Black Holes and Revelations

Fun pop rock. Off its time

This album grew on me as I listened to it. I liked the album opener Take a Bow but was not feeling the more electro pop vibes of Supermassive Black Hole. The opening guitar to Maps of the Problematique got me back on board and the guitar, arrangements, and orchestral touches across the album are what sealed the deal. I was vibing to the opening of Knights of Cydonia so hard I was kinda bummed when the vocals started in.

Dois aspectos me incomodam neste disco: a tensão constante, impedindo o ouvinte de relaxar o mínimo e a opção por uma mixagem que deixa o som confuso ("embolado"). Não se ouve os pratos da bateria e os teclados, cordas e guitarras soam misturados, dificultando a experiência de desfrutar das melodias e arranjos. Mesmo assim, um bom disco!

Favorites: Take a Bow, Starlight, Supermassive Black Hole, Assassin, Knights of Cydonia

2.5/5. Cava nog

A rich, complex sound that is somewhat reminiscent of Queen. Yet there is enough creative originality to keep them from sounding like a wannabe or copycat.

Some of the music sounds like songs I know, but it is good music, especially when they pick up the beat.

Love this album. They've got their own sound, but there's enough variety to keep it interesting. Full sound, the synthesizers add to the music, rather than dominating or distracting. Great vocals. Love the subject matter in the songs. Great drumming. 5* for sure. And I've never gotten sick of it, despite innumerable listens.

Geloof best dat het heel goed is etc. maar gewoon echt niet mijn ding

Probably my favorite MUSE album. I really enjoy the drumming on this one.

Terrific album

A good album … feels like more than a 3 but at the same time I’m not sure it’s a 4 🤷‍♀️

Has an amazing song: super massive black hole. And many other great songs

Musr rocks

Whenever I heard these guys on the radio, I had assumed it was Coldplay or Radiohead. Doesn't mean I like it, just that I recognize the singles. Seem a little....unoriginal?

I had never really listened to Muse outside of hearing them on the radio, and always kinda put them in the "poppy Radiohead ripoff" category, but this album was pretty good. Definitely had a few great moments and brought back some Guitar Hero memories. Highlights: "Starlight" and "Exo-Politics"

Haha, I already got this as an album, literally on day one, before getting the team It's still fun!

I remember when this album came out, and first remember listening to Muse in a Virgin Records store at the mall, not sure if it was this or the Absolution record. Either way, this band was all the rage during my high school years and the opening track brought me right back to the Watchmen movie trailer from 2009 that featured “Take A Bow”. Muse has such a unique and recognizable sound as well as many songs I know very well. What a great listen and trip down memory lane for my Friday.

Nem Supermassive Black Hole consegue salvar esse album!

It's okay. It was distracting for me how much the singer sounds like Thom Yorke. 2.75

Weird cross between radio head and bad truck commercial guitar tracks. Some truly interesting moments on here nut the whole thing falls a little flat. 2.5 stars.

I was in my 20s in the 2000s, so even though I never really got into Muse, I recognized a lot of the tracks on this album. All of those radio hits were of course bangers, but I was most surprised by some of the songs that were new to me, especially Take a Bow, City of Delusion, and Glorious. To me, it falls just short of 5 star for two reasons: 1) there were a few songs I didn't particularly enjoy, and 2) they definitely have a bit of a homogeneous sound. Though, in defense of the homogeny of their sound, it is a pretty cool sound they have going on even if some of the tracks sound the same. It's like Abba meets Radiohead and the heaviness is cranked up. Overall, a very strong entry and another reminder as to why I like this era of music so much.

Fine, but not cool

Holy hell, I forget just how staggering this album is. From the opening notes to the final crescendo, it plays out like a space-opera concept record - the kind of soundtrack you’d expect behind an animated sci-fi epic. Muse pulls from everywhere: you can hear the Depeche Mode darkness in the synths, the futurist pulse in the rhythms, and even flashes of spaghetti Western grandeur in “Knights of Cydonia.” It’s theatrical without being cheesy, cinematic without losing its grit. The whole record is drenched in a sense of apocalypse and possibility, like the world is ending but it’s doing so in glorious technicolor. Few albums feel this big, this ambitious, and still manage to stay cohesive. This isn’t just a rock album - it’s a full-blown event.

How can we win when fools can be kings?

I unapologetically love Muse. The run of albums starting with Absolution all the way through The Second Law is one for the ages. BHAR is one of the best of the bunch. It's epic in scope from start to finish. The soundscapes, the guitars, the vocals and lyrics all hit me now as much as they did 19 years ago. I know Muse took what Radiohead was doing and allowed it to evolve in a more rock-opera direction. I don't see that as a bad thing

A really solid 3 but I really can't give it any more. They've done some really good stuff but I rarely listen to Muse, they rarely excite or move me. Controversial!

It’s strange to think that this is becoming quite a nostalgic listen already! I think it is fair to say that this was Muse at their commercial peak, with them headlining the first show at the new Wembley Stadium as part of the tour for this album, and having a track infamously feature in the Twilight films (Supermassive Black Hole). Despite it coming out in the mid-2000s, when Sam and I were first getting into music, this wasn’t my first introduction to Muse. My earliest memory of hearing them was when Uprising (from The Resistance) was played on Radio 1 after a Saturday morning Tennis lesson. In the year or two after this, Mum and Dad bought several of their CDs, including The Resistance, Absolution, Origin of Symmetry, and Black Holes and Revelations. For a long time this was exclusively how I listened to them, besides the odd live show at Glastonbury/Reading, broadcasted to TV. Around 2016, I started getting into more music on my own via Spotify and YouTube. This brought me to many new artists and genres that I hadn’t encountered before, but also brought me back to Muse. Safe to say, I was pretty obsessed with their stuff by the time Simulation Theory came out in 2018. Seeing them on tour with Sam is definitely a highlight gig for me. Muse are notoriously a consistently great live act, who even in 2018 still had a set laced with various tracks from Black Holes and Revelations. I can recall the hits (Starlight, Supermassive Black Hole, and of course, Knights of Cydonia) being played, as well as some unexpected inclusions such as Take A Bow and Assassin. All of the above are great, but I’d like to highlight two tracks that I feel always to understand the radar. Map Of The Problematique is an anthemic, driving track, and the little-known Bonus Track, Glorious, is genuinely the perfect chaser after the beast that is Knights of Cydonia. Glorious, specifically, is one of my favourite closer tracks. Something about the guitar tone, and how the percussion is softly added throughout. I’d argue this is only Muse’s third best album, but it still can only go down as a 5 for me!

The magnum opus of a brilliant band. Muse at their absolute best. No weak songs. How can an album with Knights of Cydonia on it be anything less than 5 stars? It still gives me goosebumps now, and I’ve been listening to Muse for almost 20 years. Worth mentioning that on top of having an excellent discography, Muse are one of the very best live bands. I’ve been fortunate enough to have seen them 3 times, and each time they were incredible. My brother and I made it onto the official Simulation Theory film/DVD (see me singing at the camera during Starlight). I even saw them bring out Brian Johnson and play Back In Black which was pretty special. They’re one of those bands that you could see anywhere at any time and know with certainty that they will put on a top tier show. They’ve got the whole live performance thing down to a tee. We can only hope that future Muse albums come close to reaching the heights of Black Holes and Revelations. Luckily The Resistance, Drones, Absolution, and Origin of Symmetry are also great.

