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64. 'Absolution' - Muse (2003)
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Episode 64 - ‘Praise For Absolution’
Muse’s third album, ‘Absolution’, presents us with everything that worked for ‘Origin Of Symmetry’, but elevated to the next level!
The genius of Matt Bellamy, Dominic Howard and Chris Wolstenholme is on display as electronic soundscapes, symphonic elements and classically inspired passages are combined with Hard Rock to give us this innovative record that didn’t necessarily introduce new musical concepts, but helped redefine the possibilities within Alternative Rock.
Join us as we reflect on the legacy of ‘Absolution’ and its impact on Muse's career and how they established and implemented a signature sound whilst combining so many musical elements!
Episode Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/album/2Eq6RyxCm7qEAF2YLOxa4s?si=K6G80QOhTSyzVe-aEo5siA
Making Of ‘Absolution’ Documentary: https://youtu.be/MzIhYH9ZGLE?si=Z-pBRP4gJpxHEKx3
LONG LIVE ROCK ‘N’ ROLL
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Transcript
Introduction and Personal Touch
00:00:11
Speaker
Hello there and welcome back to another episode of the Long Live Rock and Roll Podcast with your hosts, Laz Michaelides and Felipe Ammerim. Felipe, how are you doing, man? Doing great. Hello, everyone. Hope you guys are doing great. How are you doing, man? I'm good, thank you, man. Yeah, we've actually, we've both just got, everyone knows that we record episodes in advance and we've both just celebrated our birthdays over the last couple of weeks, haven't we? So, happy birthday to you, happy birthday to me.
00:00:36
Speaker
Happy birthday to us.
Overview of 'Absolution' by Muse
00:00:39
Speaker
So we're back for another album episode and this week we are doing the renowned Absolution by Muse. So as usual, I'll give you some of the facts. The album was released on the 15th of September 2003, recorded September 2002 to June 2003. That's a long process.
Recording and Production Details
00:01:01
Speaker
Now, the main studio it was recorded in was the Grouse Lodge in Ireland, but they also did parts elsewhere like in Air, London, Livingstone Studios in London and Shellow Studios in LA.
00:01:12
Speaker
The genre of the album, now this is I'm sure will be a topic for debate today, but what some genres used would be alt-rock, so alternative rock, progressive rock, arts rock and hard rock. The album clocks in at 52 minutes long, the label was Taste and the producers were Muse, John Cornfield, Rich Costi and Paul Reeve.
00:01:34
Speaker
Um, the net, the only other part of my information is the singles, which I thought would be a really cool thing to sort of get started with. I want to know because I intentionally didn't look at that piece of information because I didn't want to be biased in terms of choosing my favorite songs, which we're going to get. So there was a lot of singles. That's the, that's the point. And check out when they were released. Okay.
Strategic Release and Marketing
00:01:58
Speaker
Now I think as far as PR and marketing goes, this is how you sell an album.
00:02:04
Speaker
So album came out 15th of September, 2003, right? First single, Stockholm Syndrome, 14th of July. Next single, Time is Running Out, 8th of September, one week before the release. Next single, Hysteria, 1st of December, six weeks after the release. Sing for Absolution, next year, 17th of May. Apocalypse Please, 23rd of August, and Butterflies and Hurricanes, 20th of September.
00:02:33
Speaker
Now that is how you sell an album. You just release one single every six weeks for a year.
00:02:42
Speaker
It's amazing. That was like the great marketing strategy, wasn't there? What do you think about it? I think it kind of reminds me of the way things were when the Beatles were releasing their hits. Just song after song. Yeah, I think I started to notice that when streaming became a thing, that people were going back to songs rather than albums. Yeah. You know, I think I think I think
00:03:08
Speaker
the timing of that reflects this situation. That's a great point. Is there anything for any particular topics you wanted to sort of touch on? I just have the usual stuff, the background of the recording, key points of the album, how it affected music's career, but is there any sort of particular thing that you wanted to touch on?
00:03:26
Speaker
Well, the thing is, it's always like order and chaos, isn't it? You have everything organized. Yeah, I love it. I don't have my notes, but they're all over the place. No, I do have questions for you, right? When do you want to ask them? Do you want to ask them now or later? I want to ask them now. Why not? Go for it. Let's shake things up a bit.
00:03:45
Speaker
Yeah, you have a structure, I don't know, actually. So here are my questions for last, because what we do is we pick an album each, isn't it? I've picked the last one, you picked this one, and that's how we do it. So we like encouraging each other to listen to stuff that we're not familiar with. Exactly. And that's the whole point of the show. So you guys can get in touch with an album you never heard of, or you can hear a little bit more about an album that you are already a fan of. So
00:04:13
Speaker
Well, number one question would be simple like this. This was that third album
Why 'Absolution' Matters in Muse's Career
00:04:17
Speaker
on the work. They were kind of doing well, but still kind of playing theaters. And the documentary I know you watched and I watched, they're joking about what's the next step for itself arenas. And they laugh about it as if they didn't believe that was the arena gigs.
