST TRACKS: Starlight, Supermassive Black Hole, City of Delusion, Knights of Cydonia WORST TRACKS: Invincible

Muse sounds like the lovechild of Radiohead and Coldplay, and as insulting as that might sound, it actually works really well here. All of these songs are well written, well performed, well produced, and honestly make me think of Muse in a different light than I had previously. The biggest issue I have with the album is that there isn't a whole lot of personality throughout. Regardless, the songs are strong enough to largely ignore this fact and just groove/rock out. Favorite Tracks: "Starlight", "Supermassive Black Holes", "Invincible", "City of Delusion", "Knights of Cydonia", "Glorious"

Muse was my first ever rock show. Muse was the first band I discovered on my own, and I recommended it to all my friends. I remember when I first heard "Darkshines" and went bizarre playing it, on repeat, showing it to everyone around. I still wonder why the metalhead girl who all the guys were into, for some reason, did not like its fuzz-driven riff... Well, whatever. The point is – Muse is a super important band to me that has largely introduced me to heavier music, and it's sad that 10+ years after I heard this album for the first time, I don't like it as much as I used to. Is it because this album foreshadowed what Muse was to become in a decade? Probably, and that's key to my relationship with the band: Muse music (sorry for the awful wordplay) appeals to teenage angst and frustration and high hopes I experienced on par with all the other 14-year olds who did not get the lyrics, but in retrospect, the songs appear... Pretty stupid? Naive? Overly pompous? Well, probably everything together, and I don't want to listen to it anymore. Sorry, Muse. Don't get me wrong, I'm still super grateful to Muse. I enjoy (my memories of) the cyber-machinegun fuzz-n-whammy guitar riffs, distorted basslines, insanely produced vocals, guitar-keyboard lines... You name it. Unfortunately, for me, this is the last great Muse album, and that's what makes it more bitter than sweet.

One of the biggest sounding albums ever

should not be on this list

decent.

This album has been removed from the latest editions of the book. Enjoyed it a lot still. I used to not care about Muse much, feels quite strange I’m about to rate it 5*! 4.5/5

hm. pretentious. vibey. annoying. guitar-nice. > Gave me a headache but i have got Covid so idk > opening track got on my nerves > second track was generic and didnt sound nice enough to get away with having no meaning > something lacking but i cant recognise what > i disliked it and dont know why but were too bored by it to listen again to recognise what i didnt like > the third track is the most popular on the album and i was hoping it would bring some power to this album but it was only a little less annoying, meaningless and generic as the other two tracks i'd already listened to > the album was underwhelming > i would NOT say that somebody must hear before they die > i might go as far as to say that i would recommend not listening to this album for its sheer boringness

i listened to this before and it was mid and im not putting myself through it again. good job to Supermassive Black Hole though