I make no apologies for loving Muse. They're great musicians, have written many of this century's best riffs, and they're not scared to take musical and lyrical ideas to extremes. What's that - too OTT for you? Too ridiculous? Grow up. I for one get enough mundanity from real life, thank you very much. God forbid a band makes music that requires you to loosen up, suspend your disbelief for a bit, and imagine you're starring in a sci-fi epic rather than aimlessly whiling your life away in your dull little town. Anyway, Absolution and Origin of Symmetry are their real 5-star albums (shameful omissions from the 1001 both), but BHAR has a good claim to the bronze medal. It seasons their signature space rock sound with tasteful sprinkles of synths, pop melodies and Queen-esque harmonies (before they followed all these directions a bit too far in future releases). 4.5

Only knew Knights of Cydonia coming in; Supermassive Black Hole sounds familiar; sick riffs throughout, especially Map of the Problematique and Assassin; the album was basically the exact length of my run, seems meant to be.

They’re just trying too hard. I’ve never been able to get into them.

Only for Super Massive Black Hole. Rest of the album feels mediocre

Didn't really love anything but it's was good the whole way through

Honestly an enjoyable album from a band that I’ve faded a bit in the past, thinking they were “trying to be Radiohead” or something. When you think about it the only similarity between Muse and Radiohead is Matt Bellamy and Thom Yorke sing falsetto a lot. Otherwise the bands’ music is pretty different. Starlight is a tremendous song, and the whole album is solid.

- familiarity: some, a couple of songs but not artist - album: flowed nicely - instrumentation: broad range, clean, interesting - lyrics: clear, huge range, fits the music, great falsetto - thoughts: really dig it, immediately downloaded all of their other albums - surprised: yes, will definitely listen again - score: 5/5

“Supermassive Black Hole” was on my high school running list, and now feels a bit tired to me. I found “Invincible” a really engaging piece, with the clearer vocals and even the wild synthy guitar solo. “Exo-Politics” had a much more traditional “classic” rock mode which I found approachable and enjoyable. I was surprised by how not surprised I was that “City of Delusion” had a muted trumpet which was vaguely latin sounding. Then “Hoodoo” follows up with a Mariachi guitar introduction then is a hit of a song? I just don’t even know anymore. “Knights of Cydonia” I instantly recognized because The University of Rochester had an a cappella group that covered that one and I had the physical CD of their album in HS. Classic. Overall not something I’d reach for but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the later songs on the album.

Take a bow : a great introduction for the albums main tone great opener 8.5 Starlight: it's one of popular songs from the album and it's popular for a reason 8.5 Supermassive black hole: Decent song but I'm not fan of it 7.5 Map of a Problamatique: Highlight of this album with soldiers poem 9.5 Soldiers Poem: I love Matt Bellamy's humming voice and it fits the song so well and drums are great too 9 Invincible: soldiers poem but worse 7.5 Assasin: I love the knight Rider theme like riff and it felt great after 2 ballad like songs good album structure 8.5 Exo-Politics : Criminally underrated song of the album 8 City of delusion : it sounds like Radiohead's escape song(for a film) and I love that song 8.5 and the violins are brilliant Hoodoo: it sounds like one of the anathema songs but I don't know which one great power ballad 8.5 Knights of Cydonia: Never liked the song don't know why it's that much popular 6.5 Glorious: Piano run sounds like the bassline from panic attack from dream theatre, great song i don't know how to rate this because it doesn't sound like anything I know 10 points from the originality part

Did not realize several songs I like were from this album. Regardless, I do not care for this album.

very good album!

It's got the usual Musings. Space themes, weird lyrics, held middle syllables, and juuuuuust enough post grunge to not be labeled as such.

J'avais jamais écouté un album de Muse en entier, mais franchement j'ai beaucoup aimé, des styles très variés sur toutes les chansons de l'album, des instrus très cool, je vais peut-être commencer à écouter un peu plus ! Chansons pref : City of delusion

Très bon album, diversifié, voix bien cool ! C’est pas du tout le groupe que j’aime aujourd’hui mais j’avais beaucoup leurs deux premiers albums à l’époque !

J'avais jamais écouté un album de Muse en entier, c'est fou comme ce projet me fait réaliser que ma culture musicale est superficielle. Je connaissais Starlight bien évidemment, le reste était une bonne découverte. 4/5

My initial thought upon seeing this album on the generator today was "Muse is on this list?" This was not a complaint, as I thoroughly enjoy their music though I haven't really listened to them in about 10 years. My second thought, as soon as the record started playing, was "Oh yeah, Muse is Queen for millennials." I remember thinking that back in the day when I saw Muse live, as they totally reminded me of Queen (who I saw live in the late 70's). There's overblown everything, and on this album it's in the best ways. And it also doesn't hurt that Matt Bellamy can sometimes do a mean Brian May impression. This album did not disappoint. It's all of the bombast and, yes, silliness, that is the best of Muse. Starlight is a fantastic song IMO, and there are five or six others that had me smiling and remembering why I enjoyed listening to them as much as I did back then. It's not a perfect album, so I don't think it'll get a 5, but it's a solid 4.

I knew a couple songs off this album but I think I slept on it as a whole. It's wonderful operatic metal. I'm glad that I revisited it.

Solid alternative rock album, full of some of Muse's best concert staples, but still has a handful of filler songs that get in the way of the listening experience. Bonus points for the record's title and album cover.

This álbum have a start very good. But, the finish isn't very interesting!

Interesting. It sounds like an attempt to sound like Radiohead which is no bad thing, sort of lacked a bit of depth.

Would buy.

One of my favorite albums. I love how it's alt/heavy metal but it bends into other genres in its songs

First track is amazing and the rest is just good. Kinda disappointed and I feel catfished.

Muse is a band I’ve been messing with since my early 20’s

Oh boy, was this boring. I tried to listen intently to these albums, but on this one, my mind kept drifting to where I forgot I was listening.

Музыка: 8/10 Разнообразие: 7/10 Тематика и вайб: 9/10 Цепляемость (отдельные песни зашли): 7/10 Реиграбельность (можно ли рандомно врубить на фон): 8/10 Итог: 7.8

some nice songs

3.5 the good tracks are great, sometimes it feels almost like a radiohead cover band (hoodoo)

Amazing album. So modern and clean sound.

Wow, that was like an instant classic. Really grabs your attention. Strong all the way through. I'm glad I found it through this list.

I was completely obsessed with this album when it came out - was a very cathartic listen. Knights of Cydonia and Starlight are still instant classics to this day, but it's not quite a perfect record.

Cheesy mid-2000s stuff. I liked it less the more I listened.

No disrespect to Muse, but why is this album on the list?

2,9/5

Some good tunes...and some noise

I've only listened to a couple of Muse songs before, but this album was eye opening. Take a Bow is a mission statement and works as this album's opener. Starlight catches you immediately, with the piano giving the song a sense of airiness that's hard to explain. If Starlight is romantic, then Supermassive Black Hole is lustful. Map of the Problematique is amazing. Soldier's Proem, echoing Elvis Presley's Can't Help Falling In Love, almost gives the listener whiplash with the rolling guitars and lofty background vocals. Invincible builds from a slow march into a fantastic guitar solo. Assassin is an aggressive BANGER. Exo-Politics has a western vibe to it but pales in comparison to the rest of the tracks. City of Delusion has a dramatic Iberian flair. Hoodoo feels like the end is nigh. Knights of Cydonia is the album's dramatic climax replete with a horn section. Glorious is a beautiful closer. The whole album feels like a theatrical show, replete with emotional gravitas and instrumental virtuosity. Incredible stuff, really.

Slop then, slop now, why did people ever like this?

Top album! I was never much into Muse until I saw them live. They're amazing live. This is a great album with some top tracks. It's perhaps not as good as Origin of Symmetry, but it's still significant. 4 because it's great, 5 for the haters.

Very fun instrumentals Close to my style, but not something that I'd often listen to But if the mood takes me back to this album, I won't mind!

Muse is cool. Like U2 meets Soundgarden with a little techno circus music.

Good album but for me no Origin of Symmetry

Bangers.

Kind of ambivalent about Muse. Sounds okay, just nothing that stands out.