00:04:35
Speaker
Actually, the next step, did they come after this album? I believe they did. The question is, why this album? Why did they pick this album out of their whole discography? That's interesting. I mean, the first and obvious answer for me is that it's my favorite album of theirs. It's got most of the songs I like. So kind of that, you know, personally, for me, that's obvious. But in terms of why I picked it out of any of the ones I could have chosen for Muse,
00:05:02
Speaker
this is the one that as you alluded to Felipe, alleviated them to the higher successes. Now we're going to get into the nitty gritty stuff of the songs and analyze why, but my thinking is this, their first album Showbiz had quite a heavy sound to it. Origin of Symmetry, the second album,
00:05:25
Speaker
refined that sound and started adding in some of the elements we see predominantly at play in Absolution. But what Absolution did was perfectly amalgamate them. It's like a consolidation of what they were looking for. Exactly. What you got hints of in Origin of Symmetry was much more obvious in Absolution
00:05:47
Speaker
but it was executed better, in my opinion. That's not saying it's a better album. I'm just saying the characteristics and the genealogy of the music within Absolution, I think it's just done fantastically. All right. So yeah, that's a really, really good reason for it. And I understand that as, yeah, like every band is looking for a sound and
00:06:12
Speaker
some of them, they managed to find that sound that defines them on the first album, which I think is kind of a tragedy. Well, it doesn't get better than that, does it? Yeah, exactly. Exactly. So with them, maybe it's like they were looking for something, they found it by the third album. I actually believe that some bands, they achieve their best when they're not trying to do anything conventional, because
00:06:38
Speaker
Whenever there's money involved and there's a lot of money involved in an album like this, there's pressure to produce something that is commercially viable and people are going to actually spend money on it and it's going to sell out venues and arenas and stuff.
00:06:56
Speaker
What if you're trying to do something that you haven't done before and you've got no clue about how it's gonna end. And if you hear their own comments about songs, they were like, well, some songs we thought would be a hit, ended up becoming something there's not even a B side or ended up being discarded from the album completely. Yeah, I remember in the documentary, yeah, they were like songs that they thought were gonna be the best one, actually never made it. Just goes to show how you can evolve during a recording process, isn't it?
00:07:26
Speaker
Yeah, exactly. Well, here's a couple of more questions for you. Do you think 15 songs is like too many songs for a rock album? Yes, I do. And there's two songs on this album that I'd say for me don't entirely fit the overall sound. Why not? I'll just say them now.
00:07:48
Speaker
So track 11 and track 14. Hold on, you got 15 as well because I was on a few pages and some of them only have 14. The song Fury isn't on some of the albums.
00:08:01
Speaker
Oh, is that it? It's weird. Yeah. Well, I think I went for kind of, I think it's the original release. Well, no, no, you're right, because I've got 15 as well. Also, you have an intro song that might not be listed. And it might be. Yeah, exactly. But still, your point remains that for me, the songs, the small print and thoughts of a dying atheist,
00:08:26
Speaker
These are great songs, but there is something to me that is almost a bit too simplistic about them compared to the rest of the album. They are just kind of straight hard rock.
00:08:37
Speaker
Let's get into the songs, yeah? We've taken this avenue. No, come on, I still have one question. No, no, one question. Okay, all right, go on, go on. My last question, you're breaking with my structure here. Sorry, sorry, yeah, it's gone. Yeah, so what do you think is the most remarkable aspect of their style?
00:08:57
Speaker
What makes Muse Muse? And is it like this album that actually brought this aspect to their style?
Muse's Signature Sound and Genre Blending
00:09:08
Speaker
That's a really great question. And the answer for me would be the fact that they have a signature sound
00:09:20
Speaker
But that signature sound comes as a result of blending styles. Now if you listen to a song, and I give the reminder to the audience every time. Any song we mentioned in the episode guys is going to be in the playlist.
00:09:34
Speaker
which you can find at the bottom of the show notes. So if you're in YouTube, it's in the description, if you're seeing our lovely faces, or if you're listening to avoid our lovely faces, then it's gonna be in the show notes of your podcast provider. But yeah, so the playlist is in there for you to have a listen to the album and any songs we mentioned. The song, Death on Two Legs by Queen, from their 73 album, I think it is, Sheer Heart Attack, that was a fantastic,
00:10:05
Speaker
example of fusing elements of heavy metal and classical music. You had Freddie Mercury on the piano at the start doing some very sort of classical orientated, you know, virtuosic piano playing, and then you get these really dark Brian May riffs in. And I thought, when I heard that, I was like, this is great, because you're literally getting two opposing styles. Whilst I think heavy metal and classical music in many ways are related, in terms of what actually goes to your ears, they aren't.
00:10:32
Speaker
So with that being said, Muse do that fantastically. I think they have really heavy elements of their music. So much so that you would call some of their riffs heavy metal, in my opinion. Yet you also have that fantastic classical aspect of it and it can all happen in the same song.
00:10:53
Speaker
It can all happen in the same song. And on top of that, you might have an atmospheric electronic sound going on in the background. I just think what some bands don't achieve by trying to mix electro and hard rock or classical and hard rock, Muse have achieved in this album by mixing classical, heavy metal, electro and hard rock. I think they've done it amazingly.