Ponderous themes and ponderous production. But sometimes it kind of rocks.

Might get a little harsh with this review, but man. I thought this was pretty shitty. I've never cared much for Muse, so I was hoping this album would change my opinion on them as a mediocre-at-best band. Unfortunately, it only solidified it. My biggest issue with this album is that it's just bland pop masquerading as more complex rock music. Then, they make the lyrics alien and celestial to try to hide that from the listener further. It's like a movie studio turning an intricate sci-fi concept into a big budget movie. They have to remove all the interesting context and heavy ideas in order to make it appealing to the mass audience and make money. There's no actual depth or feel to it. While I don't think this was meant to be a concept album, the issues become more obvious when you compare it to some of the other sci-fi-inspired works I've had on here, namely Tarkus and 2112. I didn't love either of those albums either, but they actually committed to the ideas they wrote around. Unlike Muse here, which just turned it into something corporate and cold with dance music underneath. While I do think the Rush/ELP works lacked some soul, I don't think this BHAR had any to begin with. Yeah, that was pretty negative. But that's my take. To end with something nicer, there were a few bright spots spread throughout the album that made me think they have the ability to come up with something good and interesting. Still, this one was bad. Overall: 1.3/5

Oldie but a goodie

Not for me, this one.

Not my favourite muse album but still very good!

Every song sounds euphoric and grandiose. Not light and shade. Hopeful at the end when Hoodoo appears but then they over do it again and ends euphoric. I want to like Muse and just can't get there. Great musical passages but too much the same and one song blurs into another.

From the first note of track 1 this album sets out its stall. It feels like it was written for stadium rock, which is exactly what Muse were doing at the time & as a reminder of those experiences watching them lie it probably adds a bonus star to what an objective listener might have rated it.

I really enjoyed this album. You can hear the influences, like Pink Floyd and Depeche Mode.

Wonderfully over the top production. Great songs roll on over and over. No-one's going to take us alive indeed.

Very energetic. Seems VERY produced. It's a good album, but not for usual casual listening. Pitchfork: 4.2 Rolling Stone: n/a Best Songs Starlight Supermassive Black Hole Assassin Knights of Cydonia

I love this album. I've had the joy of seeing Muse on this tour and they blew me away. The things that they can do with a 3 piece band amaze me. I'm going 5 stars on this one.

What I would give to listen to this album for the first time again….. 3.5, rounded down

Some outstanding tracks. Iconic riffs unfortunately drenched in wild self indulgence

Been a while since I’ve heard this, some cool rock opera moments, perhaps some self indulgent ones that didn’t need to be here but on the whole pretty nice

10 years ago this would have been an easy 5. In recent years I have soured a bit on Muse. It isn't so much that I dislike them. I still enjoyed this album. It just felt more lacking than it once did.

Whatever you say about Muse, they sure can make a racket for a band with only 3 people! This album is just enough not Radiohead and not Queen to hit a sweet spot. That sweet spot is definitely Supermassive Blackhole which is excellent. I also like Starlight alot. Some of the other songs are a little too grandiose

Bombastic Proggy Noughties Indie-Rock - so definately faced an uphill battle to win me over.

Loved the opening salvo, and was wondering how I’d never paid attention in to Muse before. Halfway through the album I realise why as it was starting to sound a bit like a Radiohead tribute act, more Thom Yorke than Tom Yorke who is already a divisive lead vocalist. Kind of grating in the end. Disappointing.

Epic sounding, big songs... may be a little too much at points, but generally great stuff

Went into space with this

I love it

Black Holes and Revelations – Muse (2006) | Alternative Rock / Space Rock | Avg: 9 | Favorite Song: “Invincible” This one absolutely blew me away. Black Holes and Revelations is everything I want from a concept-driven rock album. It's massive in scale, tightly constructed, and emotionally charged without losing its sense of drama. What really stood out to me was the way Muse shifts between cosmic grandeur and grounded urgency. “Soldier’s Poem” brings everything back to Earth, only to build that tension into a full-on rallying cry. It’s a smart, emotional pivot that gives the second half of the record real momentum. And “Invincible” ended up being my favorite: easily one of their most uplifting and anthemic tracks, and it lands with purpose. From a reviewer’s standpoint, it’s rare to see this level of sonic ambition land so cleanly. The production is astronomical, thanks to its use of wide-open synths, crunching guitars, and operatic vocals, but none of it feels bloated. Muse makes space sound militant and melodic at the same time, and it works. This is the kind of album that feels generational. It captures that post-millennium anxiety, but does it with such scale and clarity that it still hits just as hard now. Spectacular stuff.

Supermassive Black Hole and Knights of Cydonia were already on the Liked Songs prior. Added Starlight but the rest of the album was a bit of a miss for me.

I enjoyed this album more than I expected. Soldiers Poem and Take a bow really stood out to me as unique, especially amidst the rest of the album.

Their fourth album. Rock. This is an attempt at an epically grand album. There are a couple of peaks (which have been endlessly overplayed ever since) but overall I find it a little flat. I really want to be in to it but ultimately the album keeps letting me down. The production is good and there are some nice lyrics.

No lubię te płytę. To pewnie jest sentyment z czasów młodości i Zmierzchu, ale dalej działa, szczególnie tytułowy kawałek. Kocham ten wokal, dynamikę i te gitarę. Co począć? 9/10

The epitome of nerdy cool

нормалек.

Divertido y fresco de principio a fin. 4💫

Late one night in San Francisco, I was very drunk and battling a Russian woman in 8-ball. She was known to be one of the better players in that bar. I was terrible at pool and am even worse now, but I got lucky that night and happened to beat her on a bank shot. In one of the few unadulterated moments of glory in my life, I recall hearing Muse over the stereo. Despite my inflated sense of mastery, I still managed to come to the very sober conclusion that Muse sucks. All these years later, I have given them another chance. Maybe I was full of it back then? Too ungenerous? This album sounds like Coldplay trying desperately to be Radiohead. It's embarrassing. I'll reserve my generousness of spirit for people making authentic music. On a song-level, whatever ... but Muse amounts to a band that wants to be another band and thinks that by fortifying their unoriginal music with arpeggiated crap, maybe we won't notice that somebody wants to be Thom Yorke. We noticed!

A big album. Lots of singles. I like the concept. A bit over the top and a little bit soulless though.

I would rather listen to Jagged Little Pill (two stars) than listen to this again. So for consistency’s sake (and fairness to Alanis), one star it has to be

I dislike muse so much, everything about this made me dislike them even more

I can't stand the singing of Matt Bellamy, the gasp at the end of every line I can't unheard.

Adequate poppy alt rock. Gets an extra point for cool production. Great ZVEX fuzz tones on the bass and guitar, and cool synth arpeggios. Loses a point because Bellamy sounds like he's singing the transcript of an Infowars broadcast while doing a somewhat passable Thom Yorke impression. The rockers go decently hard, but the ballads really suck. I always assumed Muse fans were mostly people who stopped liking Radiohead when Kid A came out, and listening to this in full didn't really change that perception

Knew more songs than I thought. Good vocal harmonies.

Damn this album is boring and bland. The songs are so slow and meandering. What is this music for? Background? Anyone paying attention is in for some boredom. 50 mins never felt so long.

No es mi gusto, pero tampoco le daría mala nota sólo por eso. Rock de los 00.

This is a pretty solid album. Nothing too challenging, or revolutionary, but very tight and generally a good time. Definitely tries for an epic feeling, and it kinda works, but doesn't leave a lasting impression.

"Supermassive Black Hole" is a great song... i'll start off by saying that... "Take a Bow" opens the record... underwhelming in my opinion... the singer is kind of an operatic bloke... nothing is done on this cut that wasn't done better on Funeral For a Friend by Elton John, etc... "Starlight" is a song that reminds me of U2... almost a dead ringer for a Bono vocal... in other words a sure fire hit... "Map of the Problematique" is problematical to me... in that it is noise... lol... they slow it down with "Soldier's Poem"... "Invincible" is the next track on this U2, er, Muse album... lol... the rest of the album is basically the same... not much on melody... this band hits on something every once in a while on this album.... not enough to be something you must hear before you die... but, if you did, die, that is... without hearing it... well... you missed "Supermassive Black Hole"... which is a good song... "Glorious", "Exo-Politics", "Assassin" and "Knights of Cydonia" what??? lol... are example of the pretentious titles... Three stars... and i'm being generous..."

Pretty good

Liked this less overall than I remembered back in the day. I still enjoyed it a lot but some tracks just lulled for me. Of course you have the massive bangers of Supermassive Black Hole (which just makes me want to watch Twilight) and Knights of Cydonia. Those epic ones are what Muse has always done best. (3.5 stars)

I haven't listened to Muse in a good long while. I was wondering if this album would hold up over time and compared to the many good albums in this list. Pleased to say it absolutely did. Matt Bellamy's heavenly singing, that grimy base, the grit and grandeur of it all. What an album.

This was awesome. I had heard a little Muse before, but couldn't tell you a single song title or hum any melodies or anything. This album was so much fun and the music was just 100% right up my alley. I loved this so much, I am an instant Muse fan. Five stars, easily.

El álbum con la canción de la escena de beisbol de Crepúsculo, mis dieces de entrada. Rock alternativo con sonidos clásicos del género, me gusta que algunas canciones tienen cambios de ritmo. Pero a pesar de ser un género que me gusta no me termina de convencer el álbum, creo que porque se acerca un poco al metal y me parece un poco repetitivo. Esta bien pero sin más para mi. Canciones favs: supermassive black hole, invincible, city of delusion, hoodoo

Ah yes, the Twilight soundtrack. This is a very good album.

Heard this before it in with the four albums I have a anytime for from Muse. I like the UFO gimmick they use behind everything but Matts voice can be far too wailing at times. There are some stand out tracks the singles Knights, Starlight etc Map of Prob is also extremley good invincible is ok too. However its all a little preachy and his voice skretches on the ballads and he doesnt carry it well. The drums, Bass and Guitar from the trio are tight especially the drumming and Matts solos are a bit hit and miss. Its okay but not stood the test of time for me. I also found myself disappointed the few times I have seen them live all atyle over substance.

This is a band that on paper I should love. And try and try and I just don’t. This album is good, but I would not listen again. I can’t put my finger on why yet. It ticks a lot of boxes for what I like.

I came late to the Muse party so I don't know which tracks belong to which albums, prior to Drones. So this was an interesting listen, hearing these songs in this order on 1 album. Almost every playlist I've made has Map of the Problematique & Take a Bow. Lots of other tracks here that I should listen to more. Loved it.

The bangers are bangers here but man alive Muse album tracks aren't great are they?

Always had issue with Muse as I felt they were too forced and just never liked the marketing -was glad to listen to this album start to finish as the album was tight and much better than I expected.

A big sound with lots of hair-raising riffs. I've heard better, but this is good enough for five stars and a place in my Tidal library.

Very entertaining album.

I looked up the lead singer on Wikipedia and for a split second I thought I was looking at Jesse Pinkman

Really good.

Yeah I don’t know, I thought I’d like this but that’s purely because I like Supermassive Black Hole. The rest of the album just isn’t that great. Pretty bang average electronic rock. Probably the reason why I just never fully got into Muse.

I heckin love this album. Queen-like enough but modernish (at least it was when it came out) and it rocks just the right amount. I love all the studio flourishes, I love the vocals, I love the harmonies, I looooove the drama. This was a welcome injection of adrenaline and verve after what felt like weeks of punk and otherwise bleak albums. I hope I get to see Muse one day before I or their ability to perform live dies.

Muse are one of those bands like Coldplay. I know they exist, I know people enjoy their music, but I just can’t connect with them.

4.5

Ensformigt. Muse trænger igennem med enkelte stærke sange, men drukner i en lyd der er bange for at gå ud over dens egne grænser. Ellers en stærk start på albummet med "Take a bow" og "Starlight", men kraften ebber derefter ud.

Held up better than I expected, honestly. 3.5/5

Just some inoffensive background music. Not bad, and not appealing enough for me to seek it out again.

Solid

Fantastic. Incredible playing. Loved it.

Muse are a weird band, they are these... space obsessed, conspiracy obsessed, alt rock ala Radiohead by way of Queen which would sound lame as hell but personally? I kinda love that about their early music, their weird blend of theatrical music and 00s alt rock really works well for the kind of music they make and this album especially is great for how it just brings in both really sweet poppy songs (Starlight), very mechanical and heavy pop songs to play baseball to (Super Massive Black Hole), and then just a bunch of Ennio Morricone Spaghetti Western sounding songs at the end, it's not consistent at ALL but I loved this shit when I was 14, and even at 24 I still kinda love it, if here and there than as a whole.

I’ve always been a Muse skeptic. I do think it’s corny at times, but the music is undeniably impressive.

Love this album. Have seen them perform this live. 10/10 would recommend. Loved Muse when this album was released.

Spiritual successor to Queen. Feels like a rock opera. Best: Starlight, knights of cydonia, exo politics

Alright I guess. A couple of classics like supermassive black hole and starlight. There's a grandious nature to it that I am not quite a big fan of. long elongated whiny vocals at times put me off a couple of songs. 5/10

So sick

This album is delightfully beautiful, at many times oneiric, with quite interesting instrumentals. However, some songs weren't really of my like, feeling more like pop songs with not much interest. Overall, this is a good album, pretty solid, but not a 10, nor a 9. I'll give it an 8. And still I've liked it a lot, but there are things that are not that nice. It could have been much better.

I rolled my eyes a couple of times at the most preposterous bits. It's all a bit silly and doesn't really rock like it thinks it does. Some decent pop melodies I suppose, but this is nowhere near as good as their first two, brilliant, albums.

Great

So tempted to write "I don't usually like heavy metal" just to troll. I never got into Muse back when, and I get the Radiohead-lite criticism, but I enjoyed this. The songs are satisfying, well-polished in parts and deliberate in their roughness, like a Shona sculpture