00:11:21
Speaker
Well, I think that as a result of their curiosity, isn't it? They're like, well, does this sound good? Shall we try this? Or like, shall we place a bass drum by a swimming pool and just hit it really hard? Like, they actually did that. Or set up the drum kit outside the studio and record it, you know? So imagine how much like wind and all like background noise you have bleeding into the drum microphones and stuff, but they went for that kind of,
00:11:50
Speaker
experience with sounds. And that's definitely something that I haven't seen in that level in a while. I didn't know how they made this album. When I checked it out, I was like, oh, that's actually really cool. That's the kind of stuff, again, to mention Queen, that's the kind of stuff they used to do back in the day. I remember we were talking about when we were in Brazil recording,
00:12:16
Speaker
We set up microphones around your drums, but we set them up. Do you remember? We took the leads across the hallway, all the way down the hall and down the stairs, and we recorded the drum sound from how it would sound if you were downstairs of the room we were in, because that's what John Bonham did in
00:12:36
Speaker
when the levee breaks. Yeah, there was a civil engineers idea, I guess. But the whole thing is, you do those things in order to get like, if you want some reverb, why not use the room around you instead of doing what, you know, what we call the plugins, which
00:12:52
Speaker
most producers do nowadays that you know oh you want your guitar to sound like as if you're in a big room i have you just press this button and sounds like that let me tell why don't you bring your your amp to a big room and use that sound why not i think that's that's part of you know well how you traditionally do rock music i'm with you uh in regards to mixing classical electronic and
00:13:15
Speaker
and rock band and rock ensemble and make it sound good because i think it's such a dangerous mix i mean it very often you know forgive my french very often it does just shit when people do that it's a recipe for disaster but they made it they did it so well i think you know songs like hold on with my notes um which one is it where it goes right yeah butterflies and hurricanes yeah how
00:13:45
Speaker
literally three quarters of the way into the song it stops and you have between that that point and the end a whole it's almost a classical piece of music that's been composed each note chosen meticulously carefully by Matt Bellamy I just I don't feel like unless it's something unusual like Frank Zappa I feel like I've never heard genres just change so quickly but it still flows
00:14:12
Speaker
And that's what they've achieved so well, in my opinion, in this album, is that for all the changes and for all the sections that just go one into another, this is like a hard rock heavy metal part. Let's stop it now. Let's go to a classical part. You never feel like the immersion of the album disappears, do you?
00:14:31
Speaker
No, it never does. And the other thing about the classical elements in it, because they actually went full on classical. And what I mean by that is like bands like D Purple, Emerson Lake and Palmer, and Yes, in the 60s and 70s, they have used
00:14:51
Speaker
pieces of classical music as part of the solos and melodies and structures but played in a normal rock setup like guitar based keyboards and stuff. What they actually did is like let's not use too much guitar
00:15:11
Speaker
and maybe we can have more piano and strings. So when they came up with classical phrases and ideas, they actually orchestrated it in a classical way with proper classical instruments. And there's probably, I don't know the other albums that well, but probably more piano in this album as opposed to guitar oriented stuff. The first two albums were more guitar heavy, you're right.
00:15:37
Speaker
Yeah, and then it sounds to me like they're leaving to the bass player to be the noisy one in the band, because you have distorted bass all the time, which is a big characteristic of their sound, I guess. And so it's like the bass takes the place of the guitar, the lead guitar, and then you just like use classical elements whenever they get the chance. That's a great point.
00:16:03
Speaker
Richie Blackmore was notorious for having this love for neoclassicalism. I don't know the term. He loved classical music and you can hear it in his solos. Now don't get me wrong, Richie Blackmore has many solos where he sort of makes it bluesy.
00:16:21
Speaker
you can hear the classical elements in his playing, and more so in his work with Rainbow, songs like Stargazer, you can hear the classical elements of that, of his soloing in there. But what you've said is correct. It's that they haven't, they haven't, and what are you talking about when I'm talking about Richie Blackman's classical playing? Isn't that he's putting a part of the solo, which is like, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do. You know, he's not copying phrases.
00:16:51
Speaker
He's not copying phrases from classical music, but he's using scales. He's using arpeggios to the extent classical musicians would when they're sobering. Phrases, you know, a descending scale, whereas blues musicians wouldn't play scales. They more play pentatonics, which is a scale, but you remove some of the notes, et cetera. And I'm not going to get too technical, but blues, it's way more about the feel.
00:17:16
Speaker
classical, it's way more about the notes and Richard Blackmore had that within him. But Muse... But playing electric guitar, not playing that on the piano. Exactly. But Muse have explicitly, they haven't taken classical melodies, motifs, passages, just like I said, and applied it to their instruments. They've gone all out with the classical sound and a big part of that is the strings and we want to talk about the strings. Do you want to kick off on that?
00:17:44
Speaker
Yeah, one thing we need to say about the strings, we were fortunate enough to meet the person who actually arranged and conducted the orchestra. Well, hold on. You say meet. I had lessons with her. I had a whole term of lessons with her.
00:18:00
Speaker
Yes, I had one semester. I think one of one of the things we did at music diversity, I don't remember which subject it was. It was arranging arranging and composing. Yes. Yeah. So we were lucky enough, as Felipe said, we were lucky enough to have Audrey Riley, who is the she plays cello on this album and she did all the arranging for the strings.
00:18:19
Speaker
We were taught by her about arranging and about composing and about writing for strings. Now, if I remember correctly, one of our tasks for Audrey was we had to take a song we liked and we had to arrange it for a four-part string quartet, which was amazing. And I remember mine wasn't very good, but I remember handing it back to her and all the notes she did and saying, oh, why don't you go to this note here? You've put the cello here, but swap it with this. And I remember just thinking like, my God, her knowledge of those instruments
00:18:49
Speaker
is incredible and you hear it fantastically on this album don't you? How many classical musicians, composers, arrangers actually know how to work with a rock band? What normally happens when a band wants a classical arranger, composer or instrumentalist to be part of an album, the record label would
00:19:14
Speaker
a point someone isn't it isn't it a normal thing so they say to the producer like oh we want some some strings and it's uh on this part of of the song and the label would find someone who can do that job and and commission someone it's like it's a freelance job and happens a lot in this industry but with Muse and some other bands that collaborated with Audrey uh they wanted her specifically so i know this person i know she's good
00:19:39
Speaker
and I want her personality into my song. So it's like you have the classical part of the album represented by one person that is acting like a member of the band. And we know how passionate she is about understanding the lyrics and the feeling behind the songwriting, and then trying to bring that into the orchestra or the Schilling's Quartet or whatever you have. She told us that, didn't she?