4/10 Having only heard bits of Muse before, and never being convinced to seek out any more, I always used to dismiss them as “Budget Radiohead”. Turns out I was right, but not in the way that I’d originally meant. They’re actually “Big Budget Radiohead”. Strip out all of the grit and charm of a band who do things on their own terms and replace it with over-slick production and stadium pleasing musical choices and this is what you get. It’s cold. But there are moments when things teeter on the edge of being pretty good. Knights of Cydonia and Assassin have some great, heavy riffs, for example, but those moments are too fleeting among the easy ‘stadium rock’ choices of much of the rest of the album. And I don’t like Matt Bellamy’s vocal style at all. It seems to be always delivered in this drawling, legato manner that just washes over the top of everything. It wouldn’t be as bad if he switched it up a bit, but it just feels like he’s whining and crying about everything from start to finish. In short, my opinion on muse hasn’t really changed. There are times when they sound a bit like other bands that I like, but if I want to listen to that, I’d rather listen to those other bands do it better. Take a Bow - Well they’ve found the arpeggiator on their synth. Make that multiple. I think this is supposed to be building to something epic. But it’s still building and it all sounds a bit thin. It finally kicks in and it just clomps along. The pace never really picks up. It’s stadium rock with synthesisers by numbers. Starlight - This starts off with a bit of weight for the first few bars. And then the piano kicks in and we’re in stadium corporate rock (Coldplay) territory. Meh. Every choice they make is the obvious one. There are hints here and there that they could do something that sounds decent, but they don’t bother. I mean, it’s not like it’s completely unforgivable, it’s just uninteresting. Supermassive Black Hole - The big hit. It at least has a bit more swagger to it. But it still feels a bit of an artificial swagger, if that makes sense. It’s all too clean and calculated. It straddles the line between a pop song and a rock song and doesn’t really satisfy either brief for me. Map of the Problematique - It builds and builds and builds and… never gets anywhere. Songs that feel like an endless intro just bug me. Thing is, I really dig unresolved tension in music, but in something that is supposed to be massive and epic like this, it just feels like they never bothered to write a chorus to go with all of that tension build-up. It has got a toe-tapping drive to it, but it’s also annoying. Soldier’s Poem - What happens when Matt Bellamy tries his best to sing like Thom Yorke and the rest of the band try to sing like Queen? This is what happens. It’s ok, I suppose. Pretty forgettable though. Invincible - Ah, another Coldplay song but with Matt Bellamy trying to sing like Thom Yorke again. It takes two and a half minutes to kick in, and when it does it’s so anaemic. Fuck me, this is thin and boring. Give it a bit of welly, lads. Oooh, 3:40 or so, something happens! Is it going to kick off? Oh, no. Just a shit (really shit) guitar solo. Assassin - Oh god, this is actually good. Actual pace and intensity. It’s a bit Queens of the Stone Age. Except now Matt Bellamy has ruined it with his whiny little voice. This could actually be decent, if a little straightforward, but it doesn’t really offer much in the way of development and the insipid vocal just takes all of the weight out of it. How annoying. Exo-Politics - This one has some decent riffs and weight. The chorus is still pretty run-of-the-mill stadium rock, but it’s not bad. There’s even some somewhat interesting sound design in there. It’s got a decent driving pace to it too. Still not keen on his voice, but it’s less distracting here than it is on other tracks. City of Delusion - This is another one that has a decent amount of pace to it. The drums are pretty good on this, in particular. They don’t hold on too long to the build up sections, and it has a decent amount of variation. The string arrangements are pretty cool too. His voice is still annoying though and it all seems a bit artificially grand somehow. Hoodoo - Got enough reverb? And a weird spaghetti western guitar intro? This vocal part reminds me of something that I can’t quite put my finger on. It’s a bit dull, and then when the other parts kick in it does that ‘building to nothing thing again. And then drops back away to the dull thing again. Knights of Cydonia - This has got a bit more of that western feel to it, but at least it’s more interesting. Not a big fan of the guitar tone though. Sounds super scratchy. It’s all a bit messy, especially given the context for the rest of the album. Not a big fan of the gang vocals, they sound very wet mouthed. When it kicks in it’s a really great riff. Nice and heavy and again, quite Queens of the Stone Age. But the gang vocals come in again and it just doesn’t do it for me. It’s a decent enough song though.

god i hate muse

Loved it then. Love it now.

This was really cool. Memes aside, I’ve always liked Supermassive Black Hole so the rest of the album keeping up with it is awesome. Very interesting epic space rock vibes with some more haunting songs I really enjoyed. Some of the lyrics were cheesy but overall a really solid album.

I never really listened to Muse back when this dropped but I do remember how huge it was back then. Muse definitely has a distinct sound and sometimes, it doesn't really land well for me (like Invincible). But when it hits, it's -chef kiss-. Solid album overall but I'm a much bigger fan of The Resistance. Favorite tracks: Kinghts of Cydonia

One of the best albusm of my favorite band

5/5 geschenkt. Geiles Album von vorne bis hinten.

I know and vaguely like a couple of their (later) albums already, but haven't heard most of the songs on this one. As always with Muse, I enjoy the vibe and would listen again, but mostly all their songs just sound 'Muse-ish'? i.e. distinctively them, but none of them very memorable or standing out from the others for me?

This music reminds me of Smirnoff Ice. I don't know a single person that likes it yet clearly millions of people do. Where the hell are they?

Too anthemy sounding

In biased for this as Mise is my favorite band please disregard my rating. Still their masterpiece was absolution and this the begining of a more commercial approach towards radio play. Same shit happened to Radiohead which is a top band in the planet as well. This trio of rockers are at the top of the rock food chain if you are not a fan you are not listening.

Об'єктивно цей альбом десь на 3-3.5 зірочки. Є як вдалі, так і не дуже спроби рухатись в сторону якогось мтв-прогу. З плюсів, що є хіти. Ну і в принцпиі я більше люблю (треба переслухати якось) попередні два альбоми. Але коли слухав, така приємна ностальгія була за старими Мьюз, що вирішив поставити 4.

Це, мабуть, єдиний альбом мьюз, який мені по-справжньому подобається, колись я навіть купив собі платівочку. Їх "прог" період, але не крінжовий і без зайвого копіювання квін. Knights of cydonia - гімн боротьби.

Queria muito gostar deste álbum, queria gostar desta banda. Mas é difícil. Não sinto muita coisa os ouvindo. Comparações com Radiohead são óbvias e cansativas, mas acima de tudo, acho essas comparações tristes. Tristes no sentido que, se eu pensar nelas, eu vou querer tirar o disco do Muse e colocar qualquer disco do Radiohead. Por isso, evito ao máximo estes pensamentos durante a escuta. Mas o pior é que não acho nada aqui verdadeiramente ruim. Só não me dá o mesmo tesão que outras bandas semelhantes me dão. E é difícil apontar o motivo exato disso. Talvez seja pela produção mais emaculada deste disco comparado com outros semelhantes. Talvez seja pela voz do vocalista não ser 100% do meu agrado. Talvez seja pelo conteúdo lírico que às vezes chega em um nível “I’m 14 and this is deep”. Talvez seja, na realidade, uma junção de tudo isso. Provavelmente. Knights of Cydonia é uma canção clássica todavia, não posso negar isso. Eu a adoro. E há alguns outros cortes aqui que eu até gostei. Nada me deixou entusiasmado o suficiente para ser salvo, mas mesmo assim, nada me ofendeu seriamente. Um álbum mediano de uma banda que, por agora, acredito também ser mediana. 3/5

Good but not really my thing

Hate muse

Fine rock album. Feels a bit more polished than your average rock album. Got some nice hits and the other songs are listenable but kind of forgettable. I can see why people call them a “budget-Radiohead” but I think I still prefer Muse.

Personally this is the best album ever created

Love this album!

Didn't care for muse in high school. Don't care for muse in my late 30s. I mean... It was fine, but not anything spectacular. 3 stars.

Ergh

No spoko, takie do auta żeby nie zasnąć:D ale zbyt drażniące do słuchania na codzień

Great album

Great heavy music album. Knights of Cydonia is an absolute classic

A few good ones. Not as good as I remembered.

Pass

Fantastic. Spacey and deep

Never really connected with this

Just a few underwhelming moments on what is an extremely impressive record. Very cohesive and sticks to the otherworldly themes and sounds. Knights of Cydonia" is an all time classic. 4/5

4/10

What a great album. I think epic applies. Had heard a couple of songs before, but all of the album was good. Electronic feeling without losing the rock and organic.

Ok, being generous w 3

Really enjoyed this, lots of great songs. I also feel like I could have missed some pretty sophisticated musicianship by being uninformed on what I should listen for. 4/5 for today but I could see myself rating this anywhere from 3-5 stars on any given day

The track starlight sounds like a Wii song.

MUSEEEEEEEEEEE 😍😍😍😍😍😍 pure art obviously I mean supermassive black hole ??! 🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️ overall it’s great but keep in mind this is far for being their best album I’m torn between 3 or 4 stars

Nice album overall, I liked a vast majority of songs and a des of them finished in my playlist

Muse are never quite as good as I want them to be. This is probably their best record too. Knights of Cydonia is a tune though

Pretty solid album, one of my favourite songs in there

Muse is good!

que álbum tan perfecto

Paar goeie bangers maar ook wat herrie

Not sure to give it a 4 or a 5, really enjoyed this album, lots of bangers and iconic songs. Wasn't too familliar with Muse, but i get why they are huge within the genre.