00:20:07
Speaker
Yeah. And I think it's essential that you have that sort of communication, that the classical part of the album is not randomly put together with a rock band because it sounds cool. And there is meaning to it. Exactly. Perfect. Well, this is a nice way to segue into the themes of the album and the lyrics, I think, because with that we can also talk about the electronic stuff.
00:20:34
Speaker
So thematically, this album is quite doom and gloom, isn't it? It's like, I mean, the first song is called Apocalypse, Please. That kind of sets the tone, isn't it? Yeah, lyrically, this album, from my understanding, was meant to be a, it was going to be a concept album. But then something changed, and that was the Iraq War. And the Iraq War beginning,
00:20:58
Speaker
just made Muse or Matt Bellamy, if it was his lyrics, decide to avoid the way of the concept because then I wonder if he thought, you know, if I say this is a concept album, then they can't apply it to what's happening in the world, whereas I want them to know that what's happening in the world is influencing my lyrics. And so, you know, I mean, the first song, Apocalypse, Please,
Themes and Lyrical Content of 'Absolution'
00:21:21
Speaker
It's just theatrical, isn't it? In nature and performance, just this big, big, you know, big smashing piano, you know, declare this an emergency straight away. The first, first lyrics of the album declare this an emergency. And I think from then on the tone of the album is just, I don't think of a better word than apocalyptic.
00:21:46
Speaker
Yeah, I think you're right. I've listened to this album with some, it made me think of some images of like you literally walking around in a post-apocalyptic world and everything is, you know.
00:22:04
Speaker
completely destroyed by war or something it feels to me like that because yeah and also it feels like even when when i was listening to this uh during daylight like i was thinking of it as as night time yeah it feels like it's always dark when you're listening to the album that's how that's that's what i felt when i listened to it that's a great point yeah that's why i chose this picture here behind me because it's uh um it's it's
00:22:30
Speaker
you have the lights on them but you can't see their faces and it's all dark and it's how I see the album and how I see their sound and this album. Well that says to me that it's an atmospheric sound isn't it that they're going for an atmosphere and they're trying to create a certain sense or a certain feeling within the listener through the songs and I think this goes on I mean
00:22:57
Speaker
It does. Even though some of the songs have a lighter feeling to them, let's take the songs, okay, falling away with you. Again, lyrically, it might not be pleasant, but musically, it's nice to hear. It's not all minor chords. It's not all dissonance. Like I said, the songs, the small print and thoughts of a dying atheist. I'm not saying they're happy songs, but they're upbeat. Whereas the first five songs, man, firstly, I love
00:23:25
Speaker
love the first five songs. Time is Running Out might be one of my favorite rock songs of all time. I love it. I remember listening to that song, absolutely loving it. But what they do meticulously well, which is what I said to you about the
00:23:45
Speaker
about how this elevated them to the next level is that you've got songs like Time is Running Out, where it is dark and it is foreboding and it's distorted, but the chorus is so accessible.
00:24:03
Speaker
You can just sing it. It's anthemic. It's a radio chorus. How'd you do that? There's a bass intro, which I'm not quite sure if it's a bass guitar or if it's a... It is a bass, yeah. Sounds like a synth. It's so distorted. No, yeah. So it's a bass guitar and he's got an effect on it. He's got a pedal going underneath it, which I remember when we were at uni.
00:24:27
Speaker
we had to match that bass sound that was one of our tasks was to get we were given the pedal it was very difficult we were given the pedal we were told what each knob of the pedal does and we had to figure it and it was really cool really tough as well um but yeah atmosphere the whole album
00:24:45
Speaker
seems foreboding but lyrically we start off pretty heavy with the apocalypse, time is running out, sing for absolution, Stockholm syndrome. I know I'm just saying the names of the songs but even the words in the titles tell you what it means. Stockholm syndrome, that's the syndrome of
00:25:05
Speaker
a hostage. Yes, exactly, you know, when someone's taken someone and then you started to kind of like that person, we feel like they're doing something good to you. Yeah, exactly. But then as the album goes on, the seriousness of the lyrical content doesn't change, but it goes more from dread, apocalypse, bad stuff,
00:25:28
Speaker
way more through to like, well, what's the meaning of life? Existentialism, what's going on? You know, it's not all doom and gloom. Here's the thing. It could be a concept album because of the atmosphere, but I think the lyrics are so vague in a good way.
00:25:47
Speaker
that you can interpret them, according to your own background. No set story. Yeah, exactly. It's like he doesn't name the characters. He doesn't say, I'm thinking this.
00:26:03
Speaker
telling this to that person or I'm saying this to you my listener it's like it's it's it's vague really is in a good way yeah absolutely now another thing that delivers on the atmosphere from I think is the electronic sounds they have going all through the album I think that they just have the
00:26:24
Speaker
They found this way of creating a fantastic soundscape using these synths, using keyboards to create this absolute... I mean, every song has some form of electronic instrumentation going on behind it, whether that's programmed, whether it's a synth, whether it's keyboards.
00:26:41
Speaker
and but but it's so tastefully done and I think that at the back of your headphones you've got the bass drums guitar and vocals really obviously in the forefront but then at the back always there's just something electronic going on and to me that just completely immerses the listener into the atmosphere
00:26:59
Speaker
Yeah, it does. And well put, that's exactly the feeling you get from it. It's like you get trapped in the album and you can't skip a song, even if you don't think that's the best song in the album. But it's like, no, no, I need you to listen to the whole story, even though I don't understand what the story is all about.
00:27:18
Speaker
It's just get trapped in the atmosphere. And it felt like, felt to me like the album was shorter than, it was almost an hour, isn't it? 57 minutes. 52 minutes. 52 minutes. It felt to me like it was about 35. That's how good it is, you know? I've listened to it, it's like, is that the end of it? And it's like, because it's, I still want more, you know, really good. One thing about, you said about the choices of electronic stuff. I like the song endlessly when they have,
00:27:48
Speaker
the drums played with brushes which is quite jazzy and old school drumming and they have keyboards like very 80s in my opinion rather than a guitar so that's a weird combination that they've managed to put together really well without sounding like oh here's us just trying to be weird. Well I thought it had a very bossa jazzy vibe to it didn't it even just you know like you said the instrumentation just the whole vibe of it though you know the syncopation in the hi-hat as well
00:28:18
Speaker
There was another one that actually felt a bit like that. Do you know what it was? Do you know the song Blackout? It's a 6-8 groove for all you music connoisseurs. And it's played with brushes as well. It's such a mellow vibe. These strings are my favorite thing about this track specifically. It's beautiful.
00:28:45
Speaker
the vocals to me almost it gave it almost a bit of an Arabic a Middle Eastern thing just those long droned vocal notes you know mixed with like you said the brushes and stuff really atmospheric one strong characteristic of the vocals and I don't know if if it's only in this album it's like long notes you know like holding the notes yeah yeah making the most out of it I think there's a lot of that and I like it it's very good um now
00:29:13
Speaker
What other music, did you have any other musical takeaways from this album? What worked overall? You know, forget what we were saying about the lyrics and the atmosphere, specific musical stuff. Did anything stand out to you? There's one thing I'll say that the, it's like the, there's a vocal style that for me, you said you're described at the beginning of the show, what's your, what is the muse sound for you? And believe me or not, for me, it's the vocals.
00:29:44
Speaker
The lead vocals are usually for me the most remarkable thing about their sound regardless of all the weirdness of arrangements and structures and all that stuff. I'm saying this because it sounds like he's imposing that vocal style over
00:30:03
Speaker
everything that's going on is like I don't really care that's how I sing. It is intrusive isn't it? Yeah and it's like I don't care if this is more jazzy or more electronic or more classical. I sing this way and that's my thing and that's how I'm going to do it. I mean that's the impression I get and I just want to make sure I get the
00:30:23
Speaker
the actual reference. There's a song that I found quite punk at the beginning. There's more print. There's the flams on snare and kick. I just want to get the right name. It's a really, really punk kind of intro, not as fast as most punk songs, but it could be kind of a Green Day sort of vibe. But then as soon as the vocal starts, you're like, oh, let's move.
00:30:47
Speaker
Can I just add to that and say that news are at the back end. News just missed out on the Britpop battle between Blur, Oasis, Radiohead. How lucky are they?
00:31:03
Speaker
Seriously, they wouldn't be a part of that thing. Yeah, you're right. But the small print reminded me of one of Radiohead's earlier songs, which are quite heavy, from the album called The Bends. So I'll put the song The Bends in, you guys can check it out. Just hear how rocky it is and how simplistic as well, just like those Radiohead songs in the early days. So I'll put that in the playlist.
00:31:27
Speaker
I want to talk to you two sets of musical takeaways that I've got from this. Number one, the dynamics of the album. Each song I just thought utilized dynamics fantastically. Let's look at it. Sing for Absolution, just how timid and quiet the verses are before
00:31:51
Speaker
the eruption of the chorus and how loud all the instruments are, and not necessarily loud in terms of volume of the instruments, but how softly he sings in the verses compared to how much louder it is in the chorus. And for listeners who don't know dynamics in music means how hard or how soft you play your instrument.
00:32:11
Speaker
And I think it just, again, adds to the atmosphere that we hear the wide range of dynamics. Time is running out. That intro is soft and quiet, and the first verses, and then you build up, bury it, and you kind of, but that time is, and then it's just all in, full on. Yeah, it's just to be careful if you're listening to this on headphones, sometimes you bring it up, because you're like, oh, it's really quiet, isn't it? And it just explodes into your ears, and it's amazing.
00:32:39
Speaker
That's right. It can get quite loud. The other musical thing I wanted to draw attention to was, now this might be a bit nerdy, but syncopation.
Musical Techniques in 'Absolution'
00:32:50
Speaker
Here we go. Syncopation. Now for listeners who don't know, syncopation is when you play a note on the off beat. So I'm going to give you an example in the context of the album and I'll explain why I think it's important afterwards.
00:33:03
Speaker
sing for absolution okay so here's the riff it goes i'll be on the beat it goes dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun so the the main melody goes on the beat but the bass syncopates the bass goes like this
00:33:23
Speaker
And you've got this contrast between the main melody and the bass. Yes, somehow it works really well. And unlike disc or reggae or other styles that normally use that kind of stuff, you don't have that in rock music as often as they use it. The song Hysteria, syncopation in the verse hi-hats.
00:33:51
Speaker
And then there was one more, which was endlessly, syncopation in the hi-hat, but we said it's kind of jazzy and bosser.