Psychedelic rock. Lots of drifting electric guitar riffs, real more Dynamics than I thought there would be over the course of the whole album. Interesting to read up about the history of the band and their evolution with their increase substance use into Jefferson Starship. Wrote White rabbit which is the first one of the first pro drug songs

J’adore Muse, et je n’avais pas encore pris le temps d’écouter cet album en entier… Une erreur maintenant réparée!

A band and album I have heard a lot before this and with songs that appear often on my playlists. Really good music from a good band with their own style. Not much more to say.

Heard it before, great album, one of the best.

Nothing too special here. Sounds like generic rock music from the 2000's.

Was every band formed in the millennial youth times just a facsimile of a previous band? Are Muse really that much like Queen? And how did that rat faced mfer end up with Kate Hudson? The answer is it’s Classic Rock now and we’re all essentially dead.

Nostalgic and one of the surprisingly best live shows at ACL fest

What if Radiohead were dogshit?

Great great album from top to bottom. Only listened to it once!

This is one of my all-time favorites!! Incredible vocals, top-notch production, and melodies & lyrics that take me right back to my college days of discovering new music.

4 Stars (11/15)

Mostly mediocre songs with, I must admit, interesting arrangements. I find Mr. Bellamy's singing a bit annoying in full album format. Stll, some really good vocal harmonies. One of those bands which success I can't fully understand.

01) Take a Bow - 9,0 02) Starlight - 10,0 03) Supermassive Black Hole - 10,0 04) Map of the Problematique - 9,5 05) Soldier's Poem - 8,5 06) Invincible - 10,0 07) Assassin - 8,0 08) Exo-Politics - 8,5 09) City of Delusion - 8,0 10) Hoodoo - 9,0 11) Knights of Cydonia - 10,0 TOTAL: 9,14 (91/100) Current ranking: 40/634

knights of cydonia

Feels really large but hollow at the same time. I don't get the hype behind this album. 5/10

Literally one of my favourite albums. Happy to listen to it again and it's still fantastic

Excellent album. Well produced and arranged. Muse is not my regular go-to music, but it's ok from time to time.

4/5 Très bon album, avec de bons singles qui font toujours le taf ! Par contre, un peu longuet…

Love how (super)massive every song feels. It's classic Muse, perfectly put together, just as they were in concert. Strings also add extra layer of epic

This band has some great electric vibes

It's like the Franz Ferdinand or Killers albums where I think I'm not going to know the songs but I know and hate them from radio. In 2006 I liked Radiohead a lot. Hearing this must have been one of the pushes to not like Radiohead so much. This music is a strip mall full of chain stores in the burbs, the sort of stuff that convinces the young the whole world is dumber & less special than it is. 1 star you shameless cowards. music: hated. (⌐■_■)

I remember a time that Muse was often mentioned in the same breath as Radiohead. I saw the comparison at the time. Now I think that’s pretty insulting to Radiohead, and I don’t even really like Radiohead. 1.5 rounded up because there are definitely worse Muse albums than this one.

A really good surprise for me. I wasn’t interested in Muse back when it was all the rage (I probably wasn’t the target demographic), so I never gave them a chance. I wasn’t expecting much from this album... but I ended up listening twice in a row (to my own surprise). I know perfectly well that it’s not super original, that it’s derivative, that it’s partly a louder Radiohead clone... Nonetheless, I think they really make it work, and definitely bring something to the table (at least more than other imitators from the same time period). There’s a scope and an ambition in this album that I really appreciated – it’s loud and bombastic, the orchestration is epic, and there’s some surprisingly heavy guitars. It’s not a gamechanger, but it’s pop-rock done right. Will definitely listen again.

Agréablement surpris

Première fois que j’écoutais sérieusement, beaucoup aimé

Plusieurs bonnes chansons (comme l'opener), mais des fois on dirait que je suis en train d'écouter une pub pour le nouveau pickup Dodge Ram. Bref, bon mais un peu corny.

Est-ce que j’aurais pu mourir sans écouter cet album? Sans aucun doute! Encore une fois, j’ai retrouvé le plaisir dans la nostalgie… Souvenir de soirées Guitar Hero avec Assassin. Bref, pas de gros WoW, mais j’ai pas saigné des oreilles!

Jamais été accroché par Muse.

Je trouve souvent ça improbable le mixte Dance music/hard rock/alternative. La voix de Belamy me fait vraiment penser à Rufus Wainwright sur Invincible. Alice est rentrée dans la cuisine en disant: ah l'album du jour c'est U2? 😆Bon ça me fait pas tant penser à U2, mais c'est le même feeling: je doute pas que c'est des excellent musiciens mais c'est plutôt quelconque pour moi. Désolé les The Edge lovers

Meh. Me laisse ni chaud ni froid, juste pas mon style. Je me souviens comment big c’était début 2000’s, mais je n’ai jamais embarqué. Supermassive black hole, bon single. Map of the problematique, bel hommage à Depeche Mode. Bref, on passe au prochain!

Muse just never did anything for me but I made it through with out hitting skip.

Oh boy I forgot about Muse. Never heard this one. It was ok. I liked the Showbiz album! It’s been like 25 years since I listened to them. I used to think it sounded like a big label arena rockin version of Pulp. Who’s so good. Be still my Brit pop space rock lovin lil heart!

It’s this kind of music that’s responsible for turning me into the dirty, god forsaken socialist I am today. Still rocks pretty hard though.

It’s not horrendous but I would never in a million years choose to listen to this of my own volition. I got pretty sick of it by the end. But it didn’t actively repulse me and I can see why people like it, so whatever.

I really didn’t have strong feelings about this. I thought I might dislike it but it’s markedly better than the work they were putting out when I was aware of them (early 2010s). I feel like here I heard influences of Radiohead, Queen, The Strokes, and maybe a touch of Black Sabbath, which results in it being a sort of weird combination of metal and theater kid elements that just don’t work together for me and makes it feel goofy. Supermassive black hole is catchy though and Soldier’s Poem is very pretty.

Meh

It has some bangers but I rarely make it through the whole album without a few skips. I got to Muse late so, to me, they aren't an album band. Highlight: Assassin

Man... what was with the 00s? Did that decade REALLY suck this badly, or did the bot that put this list together just really miss the mark? Thinking back to around that time, I recall being preoccupied rediscovering obscurities from the 80s, so I'm probably not the best judge... though, maybe I was subconsciously in survival mode shielding myself from what would have otherwise broken my will to ever listen to music again... hmm... Right then. That musing aside, back to this Muse. I had never heard, nor will I ever choose to hear again, any of these tracks. Sadly, I have to re-ask the question that's been asked all too often on this journey: was this REALLY something that needed to be heard before one died? What makes this special? It's not innovative. It's not particularly good. In fact, it's objectively quite bad. Was it just randomly selected as a token representative from what was simply a terrible year in music? Equal parts puzzling and troubling, this.

A real mixed bag here. Started off pretty solid. Fell apart for me half way through though. I’d be willing to give it another shot (that’s high praise compared to many of the albums on this list).

4 08.03.2025

After the innovative and darker Origin of Symmetry, Muse continued down the road of grandeur and mainstream appeal. Black Holes and Revelations is undoubtedly well-produced and technically impressive, but for me, it loses much of the edge and experimental spark that once made the band exciting. There are big ambitions and plenty of pomp, but also a sense that everything has become too polished and too calculated. The album has its moment in “Map of the Problematique,” which stands out with its dark, electronic atmosphere. The rest, unfortunately, fades into the background and feels more like empty volume than genuine impact. 3/5

Big bombastic artsy rock. Good for playing baseball to. A solid 3.5 for me.