00:34:01
Speaker
Now the reason that this stood out for me is because syncopation as a concept is what as Felipe said is what you hear in jazz you hear it in funk and bossa a lot of latin music a lot of disco because syncopation
00:34:17
Speaker
can equal groove and groove means you dance and you move and you're sort of you know enjoying yourself syncopation is not sometimes you just don't want to be too groovy if you're in a rock band well i was just going to say that syncopation yeah exactly syncopation is not a normal rock characteristic because with rock music we like to bang our heads on the beat don't we yes that's what it is what is rock and roll us
00:34:43
Speaker
Rock and roll is musical freedom, Felipe. There you go. But, you know, take a song like Whole Lotta Love. On the beat. And I just think that Muse have done this perfectly because they don't overdo it. They don't do it in every song. But when they do do it, you've got the verses or the softer sections with all of the examples of syncopation I just gave you. Yet all the choruses, they come back in on the one and bring the power back.
00:35:11
Speaker
But, you know, syncopation. Hysteria. But I want it now. And then they're all in. I want it now. They're always on the beat. Brilliant. I just thought it's so good just to utilize a tiny little musical, unrock-like musical characteristic to bolster a song and just to give it another edge. I thought it was brilliant.
00:35:35
Speaker
No, they do it really well. It's all like really well thought. They're not doing things like by accident. It's like there's a lot of thought into that. I have another question for you. Do you have like one or two favorite songs from the album? Time is running out would have to be a number one. Then sing for Absolution.
00:36:07
Speaker
and then tied in third place Stockholm Syndrome and Apocalypse, please.
00:36:13
Speaker
I think the opening to the album is phenomenal. I think the atmosphere, the apocalyptic feel, the obvious hints, I say hints, the obvious classical music put in your face at the start of Apocalypse Please with those piano thumps. It's just brilliant. I think those, the first fight, but then, you know, add to that falling away with you. And then look after that hysteria. The whole first half of the album is phenomenal, but for me,
00:36:40
Speaker
those first four songs really make it good. You're talking about the beginning of the album, but I normally get disappointed when an album has a great, great first song. And the last song was just a filler. In this case, tell you what I think, Ruled by Secrecy is one of my top three songs in the album. Wow. That's really interesting. I wouldn't have guessed that for you.
00:37:07
Speaker
for a couple of reasons. One, it brings some horror movie vibes. It's like something's about to happen here and the piano at the end, for me, sounds a lot like a tango.
00:37:22
Speaker
believe me or not. Listen to it. I don't know what kind of aspects of music theory can be mentioned to justify my opinion on this. Maybe just a drummer's opinion. But it does sound like a tango. I've just got the ending popping into my head. And I hear that. It's just the rhythm. Let us react.
00:37:45
Speaker
No, it's just I think the rhythm and the feel of the drums, because the piano is playing a bit out of shape. But the drums staying nice and straight on it, it kind of provides a little contrast. And it's really dramatic. It's like, and in the end, they didn't leave any hope. It's just like, yeah, that's it, you know, it's all dark and sad and miserable.
00:38:07
Speaker
Yeah. You're going to hear it from the first notes, but the song really reminds me of one by Radiohead called Everything in its Right Place, which I'm putting in my playlist right now for listeners. So check that one out. Again, I think Muse have probably have people like Radiohead to thank. Oh yeah. Because Radiohead,
00:38:27
Speaker
For those who aren't, did you know much about Radiohead? Not really, I know a couple of albums. I think they're great. I don't know why I never got into them. They're hard. They're in a quiet taste, I have to admit, and I love some of their songs and I can't listen to others. Radiohead were like the third
00:38:48
Speaker
main Britpop band after Blur and Oasis. I don't know if that's entirely fair there were loads of other bands but my point is that of those that made a name for themselves yeah Blur and Oasis battling it out through the 90s and Radiohead kind of came in towards the end of the 90s
00:39:05
Speaker
and put their mark in. But since then, what Radiohead have done, Radiohead have been an extremely experimental band, experimenting with loads of different genres, electronic atmospheres, soundscapes, all that stuff. And the more you hear, if you listen to Radiohead albums in order, you can just hear their sound progress. And I think, I genuinely think Muse have Radiohead to thank as a sort of inspiration of a British band.
00:39:29
Speaker
Is it like Raider had made those weird experiments with sounds part of mainstream music? Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, you're right. And I think they played a big part in that. But yeah, awesome. I mean, I've spoken about the only other thing I wanted to address was that you said about
00:39:50
Speaker
We're talking about, you said that they spent time on the album and I think that's something to address as well. They recorded it between September 2002 and June 2003. That's a long process, that's like eight months, isn't it? Yeah, we saw on the documentary and what I'll do guys, I'll put the link to the documentary on YouTube in the show notes, that'll be down there below for you.
00:40:13
Speaker
The whole documentary starts off with them recording the rhythm of Apocalypse Please, the intro, the dong, gow, chow, chow. They're recording that in many different places. You've got them in a small room jumping to create a sound on the floor. You've got them hitting a sheet of metal. You've got the drummer bringing the big bass drum, the orchestral bass, not the drum kit bass drum, an orchestral bass drum into a swimming pool.
00:40:41
Speaker
and hitting it in time. And even with things like time is running out, they were all stood around the microphone clicking. And you see them all in a room clicking. Maybe that's what makes the electronic part of it not sound like so electronic because you always have the human element. Yeah. Yeah. Like as like someone tapping their feet or hitting a random object. I think there's a there's a video
00:41:07
Speaker
that one of them is hitting a music stand with a drumstick. Yes. Like you have those metal music standing studios for the sheet. And they're clicking on it. And I just, yeah, it's like hitting, they're using objects. You've got the modern side of electronic soundscapes and effects going very heavy on one side, but then you've got the human element on the other side of just normal clicks. Brilliant, isn't it? Amazing.
00:41:31
Speaker
But yeah, that's that's all I wanted to say is that it's obviously they took a very long time and to make everything perfect and to make everything right.