Radiohead from wish.

Classic, geen fan van de sound

3.6/5 was different and enjoyable

This was mostly on in the background for me, but I got good vibes.

3.5

For a three piece band, the music is impressive. I’ve always liked muse, but the vocals are kind of a downer. Like the tone is very whiny to me even if that’s not the intention. I still think it’s an excellent album.

I liked this ever so slightly more than I expected I would. Still solidly “meh”. Like, they’re clearly talented musicians but it’s just too polished for me.

twighlight

Black Holes and Revelations has some moments, but it's mostly annoyingly over the top. Don't understand the need for a weaker Muse Album to be included.

I really really like this album. I can’t think of any complaints. I feel like maybe I should have some, but nothing comes to mind. Therefore, a perfect score is in order, but it’s a low five just in case I’m overlooking something big. This is the first time I’ve listened to it the whole way through and I’m absolutely flabbergasted by how great I find it. Really great work. These songs were on the radio all the time when I was a kid, so it hit the nostalgia nerve. My least favorite song was “Assassin” and that was still a pretty good song. Fantastic opener. Epic closer. Beautiful songwriting. Excellent structure. Vocals are unique and perfect for their sound. Instrumentation and production are flawless. There’s a lot going on, yet it still feels cohesive. Amazing stuff. I enjoyed it thoroughly. 5/5

gr

Cacophonic.

Perhaps we were a bit harsh on you, my friend Zach.

Actually my first time listening to a full record by these guys, always been turned off by comparisons to Coldplay and Radiohead… but I think those comparisons are unwarranted now and that they have a pretty idiosyncratic sound. Love that they blast on their instruments sometimes but not all the time.

these aren’t all bad, but it’s such retail music. nothing to really hold onto

Good album but not my style always but I enjoy it

Oerhört varierat och väldigt musikaliskt. Behöver lyssna mer för att komma in i det men minst en fyra!

It's as I thought. The Hits on this album, "Starlight", "Supermassive Black Hole", "Knights of Cydonia" are great tracks and invoke a feeling of nostalgia. The rest of the album is unremarkable, same-y tracks. Not bad at all, to be sure, but needless. This would have been a decent EP.

I used to live and breathe this album. Every Muse record up to this one reminds me of my ex, though - it's as if all the feelings have etched themselves into the very notes of the songs. I don’t feel this music in my bones the way I did back then, but it’s still enjoyable, and definitely nostalgic.

If theater kids put on a Radiohead tribute show.

Some great hits but some real stinkers as well on thistracklist for me

Sorti en 2006, "Black Holes and Revelations" est le quatrième album studio du groupe britannique Muse. Arrivant après le succès planétaire de l'album "Absolution" (2004), cet opus était attendu au tournant. "Black Holes and Revelations" est un album charnière, une œuvre d'une ambition folle qui a propulsé Muse au rang de superstar des stades. D'ailleurs, le premier contact avec l'album est saisissant. Muse ne se repose pas sur ses lauriers. Le groupe explose les frontières de son propre son, s'éloignant du rock progressif et alternatif sombre de ses débuts pour explorer des territoires musicaux radicalement nouveaux. C'est là que réside la plus grande force de l'album : son audace et ses moments de génie pur. Quelques titres à eux seuls valent le détour et sont devenus des piliers de la discographie du groupe. "Knights of Cydonia" par exemple est une épopée insensée, un space-opéra western qui mélange une ligne de basse galopante, des trompettes à la Ennio Morricone, des guitares surf-rock, des synthétiseurs futuristes et le falsetto stratosphérique de Matthew Bellamy. C'est du Muse à 200%, un concentré d'excès, de virtuosité et de plaisir. En concert, ce titre est devenu leur hymne ultime, un moment de communion totale. Mais également "Starlight" d'une simplicité désarmante pour le groupe, cette chanson est l'archétype de l'hymne pop-rock parfait. Portée par une ligne de piano entraînante et un refrain fédérateur, elle démontre la capacité de Muse à écrire un tube planétaire sans pour autant sacrifier son identité. La mélancolie et l'espoir qui s'en dégagent en font un classique instantané. "Supermassive Black Hole" qui est peut-être le plus grand virage stylistique de leur carrière. Avec son riff funky, sa rythmique quasi-dansante et son chant influencé par Prince, le titre a déconcerté plus d'un fan de la première heure. Pourtant, c'est une prise de risque payante, une chanson terriblement efficace qui prouve que Muse peut être groovy et sexy. De même, "Map of the Problematique", avec ses arpèges de synthétiseurs hypnotiques rappelant Depeche Mode, offre une urgence électronique et une tension palpable qui en font l'un des joyaux cachés de l'album. Ces quatre titres représentent le meilleur de Black Holes and Revelations. Ils sont inventifs, puissants, mémorables et montrent un groupe au sommet de sa créativité. Mais si l'album contient des chansons exceptionnelles, son principal défaut est de ressembler davantage à une compilation d'idées disparates qu'à une œuvre unifiée. Le voyage d'un titre à l'autre est souvent brutal, et l'ensemble manque cruellement de cohésion. Cette ambition de toucher à tout se fait au détriment de l'expérience d'écoute globale. Le passage du funk de "Supermassive Black Hole" à la ballade acoustique et un peu mièvre "Soldier's Poem" est l'exemple le plus frappant. Si cette dernière est une jolie chansonnette, elle casse complètement le rythme et l'énergie de l'album, semblant venir d'un autre projet. D'autres morceaux, bien que techniquement impressionnants, flirtent dangereusement avec le pompeux. "Invincible", avec sa montée en puissance très inspirée de Queen, se veut un hymne à la résilience. Mais sa progression lente et ses paroles un peu naïves peuvent paraître grandiloquentes, voire un peu kitsch. C'est une chanson conçue pour les stades, mais qui manque de la subtilité et de la rage des œuvres précédentes. De même, des titres comme "Exo-Politics" ou "City of Delusion" sont de bons morceaux de rock, mais ils peinent à se démarquer. Le premier est un rock efficace mais assez convenu pour le groupe. Le second, malgré ses influences orientales et ses cordes majestueuses, s'étire un peu en longueur et n'a pas l'impact d'un "Knights of Cydonia". On sent l'expérimentation, mais le résultat n'est pas toujours aussi mémorable que les singles. "Hoodoo", avec sa structure complexe passant d'une ballade au piano à un final orchestral dramatique, est ambitieux mais peut sembler alambiqué, moins direct et percutant. En définitive, "Black Holes and Revelations" est un album qui suscite des sentiments contradictoires. Il est impossible de nier son importance dans la discographie de Muse. C'est l'album de la consécration, celui qui les a fait passer du statut de grand groupe de rock à celui de phénomène mondial. Il contient certaines de leurs chansons les plus emblématiques, des morceaux d'une créativité et d'une puissance rares. Cependant, son éclectisme forcené et son manque de fil conducteur l'empêchent de se hisser au niveau des chefs-d'œuvre cohérents que sont "Origin of Symmetry" ou "Absolution". Il est moins un album qu'un recueil de singles brillants et d'expérimentations plus ou moins réussies. Pour chaque "Starlight" ou "Knights of Cydonia", on trouve un moment plus faible ou une transition malheureuse qui brise l'immersion. C'est pourquoi une note de 3 sur 5 semble juste. Ce n'est pas un album moyen, loin de là. C'est un "bon" album, porté par des moments de pure excellence, mais plombé par une ambition si démesurée qu'elle en devient son propre piège.

This review is biased. I was listening to Muse's new single when I revealed this album. Years ago when I bought my first guitar, the first song I learned was Supermassive Black Hole. This was, is, and always will be a 5 star album for me.

Not a single bad song in this album. Strong from start to finish.

3/5 Favourite Song: Starlight Least Favourite Song: Take a Bow

love

- Felt like the songs sounded similar and got a little monotonous - the beats and music were different compared to the same beats in music now a days

Better than I remember. Liked it more than I thought I would.

Like Bono recorded an album with the Black Keys and no one had any fun at all.

LOVED!

"Overblown" is right. The grandiosity doesn't let up once. It's a lot.

Unique sound, like rock through a static radio. Uniquely muse, uniquely good. Strong 3.75-4 stars

> The Beatles

Really enjoyed this, although it wasn’t new to me. If ever you wondered what Queen would sound like covering Ennio Morricone’s spaghetti western soundtracks with Thom Yorke on guest vocals, then you’re in for a treat. I would love to see this lot live - must be epic.

nice

Another album that makes me happy I am doing the 1001 list. I knew very little about Muse or their music before I listened. I don't know how to describe them, like a mashup of New Order, U2, Radiohead, Queen, NIN/industrial-adjacent, and electronica, I guess. Whatever it is, it is a very unique and engaging sound. Amazing album that makes me interested in exploring some of their other music.

I forgot how good this band was when they weren’t constantly being pushed on me by the radio. Ridiculously over the top in the best way. Some of the conspiracy themed lyrics are showing their age.

One of my favourite albums and bands!

I never understood why Muse had a big following but aftwr listening to this album I can understand why. They got a niche of metak and pop that somehow worked. The album was good, they hit the nail on some songs (mainly singles) but Matt Bellamy falsetos can be overwhelming at times and the guitars to repetitive I kinda feel it is a concept album but meh. The fact that itvwas a soundtrack for twilight doesn't help as well.

I really love this album, my favorite of theirs 9.7 ★★★★½

The best Muse album. Very cool a d anthemic. 4.5 stars

I've never been super high on Muse. They kind of remind me of like a less cool version of Radiohead. They're like OK Computer-era Radiohead with some cheesy elements mixed in. I do think "Starlight" is an enjoyable song. The rest of it is kind of a mixed bag for me -- I'm not as high on "Supermassive Black Hole" and "Knights of Cydonia" as others seem to be. 3.5 stars

Probably the group’s masterwork. Insanely tight and polished, this one feels like a super slick blend of Queen-style operatic rock, Spaghetti Western, Classical, Techno and occasional toxically yummy Britney Spears-inspired pop with the likes of Supermassive Black Hole. There are lots of stellar moments peppered throughout but its main is skill is building gradually up to its core-kickass and climaxing phase with the ridiculously rollicking Knights Of Cydonia. It’s such a shame they combusted immediately after this album and a fake Muse group took their place churning out markedly inferior stuff.

Amazing album

Grandiose and over-indulgent, and I like it! At least most of it. Starlight is an obvious highlight, but the triple treat of tracks 6-8 is also a really nice gift

I like a few songs, used to play them in a cover band. A bit overblown would be the kind version

City of Delusion was worth a listen

Knights of Cydonia (live at Rome Olympic Stadium) is my all time favourite muse song! Super massive black hole is just perfect too.

Though I started listening to Muse to impress Maria DiMarzio in high school, I have found very high highs with their songs. I probably listen to Starlight once a week and it’s a never-skip for me. I’ve got 5 songs saved coming out of this listen and am happy for the trip down memory lane here. Oh Maria. What could’ve been.

this album brings back such amazing memories for me. back in the high school days, I used to play World of Warcraft with a ton of my hometown friends. that said, i was also pretty extroverted and out and about quite often. i used to have plans, come home, and then play WoW until like 2-3 in the morning or something on the weekends. it was so fun, and a really good time to remember. this album, I used to throw on and just listen to on repeat as I was grinding out quests or just dicking around for XP. when all the homies went to sleep, I had Black Holes and Revelations to keep me company. I listened to this album constantly, and I welcomed this album back with open arms on Friday. I remember air drumming to the great drum pattern on Starlight. I remembered the sick solo on 'Knights of Cydonia' (shout out Guitar Hero as well for this track). The beautiful melody of 'Soldier's Poem' is just so smooth and beautiful. this album, holds a very special memory in my heart, and reminds me of just being a kid, having friends and getting together to play videos games on the weekend. the innocence of youth mixed with my love of music. Black Holes and Revelations is a fantastic album.

I thought I didn’t really know Muse, but I recognised all of the first 3 songs, which are absolute bangers. I love the singer’s voice, the way he slides into and out of notes while maintaining a pure sound. Very impressive and beautiful. And I really like the overall style. No complaints here.

I remember liking some of the popular Muse songs back in the day but I did not know how hard they went. That opening fuckin jams. Just a cacophony of sound that perfectly rides the line of being artistic vs unlistenable. There is such a wide variety of styles and sounds going on here: techno, punk, rock, black keys type catchy guitar riffs, queen esque harmonies on that soldier song as well as lead singers distinct use of vibrato. All of it blending to a sound that is so unique that you can easily and quickly identify it as a Muse song when u hear it, which is a difficult feat. Was absolutely jamming to this. Easy 5 stars

This album rocks. Right from the buildup in Take a Bow I knew I was in for some fun. The blend of rock and electronic is put together so well, and the way different sub-genres of rock show up throughout the album really helps keep you interested to see what’s coming next. I went back and forth between a four and five while I was thinking about this album, and I’m going with a four due to length and the sometimes difficult to understand vocals.

I listened on Friday and I'm reviewing on Monday. I know that's not the best way to review albums, but for the life of me, I can't remember a single thing about it. I know it wasn't bad, but clearly not a standout. After being called out by the group, I gave this album another listen. It's much better than the original 3 I gave it. I absolutely love "Starlight", but I'm still not convinced this album is a 5. I think it's his voice that does it for me. It's right on the edge of being annoying. Still, a really good album.

9.5/10

Such a great album that I have listened to in years

Great album. Probably 4.5 for me

The opening feels like Queen (Flash era) and the weakest song for me. The rest of the album feels more distinctly Muse. It has a fun operatic rock style that could be a successor to Iron Maiden without sounding like ripping them off. It's easy to imagine how enjoyable a live show would be.

I like this album, Big stadium rock with some Muse classics. Would listen to this loud.

People are always accusing Muse of aping Radiohead. But this album is pretty varied stadium rock: Depeche Mode, Queen, Coldplay and System of a Down all come to mind - but never all at once. The looping synth arpeggios are nice. Matt Bellamy is very talented. But I just can’t help but find them annoying. 2/5

Some great stadium rocking moments, such as Assassin, SMBH, Knights of Cydonia, Starlight, etc. The lyrics are a bit meh, but taken in the right spirit this is a strong album, if not their best.

I think the trick with Muse is to not take the music too seriously. It’s supposed to be fun - a big rush of endorphins, rather than anything probing. At points they sound like a souped up, distorted Coldplay - and there’s a time and a place for that!

A weak to solid 3 for me with nostalgia doing some heavy lifting especially in the mid-section where it saggs awfully

One of my fave albums, was excited to see it show up on the list.

Starlight and hoodoo hit me personally. Take a bow and knights of Cydonia are amazing tracks. Assassin is also underrated in the catalogue. But absolution is THE muse album. 4/5

2,5/5

The first half is some of the most generic Imagine Dragons-type shit I’ve heard. The second half saves it a bit by having some guitars and some riffs.

I knew this album existed from knights of cydonia on guitar hero. I also have a special place in my heart for muse because my friend David and I absolutely jammed out to them hanging out in my room on a really good day. Flows nicely. Sounds out of this world.

-i liked this. perhaps more than i thought i would -the lead vocalist is definitely ripping off Thom Yorke a little bit. but he does a very good job at it. it was hard for me to enjoy every song on here but the atmosphere and performance on a few tracks was phenomenal. yes Supermassive Black Hole slaps -Favorites are Supermassive Black Hole, Map of the Problematique, and Assassin

Amazing album!