00:41:41
Speaker
I just sort of mentioned that one of my favorite parts, I think my two favorite songs are one after another, Stockholm Syndrome and Falling Away With You, and the fact that you have something so heavy and the relentless drum beat with the toms on Stockholm Syndrome, and then after that you have something that sounds a bit folk on the intro. A Falling Away With You, when
00:42:08
Speaker
When he gets heavy, I didn't see that coming.
00:42:12
Speaker
But it doesn't throw you off, does it? No, it was like, wait a minute, I wasn't expecting this because they do that a lot, but specifically in this song, it didn't sound like they would turn into a heavy song. And yeah, so there is like a lot of unpredictable moments in the album. And that's, I think, what made me listen to it over and over. It's really good. I loved it. Thanks for choosing this one because I wasn't familiar with the album. That's no problem. You enjoyed it, yeah?
00:42:40
Speaker
Oh yeah, I loved it. Brilliant, that's awesome stuff. In terms of specifics in songs, I think I've said most of all what I want to say. I think songs like, you know, a song like Hysteria, where you've got everything, you've got a distorted heavy bass riff.
00:42:57
Speaker
the song is still following that theme of doom and apocalypticness or whatever. Yet the chorus is just so accessible and so anthemic. And everyone around the world, I'm gonna take that back because I'm exaggerating, a lot of people know that main. It's been used on like adverts for cars or something. Yeah, everyone hears it and goes, oh, I know that.
00:43:26
Speaker
And then you take it back. I remember when I first heard that, when I first...
00:43:30
Speaker
I don't know if we had Shazam back when I was, you know, the app Shazam, when you do the thing. I had to have been something else I used, but anyway, I heard that the main hook, if you want to call it, of Hysteria. And when I played it, when I found that, oh, it's from Hysteria by Muse. When I played it, I thought, no, this can't be the right song because it's not linking up. How can what I'm hearing at the start of this song be where the song goes? And I was very young, so I didn't obviously, you know,
00:43:58
Speaker
understood that music can evolve and everything. But I just, it's just so good. And then the chorus as well. Oh, man, what just some great songwriting. The only other thing I want to touch on is how heavy some of the album is. You know, and I think there's a clear I think there's a line in general, not just music. I think there's a line between hard rock and heavy metal.
00:44:18
Speaker
And I think quite often on this album, Muse step over the line into the heavy metal side of it. And they do it sometimes like kind of out of the blue. It's not like the song starts heavy necessarily. They jump into that heaviness and then they go back to something else. It's really cool. The other thing I wanted to mention is it's a particular, I don't know what I'd call it, a musical quote that I love using.
00:44:48
Speaker
And I use it often to explain jazz, and those are two words, tension and release. And the way I describe this in jazz is I say this, when you're hearing the stuff in jazz that's a bit all, you know, the odd notes, the notes that don't quite settle, what a jazz musician, and I'm generalizing, but it goes with the argument, it is a generalization of jazz.
00:45:09
Speaker
is that they create the tension in the jazz instruments by playing the notes that don't seem to fit, because in the next bar, they're going to release that tension with notes that do fit. Something predictable. Exactly. That feels comfortable to listen to. Yeah. And I like the words tension and release with this album, because if you think of Stockholm Syndrome, you've got that, the whole verse and the pre-chorus are very heavy,
00:45:38
Speaker
And then, I'm just trying to think how to go into it. You've got the riff comes like, even those notes, it's not dissonant, but it must be minor. It doesn't feel quite right. And it's not nice. And then suddenly, this, and it releases into the chorus.
00:45:57
Speaker
is the last and they're all the then the chords just holding slowly below it i think they do it quite often on this album create tension not in the way i'm talking about with jazz or dissonance or minor chords but they create some form of aural tension and then release it in the form of a nice chorus or something it's it's brilliant i think it's a brilliant album yeah it is and it's like the it's almost like they have a formula but still
00:46:27
Speaker
they can still surprise you. And it does surprise you, doesn't it? Like when you get halfway through the album, like butterflies and hurricanes, three quarters of the way through, you think the song's over and then you just get this piece of classical piano out of nowhere. And like we said at the start when we talked about this, it fits. It doesn't not work. It's brilliant, brilliant, brilliant stuff, man. Did you have anything else you wanted to touch on? I think, to be honest, I just want to
00:46:56
Speaker
I want to listen to the album again and I want to recommend it to people. I think this is one of those albums that the second time we listened to is definitely not the same thing. I felt like the first time was disturbing.
00:47:13
Speaker
I had the same feeling with Awake by Dream Theater, which we also call it. And the show, when I first listened to it when I was younger, I felt quite disturbing and dark. But there's something about the second or third time around that just makes you enjoy it more. Yeah, just that's all I wanted to say. It does, yeah. I mean, the only other thing I want to talk about is what this album did for Muse and their
Impact of 'Absolution' on Muse's Career
00:47:40
Speaker
success, their fame, their trajectory. Commercially, this album and songs of this album saw them break into the top 10. Time is Running Out was a top 10 single for the first time in their career. Overall, the album achieved platinum success, higher chart position, and it really helped news break into the mainstream success and expand their fan base. And as Felipe said at the start, from then on, they can go and tour arenas. Critically,
00:48:08
Speaker
it was very, very welcomed and really, really well praised. It just, it solidified their reputation as one of the important alt rock bands, alongside bands like Radiohead in the early 2000s, you know, just experimenting and showing what you can do. In terms of the diversification of their sound, they maintained a cohesive signature style, but yet draw or drew on so many other inspirations, your Latin, your metal, your classical, your electronic,
00:48:38
Speaker
but still maintained a signature sound. It baffles me. I hear how much influence there is on this album and I hear some so obviously classical sections, some so obviously Latin bossa sections, yet it still doesn't ever not sound like news. I still think there's a lot to do with the vocals. And you're right in thinking that.
00:49:04
Speaker
Yeah, the only other part, yeah, hit singles, like I said, they broke into the top, in the charts, top 10, means more plays on the radio, expanding a fan base. Playing arenas after that. Arenas because the international success of the album, you know, worked for them. Anything else you want to say, bro? Well, I want to hear a monologue. Ah, of course it's time for that. I'm sure you've got one. Yeah, of course I do, yeah. Yeah, so we'll go for that. We'll go for the monologue and then we'll call it a day there.
00:49:35
Speaker
Muse's absolution to me is a fantastic example of how to encompass and integrate a multitude of musical styles and genres seamlessly whilst keeping an identity and signature sound in place. The ambition needed to combine the likes of classical and symphonic elements, metal heaviness and riffage, Latin rhythms and vibes and electronic soundscapes and atmosphere
00:49:59
Speaker
with your standard hard rock bass is courageous and commendable, but to pull it off and execute it as brilliantly as Muse have is, in my mind, genius.
00:50:09
Speaker
With everything I've described and how I've described it, you'd be forgiven for thinking that this was a really niche, obscure, progressive album that wouldn't be in everyone's tastes. Yet we have accessible choruses, accessible riffs and accessible hooks everywhere. Songs that did so well in terms of chart position and popularity upon release just goes to prove that.
00:50:32
Speaker
Musically, they have succeeded in everything they set out to do. The mix, the textures, the layers, the balance of styles, all perfectly executed. Lyrically, the album has an incredibly apocalyptic feel to start off with. Lots of tension and darkness create a haunting sensation that lingers over you throughout. However,
00:50:53
Speaker
some of this darkness is alleviated as we progress through and the content of the songs starts to change from the initial apocalyptic doom and gloom to more of a questioning the meaning of life and existentialism. It really does take the listener on an introspective journey. Now I'm not a massive fan of every song and if I was being very critical I feel like musically Thoughts of a Dying Atheist and The Small Print
00:51:19
Speaker
are a little simplistic and out of place compared to the rest. But for the most part, I really, really, really enjoyed the album and felt totally immersed in it, from the grandeur opening piano chords of Apocalypse, Please, to the softer, haunting, dissipating end of Ruled by Secrecy. It truly is a sonic experience that plays with your mind and senses throughout, leaving me very impressed and in awe of the musical experience I've just been treated to.
00:51:50
Speaker
There you go. What an album. Now I know I chose it, but we'll end with my question to you. As a new listener to this album, because I feel like the question I'm about to ask you I've answered in my monologue, as a new listener to this album, very quickly, have you heard much more news?
00:52:12
Speaker
No, not really, just like songs. The hits, songs here and there. As a new listener to this album, what is rock and roll about this album to you? Oh, that they're not afraid of trying new sounds. I think that's what it is. And they also don't seem to care about the fact that there's nothing
00:52:43
Speaker
uplifting about the songwriting. It's so dark and that's acceptable in rock music and nowhere else. But yet, as I've said, some of the songs could be good.
00:52:57
Speaker
I gotta be careful what I say here. I'm not saying some of the songs are pop songs, but some of the songs were played on the radio to the levels of pop songs. Time is Running Out was played so much on radio. So is Hysteria. Yet it's dark, gloomy and heavy with a distorted fuzzy bass. Yep. And still a hit. It works. There we go. They deserve the success they have. They deserve to be the band they are.
00:53:26
Speaker
Yeah, you know, excellent stuff. Right, well, we'll leave it there. Thank you very much for joining us for another episode of the Long Live Rock and Roll podcast. As we say at the end of every episode, please get involved with us on our social media, because it really helps us, you know, give us a like, comment, subscribe on YouTube. Where can they find us? Ah, you can find us. Wait, I've got to do the Felipe one. You can find us on the internet.
00:53:51
Speaker
Anywhere on the internet, just like, just type. Oh, so you want me to be specific now, right. So yeah. So all on the social medias, we are at Long Live RNR Pod. Just get involved. We're always putting posts up and discussions and the little clips from the show. So, you know, let us know your thoughts on this album and anything we've said. If we say something you disagree with, let us know in the comments. We don't mind, you know, in the end, it's all opinion, but it's just about chatting about the music we love.
00:54:19
Speaker
If you're listening to us on your podcast platforms, your Spotify, your Apple, 30 seconds of your time would be hugely appreciated if you would go and give us a review. You can hit the five stars if you think we're worthy of that. And one little sentence saying what you think of us would be really appreciated as it helps us climb up the charts and we'll be seen by more people. So thank you very much for joining us again.
00:54:41
Speaker
Yeah, thanks for following us all this time. And for you, if you're listening to us for the first time, thanks for being with us. Hope you enjoyed it. Keep on rocking, everyone. And? What's the second part of your new thing? Oh, I need to say something else. I forgot, because that's the new thing. Keep on rocking and don't do anything I would do. Yes, yeah.
00:55:07
Speaker
my favorite part. You say a lot of awesome stuff on the show but my favorite part is that signature line. I've said it before but I'll say it again every time myself and Felipe say goodbye in person or on the phone or here because all right lads see you later. Don't do anything I wouldn't do. I love it. I love it. Keep on rocking everyone and don't do anything I wouldn't do. And as usual take care guys and long live Rock n Rock.